Tata Chemicals plans Sh2.4b expansion despite headwinds

Tata Chemicals Magadi Ltd has embarked on an ambitious Sh2.4 billion expansion plan to help spur the growth of the Africa’s largest soda ash manufacturer.

Established in 1911 as Magadi Soda, the company has been producing natural soda ash at Lake Magadi in Kajiado County, for over a hundred years.

Despite the global economic downtimes, Tata Chemicals Ltd CEO Subodh Srivastav said the export-oriented company remains the singular largest foreign exchange earner for the country.

He said the company has come up with elaborate strategic plans which have help to protect its 490 employees and 800 contractors from mass layoffs amid shrinking business in the last five years, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic period.

Srivastav said the company will inject Sh2.4 billion equivalent to $15 million capital towards its operations in the country eyeing double digits growth in the next five years. Part of the capital will be utilised to expand the Magadi plant technology.

“Business in the recent past has faced challenges owing to the world dynamics which has slowed down spending across the globe. We are optimistic that the export business which is gradually picking will be lucrative soon.

Tata Chemicals intends to expand its operation in a bid to make the business more sustainable and safeguard its existing workforce as well as open more job opportunities. We will inject $15 million to expand our plant and enhance the technology used in both mining and processing,” said the CEO.

Tata Chemicals also owns Kajiado Town Depot which also serves as a warehouse for their products enroute to Mombasa via the railway line.

Economic growth

“Expanding our business will boost the country’s economic growth because it means we pay more taxes to the government. We are a tax-compliant manufacturer,” he said.

Tata Chemicals Ltd is the biggest foreign-owned company in the entire Kajiado County in terms of capacity and financial muscles.

The company occupies 224,991-acre piece of land. It harvests trona which is a natural resource from Lake Magadi. The soda ash is processed into edible salt and used to manufacture glass among a range of other uses.

This development comes amid concerns informed by the announcement by County government of Kajiado of its intention to shut down the manufacturer over unpaid land rate arrears.

The company has been embroiled in a long-running feud over land rates, levies and permits. The Sh10 billion levies row has boiled over with the shutdown of the Kajiado depot, putting over 500 jobs and billions of revenues on the line.

Hope of livelihood

Locals consider the multi-national trona manufacturer as the lifeline of the economy of the remote Kajiado West sub -County and as their last hope of livelihood.

Besides the employment of hundreds of locals who work for the company, millions given in education bursaries and scholarships, health and water are other challenges the firm has helped them with.

Magadi Level 4 Hospital, owned and managed by Tata Chemicals, is the only health facility the entire division depends on for critical medical services. In a radius of over 100 km, it is the only facility with ambulance services.

The 55-bed capacity hospital has also become a beckon of hope for maternal health care and is said to have reduced child mortality.