PTA approves US$138m grant for Infrastructure and other projects in Tanzania

 The government of Tanzania has received a US$138m grant from the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (PTA). The funds will be used in three infrastructural projects and three syndicated loans. Kilwa Energy will receive US$50m, while 21st Century which is a food and packaging firm will get US$20m and Sea rock getting US$3m of the funds set aside for infrastructure. Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) received US$20m of the syndicated loan; the.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Proposed Dangote cement factory in Kenya: production capacity revised to 3 million tonnes per year

The proposed Dangote cement factory in Kenya is now set to produce double the initial planned capacity, indicating the rise in demand of cement in Kenya. The announcement, made in the company’s trading update, could also fuel price wars for cement in Kenya. The company said it was reviewing plans for Kenya, with a proposal of increasing the cement production capacity from 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTA) to 3MTA. The proposed Dangote cement factory in Kenya will be set up in.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Demand for construction equipment in Kenya to go up due to upcoming roads projects

 Many construction projects in Kenya, among them the government’s commitment to construct 10, 000 km of additional network, is set to increase demand for construction equipment. The Kenya Rural Roads Authority (Kerra) has also indicated that the roads network requires 540 excavators, 1080 rollers and 1440 movers to implement. This is good news for the suppliers and dealers of construction equipment in the region. According to Kerra, some construction equipment cannot be.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Outer Ring Road in Kenya to be expanded into a dual carriage at US$82m

 Sino Hydro Tianjin Engineering will undertake expanding of the Outer Ring Road in Nairobi, Kenya at a cost of US$82m. This is after beating other eight firms that submitted bids in the tendering process. The 13 km stretch that feeds the Thika superhighway on the one end will now be expanded into a two-lane dual carriage. Instead of roundabouts, interchanges will now be used. The expansion is expected to start from October this year. The expansion will see improved connection.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

US$11bn new Bagamoyo port project in Tanzania to kick off this year

 GULF Energy has won the tender for the development of a 960 megawatt coal plant in Lamu, the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum announced yesterday. However two other firms which had shown interest in the tender and made it to the tip list and considering appealing the award. The chairman of the Lamu coal tender evaluation team, Simon Ngure said Gulf Energy demonstrated it will bill the lowest fuel charge even after the fuel price for importing coal was changed from $100 per.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Tanzania s Ngaka Basin can produce one billion tons of high quality thermal coal

 Tanzania has the potential of bringing birth to one billion tons of high quality thermal coal. The expected one billion tons of thermal coal would come from Tancoal proven coal resources that are in the excess of 200 million tons, plus the Ngaka Basin, Mbalawala and Mbuyura/ Mkapa sub-basins. Tancoal’s Chief Operating Officer, Tarn Brereton, confirmed this and said that out of this revelation, Ngaka Coal Mine reserves can serve Tanzania by producing 300KW of electricity.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Kenya: Sh11 Billion for Electricity in Rural Schools &Homes

 THE government will spend Sh11 billion on rural electrification programmes this year. The plan aims to connect more than 1 million households, primary schools, markets and other public facilities to the power grid. Rural Electrification Authority chairman Simon Gicharu said the government has provided enough funding. "By the end of 2015 we will have achieved our target. This will completely turn around the economy," he said. Gicharu was speaking at Kiplombe in.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Two Kenyan firms win US$2bn Lamu coal plant project bid

 Two local firms, Gulf Energy Limited and Centum Investment Company Limited, have successfully won the bid for construction of the Lamu coal plant. The power plant is going to be constructed at a cost of US$2bn in Mombasa, Kenya. US$500m to be used in construction will be provided by equity fund, and the balance will be funded through debt. Once complete, the plant is expected to add up to 960MW of electricity to Kenya’s national grid. The move for undertaking the Lamu.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Banana, avocado and citrus - boosting African exports

 Banana, avocado and citrus farmers in Africa will now be able to export their produce to lucrative markets in Europe, the Middle East and South Africa, thanks to new research. "Previously, banana, citrus and avocado from many African countries were banned by several importing countries due to the presence of an invasive Asian fruit fly, known asBactrocera invadens," explains Dr Sunday Ekesi, a scientist with icipe. "Our studies have now convinced countries.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Kenya: Plant breeding academy to improve nutrition

 The African Plant Breeding Academy has been established in Nairobi, Kenya, by the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC)* to improve the livelihoods of Africa's smallholder farmers, reduce hunger and boost Africa's food supply. The Academy will use the latest scientific equipment and techniques to genetically sequence, assemble and annotate the genomes of 100 traditional African food crops to guide the development of more robust products with higher nutritional content, that are.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Kenyan consortium says wins tender to build 1 000 MW coal plant

 A consortium led by two Kenyan firms won a government tender to build a 1 000-MW, coal-fired power plant, company officials said on Tuesday, part of moves to satisfy rising demand for energy in East Africa's biggest economy.Kenya suffers from regular blackouts due to supply shortfalls and an aging grid, forcing most businesses and wealthy people to have stand-by generators. Businesses cite frequent power outages as a barrier to economic growth.Centum Investment and its local.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014

Ghana:Delayed gas project to start production end-2014 – President

  Ghana's delayed project to supply gas from its offshore Jubilee oil field will start production by the end of the year, President John Mahama said on Tuesday during a visit to the site.   "Some gas will start flowing soon but commissioning will be when the full volume of 120-million standard cubic feet of gas is being tramsitted to Aboadze and I suppose that will be sometime by the end of this year," Mahama told reporters.Ghana's economy has grown strongly.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 3rd September 2014