Ohorongo out of the starting blocks

THE groundbreaking ceremony for the Ohorongo Cement plant on the farm Sargberg near Otavi was held recently.

The plant, which will be the only one in Namibia, will be built at a cost of about N$2,5 billion. The factory will be up and running by the end of 2010 early 2011 and will provide jobs for about 300 people.
It will be large enough to be able to export cement to neighbouring countries.The Schwenk Group form Germany is the parent company of Ohorongo Cement and the plant is being built by Polysius AG.
The plant will be outfitted with the latest equipment and built to the highest environmental standards. Alternate fuels like old tyres and invader bush will be used to fire the kiln.
The development of the quarry and the construction of infrastructure other than the plant will be done by Namibian contractors.
It is expected that the cement plant will create about 300 direct jobs and more than 2 000 other indirect job opportunities, making it one of the major foreign direct investments in Namibia.
The company will train Namibians in all the technical jobs and two Namibian students are already receiving training with the Schwenk exchange programme in Germany.
The plant is being built near a limestone deposit, which is an integral raw material in the production of cement, with an expected lifespan of 300 years.
All other components needed for the production of cement are also found at the quarry and do not need to be transported to the site. The plant will be situated between a major highway and the railway line, making the transportation of the finished product easy.
Ohorongo Cement is negotiating with the Village Council of Otavi to assist with the building of houses for workers. They have also put in place the Otavi Community Trust with a start-up capital of N$100 000.