UGANDA: Hima appeals over rights
Cement makers, Hima Cement Limited, say that they have successfully challenged the giving away of their vital limestone concession in Kasese, Western Uganda.
Limestone is a main input in cement production. Hima is owned by French multinational giant, LaFarge.
According to David Njoroge, the company’s General Manager, they successfully challenged the move during an Administrative Review process that was conducted in accordance with the Mining Act.
It cited various instances of breach of the requirements of the law in the handover of its mining rights to the third party. Njoroge said the matter went to the High Court and has now progressed to the Court of Appeal.
“A stay of the orders of the High Court has been applied for and the appeal process has been commenced seeking to overturn the ruling of the High Court,” Njoroge said.
Hima has been embroiled in a dispute for over a year with a company that sought to take away its core limestone reserves in Kasese.
Njoroge in a statement to East African Business Week indicated that they challenged the court order because Hima Cement Limited was originally registered in 1994 as Hima Cement (1994) Limited.
It duly changed its name to the current Hima Cement Limited in 1999 and it has been filling its annual returns and all its company documents under the said name since 1999.
“Indeed Hima Cement Limited has a certificate of change of name issued by the Registrar of Companies in 1999 signifying the said change,” Njoroge said in a statement.
It is on record that in 2010, Hima Cement Limited invested over $120 million in a new plant to double its production capacity to 850,000 metric tonnes of cement per year.
The decision to make this investment was driven by the availability of adequate reserves of limestone in the now contested area to support the Plant and the secondary effect of taking away the mining lease would be the cessation of production at Hima.
This decision was made will full knowledge and support from the Government of Uganda and elaborate investment plans were presented to the Department of Geological Surveys and Mines.
Hima Cement Limited pays over Ush40b ($16m) in taxes to the government making it one of the biggest tax payers. It directly and indirectly employs over 2,000 people ranging from its own.
Ugandan staff employees, transporters, suppliers of raw materials for manufacture as well as distributors.
This year, the company is scheduled to install a Ush8b ($3.2m) Bag Filter technology in its old plant which will reduce dust emissions and bring them to internationally accepted standards.
It is also important to note that increased cement production has saved the country over $1b in foreign exchange which can be deployed elsewhere to improve infrastructure and provision of social services
Njoroge said that the Government has dealt with Hima Cement Limited under the said name since 1999.
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