NAMIBIA on Thursday celebrated the biggest cement factory on the continent when President Hifikepunye Pohamba officially opened the Schwenk group's N$3,5 billion Ohorongo Cement - the highest private German investment since Independence - on the farm Sargberg near Otavi.
The plant was built in two years and is producing the first bags of cement for the local market. Once the plant is in full operation it will produce approximately 700 000 tons of cement per year.
The packaging plant can pack 4 400 bags per hour. Cement will be produced for the local market and Angola, although countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe and Botswana have also shown interest in the cement.
The quarry has a lifespan of 300 years.
The plant will employ 300 people and will create indirect employment for another 2 000. The canteen, transport to and from the plant, security and laundry services have all been outsourced.
Additionally, the pallet factory and railway sleeper factory all create job opportunities. President Pohamba said at the opening: "We expect that it will have a multiplier effect in terms of employment creation and service industries that could develop around this major project."
Ohorongo Cement is the most modern cement plant in Africa, equipped with the latest technology designed to deliver the highest levels of output with the least impact on the surroundings and the environment.
The application of the best technology allows for a 30 per cent reduction in power consumption compared to other cement plants. It also saves on water consumption by making use of air quenching technology. During the opening Prime Minister Nahas Angula said: "This is a historic moments as all the different materials are found here, the technology is brought here, employment is created here and value is added here. Previously people would go to Africa take the raw materials and add value somewhere else, thus also creating employment somewhere else."
Ohorongo Cement has founded the Ohorongo Otavi Community Trust in partnership with the Otavi Town Council. For the past year the trust has concentrated on upgrading the Otavi clinic.
Besides building renovations, the clinic received hospital beds and other equipment worth more than N$1 million.
The Trust has also provided people with albinism with sun-block, sunglasses and protective clothing. The children's playground in Otavi has also been painted and refurbished.
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