By Simon Peter Emwamu & Joseph Omollo
A severe cement crisis that has forced many wholesale and retail sellers to wave off customers due to an acute shortage has been explained.
Over the last two weeks, the supply of cement for the construction industry has reduced drastically, with a few outlets with minimal supply hiking the prices from Shs31,000 to Shs45,000 per bag.
Tororo cement which accounts for the lion’s share of the cement market
in Uganda with an estimated production of 1.8m metric tons says the current crisis is mere indication of increased demand for cement.
Brig Morgan Gagranihe, Executive Director, Tororo Cement tells Daily Monitor that they have also had interruptions in production because of reduced power supply.
To fill the void for short supply of cement in the market, Gagranihe says Tororo Cement Limited, will increase its production from 1.8M metric tons to as much as 3M metric tonnes in order to meet the increased demand of cement for construction in East African region.
He confirms that Tororo cement factory is in the final stages of commissioning a new and modern cement manufacturing plant worth Shs114bn as part of strategies to increase and stabilize its production by 2026.
