DBSA grants loan to Tanzanian cement company

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A US25 million loan has been granted by the Development Bank of Southern Africa to Maweni Limestone, a subsidiary of Athi River Mining, for the establishment of a cement plant in Tanzania, the bank said on Thursday.

The clinker and cement grinding plant would have a capacity to produce one million tons of cement for Tanzania and the Southern African Development Community region as a whole which would assist in infrastructure development, the DBSA said.

“We estimate that the project will generate approximately 1600 jobs at the factory and an additional 9000 jobs in auxiliary industries and business related to outsourced transportation, distribution and marketing services of the cement, said the DBSA’s chief executive officer Paul Baloyi.

The project was estimated to be in full operation by 2011.

The US25m loan was part of the US80m funding put aside by a consortium of regional development finance institutions that included the East African Development Bank and the PTA Bank.

Funding has been put together through a senior debt instrument on a nine year tenure inclusive of a two year moratorium to cover the project implementation period, the DBSA said.

“This deal represents an important strategic project for the region with direct impact on economic development,” said PTA Bank president and chief executive officer Michael Gondwe.

Baloyi said the deal signified the DBSA’s commitment to “deepening the developmental agenda in freeing the country and the region from poverty and dependency.”

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