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An aerial shot of MV Uhuru II being constructed at the Kenya Shipyards Limited in Kisumu. FILE PHOTO | NMG
In August this year, the MV Uhuru 2 will set sail for the first time. This will be a major milestone in Kenya’s marine industry as it will be the first ship to have been assembled locally.
Kenya will be the third country after South Africa and Egypt to have a facility that can fully assemble certified ships.
The ship, with is over 50 percent complete, is being assembled in Kisumu by the Kenya Shipyard Limited (KSL), which was launched in 2019.
KSL says assembling the ship locally has saved the Kenyan taxpayers Sh1.3 billion, an amount that would have been used in imports.
“This will be a major milestone in our country when we launch MV Uhuru 2 in August. We have saved taxpayers a lot of money that would have been used in importation,” said Col Peter Muthungu, KSL deputy managing director.
The new ship will be instrumental in increasing the revenue coming out of Lake Victoria by joining the MV Uhuru 1 that is so far operational after it was jointly revived by the Kenya Navy and Kenya Railways after stalling for years.
The navy spent Sh50 million to bring back the ship into operations while it would have cost Sh1.8 million for it to be fixed elsewhere, according to Col Muthungu.
MV 1 has so far made 90 voyages to Uganda, carrying 1.9 million litres of fuel to Port Bell in Jinja, taking off a good number of trucks out of the road.
The MV 1 is conducting two trips in a week, charging $20 a tonne, while the same would cost $36 on the road.
Refitting of the MV Uhuru 1 was done in 2019 by Kenya Railways and Kenya Defence Forces, after being grounded for 15 years. The vessel was officially relaunched on May 31, 2021, by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
To tap into the petroleum products transportation business from Kenya Pipeline Corporation (KPC) Depot in Kisumu to Uganda through MV Uhuru, Kenya Railways constructed a new 1.8km railway line to KPC depot.
Kenya Railways manages the ship but the military has been repairing locomotives for the corporation.
KSL has received six orders for the construction of ships from Tanzania and Uganda, raising the business prospects of the newly formed entity. The firm has also received another 11 orders from local firms for the construction of ships, coming as a major boost to the military-backed entity.
KSL says its partnership with Damen Construction Company which has shipyards in South Africa and Egypt and 39 others across the globe, to enhance Kenya’s quests to be a regional ship construction hub in its long-term strategy.
The firm has hired Damen, a Dutch-based international shipyard group, which is assisting with consultancy services on ship construction as well as offering the technical expertise required.
KSL is a government-backed shipbuilding and repair facility that was borne out of the need for a maritime facility that is able to repair, maintain, refit, construct ships and provide other maritime services.
It is projected to be the main hub for ship construction for not only government ministries, departments and agencies but also for the entire East African region.
Kenya-assembled MV Uhuru to set maiden sail in August
Kenya will be the third country after South Africa and Egypt to have a facility that can fully assemble certified ships.
www.businessdailyafrica.com
