By BUUMBA CHIMBULU
A US$308 million fertiliser plant which is expected to be producing about 300, 000 metric tonnes per annum is currently underway.
The project being undertaken by the United Capital Fertiliser Zambia Limited is expected to reduce the cost of fertiliser on the local market as the key raw materials in the production process will be sourced locally.
This has elated the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) Acting Director General, Albert Halwampa.
Mr Halwampa said the Agency is also pleased that the company is not only looking at servicing the local market but is also the export market which will increase the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
“We want to make sure that together we create wealth and employment for the people of Zambia,” he stated.
Mr Halwampa noted that the Agency did not want to see the project fail as everybody was waiting for the commissioning of the project.
He stated that what makes the project more appealing is the fact that it was environmentally friendly without carbon emissions and made it eligible for the Green Fund.
The company acquired an Investment Certificate from the ZDA in 2021 for the construction of a Fertiliser Plant.
Meanwhile, United Capital Fertiliser Company Limited Board Member, Roy Mwamba, said the company was way ahead of the planned schedule.
Mwamba said the test operations of the plant are expected to start in June this year adding that the plant is scheduled for an official launch in July this same year.
“The company intends to manufacture fertilisers that are customized to cater for the specific needs of the soils in the three agro-ecological regions of the country. The company has created 450 jobs for local Zambians and will need an additional 150 workers by March this year,” he said.
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