Four firms eyeing Tanzania soda ash project

 

A call centre. Tanzania's telecoms say the performance of the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange could undervalue their firms. PHOTO | FILE 

By ADAM IHUCHA, TEA Special Correspondent

In Summary

• The evaluation criteria includes technical and financial capability as well as the experience and past performance of the prospective joint venture partner.
• The Engaruka basin, located about 190km northwest of Arusha town, is endowed with huge underground deposits of soda ash, raising Tanzania’s profile as one of sodium carbonate-rich countries in the world.

The tender for a multibillion-dollar soda ash extraction plant in Tanzania’s Engaruka basin has attracted significant interest from local and multinational firms.

According to the National Development Corporation, four firms have expressed interest in partnering with the government to set up the $4 billion factory that is expected to exploit 1 million metric tonnes of soda ash per annum.

READ: Dar plans $4b soda ash plant

NDC corporate affairs manager Abel Ngapemba said that the tender evaluation is underway and that the exercise is expected to take two weeks.

The evaluation criteria includes technical and financial capability as well as the experience and past performance of the prospective joint venture partner.

“We hope, if all goes as planned, by close of this year, we will have finalised all technicalities,” said Mr Ngapemba.

The Engaruka basin, located about 190km northwest of Arusha town, is endowed with huge underground deposits of soda ash, raising Tanzania’s profile as one of sodium carbonate-rich countries in the world.

According to the results of the drilling exploration undertaken, the basin has an estimated 4.68 billion cubic metres of brine, with an annual replenishment rate of 1.9 million cubic metres.

The government has mandated NDC to fasttrack exploitation of this resource for the creation of bio chemical industries.

NDC’s acting director for heavy industry, Ramson Mwilangila, said that if the Engaruka basin soda ash project becomes a reality, it will boost Tanzania’s economy significantly as it could potentially generate $300 million in revenue per year.

Soda ash, known chemically as sodium carbonate, is an essential constituent in the manufacturing of all kinds of glasses, production of detergents, industrial chemicals; water treatment, paper industries, petroleum refining, textile industries and flue gas desulphurisation.

Mr Mwilangila said the government will save the foreign currency used to import soda ash at the cost of $300 per tonne.