A truck leaves the Bamburi Cement factory. PHOTO | FILE The Kenyan construction industry has experienced speedy growth in the past decade driven by a huge demand for housing and the government’s focus on mega infrastructure projects .
Thriving in tandem with the sector, the production of cement rose from a low of 154,781 tonnes in January 2005 to a monthly record-high of 584,780 tonnes in November 2016.
Indeed, data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics show that cement consumption in the country hit 6.5 million tonnes last year up from 5.9 million tonnes in 2019, driven by developers who defied Covid-19-related restrictions to build their properties.
The 2020 consumption level is just 200,000 tonnes shy of the all-time record of 6.7 million tonnes that were consumed in 2014 during construction of the standard gauge railway.
Attracted by this growth, several companies have ventured into the cement business in Kenya bringing to five the total number of top cement producers in the country.
Of the five, only two cement companies, namely East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC), and Bamburi Cement, are listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.
The five biggest cement manufacturers in Kenya include:- 1. Bamburi Cement Limited
Bamburi is the largest cement company in Kenya – boasting local preeminence in production and market share with a 32.6 per cent control of the market. It was founded in 1951.
Who owns Bamburi Cement?
Lafarge Group, the largest cement manufacturer in the world, is the company’s largest shareholder controlling a 58.6 per cent stake with Old Mutual Life Assurance Company, Kenya Reinsurance Corporation and the NSSF being the other major shareholders.
The company has two plants located in Bamburi and Athi River, with a total production of 2.1 million tonnes per year and has a subsidiary in Uganda (Hima Cement Limited).Besides cement, the company also produces precast concrete and paving blocks and is the undisputed leader of cement business in Kenya. 2. National Cement Company The company was founded by the Devki Group in 2008. The producer of Simba Cement was previously the smallest of the then six largest producers with 8 per cent market share.However, National Cement has seen its market share rise to 21 per cent following the acquisition of ARM Africa Plc. , the producer of Rhino Cement, which was once the third largest cement manufacturer in Kenya.National Cement, whose main factories are in Athi River, has an annual production capacity of 2 million […]
