East African Portland Cement set for major revamp as Kalahari Cement pledges US$200m expansion

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East African Portland Cement (EAPC), the Athi River-based maker of Blue Triangle cement, is set for a major revamp after its new majority shareholder, Kalahari Cement, pledged more than US$200 million (about KSh 25.8 billion) to modernise the company and nearly triple its production capacity over the next three years.

The commitment was announced by Amsons Group managing director Edha Nahdi during a tour of EAPC’s integrated manufacturing plant in Kitengela, Kajiado County, led by EAPC managing director Mohamed Osman Adan, according to reports by KBC and The Kenya Times on 20 January 2026. Kalahari Cement is a subsidiary of the Tanzania-based Amsons Group.

What Kalahari Cement has promised

Under the plan, EAPC’s installed capacity will rise from 1.3 million tonnes of cement a year to nearly 4 million tonnes within three years. The money is meant for:

• A new energy-efficient clinkerisation and grinding plant, the centrepiece of the turnaround
• Wider upgrades to EAPC’s manufacturing infrastructure
• Staff welfare programmes for EAPC employees and their families

Nahdi said Kalahari has already commissioned a global engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor to design a turnkey clinkerisation plant for EAPC. Clinker is the main ingredient ground into cement, and making more of it locally reduces a cement maker’s reliance on imported clinker.

“Amsons Group last year promised to facilitate the full revival and modernisation of EAPC, and we can now confirm that plans to invest more than US$200 million in the first phase of the modernisation agenda have been secured,” Nahdi said, as quoted by KBC. He added that Amsons, a family-owned business, would keep “prioritising staff welfare initiatives to secure the lives of EAPC staffers, their families and other stakeholders”.

How Kalahari came to control EAPC

Kalahari Cement was incorporated in Kenya in May 2025 and built its controlling stake in two steps during 2025:

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) exempted Kalahari from making a mandatory takeover offer to all EAPC shareholders, approving the Holcim deal as a private transaction on 5 August 2025. The NSSF sale also needed clearance from the Competition Authority of Kenya and the Ministry of Mining, Business Daily reported. Together the two deals left Kalahari with a controlling stake of about 68.7%, usually rounded to 69%.

The same owner also controls Bamburi Cement, which Amsons bought for KSh 23.6 billion in a deal completed in December 2024, and Bamburi itself holds 12.5% of EAPC. Business Daily has reported that Kalahari is ultimately owned by Tanzanian businessman Edhah Abdallah Munif through Mauritius-based Pacific Cement and Comercio Et Consiel.

Why the revamp matters

EAPC has spent more than a decade struggling with losses, unpaid staff dues and squatter disputes over its Athi River land. Before the Kalahari deals, it went 13 years without paying a dividend, and the payout it made for the year to June 2024 (KSh 1 a share) was funded by land sales rather than cement operations. The company has been selling and regularising parts of its land bank to raise working capital, and the Auditor-General has questioned how much of the expected proceeds will actually be collected.

Demand is on EAPC’s side. According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), cement production reached 9.5 million tonnes in the first eleven months of 2025, up from 8.1 million tonnes in the same period of 2024. Consumption rose to 9.3 million tonnes from 7.8 million tonnes. Roads, the affordable housing programme and other public projects are driving much of that growth. If you are following the housing side of this, see our guides to the affordable housing levy and how to apply for an affordable housing unit.

A bigger, more efficient EAPC would compete harder with established producers such as Bamburi, Mombasa Cement and Savannah Cement. Business Daily has noted that EAPC and Bamburi together hold about 31% of Kenya’s estimated cement production capacity of 14.5 million tonnes a year, which is why competition regulators have watched Amsons’ Kenyan purchases closely. Smaller players are also expanding, such as Mamba Cement’s grinding plant at Awasi in Nyando.

What it means for staff, jobseekers and shareholders

Kalahari has said the new clinker plant will create thousands of direct and indirect jobs once it is built, and staff told reporters during the tour that the pledge cleared years of uncertainty at the company. Construction and plant roles usually go through contractors first, so jobseekers should watch both EAPC’s own adverts and those of its EPC contractor. You can follow manufacturing and engineering openings on Job in Kenya, and contractors bidding for related work can track construction tenders in Kenya.

For minority shareholders, the pledge comes on top of a sharp rise in EAPC’s share price during 2025. The stock traded at KSh 60.50 on the day the Holcim deal closed in November, more than double the KSh 27.30 Kalahari paid Holcim. Investors who hold EAPC shares can track payouts on our NSE dividend calendar and check for money they never collected with our guide to unclaimed dividends.

Update: what has happened since

EAPC’s annual report for the year to 30 June 2025 showed revenue more than doubling to KSh 7.08 billion from KSh 3.28 billion, and net profit of KSh 5.53 billion, up from KSh 1.16 billion. Much of that profit came from a KSh 3.90 billion non-cash gain from revaluing its land, while operating profit was KSh 1.64 billion. The board recommended a dividend of KSh 1.25 a share, of which Kalahari is set to receive about KSh 77.3 million, Business Daily reported.

In April 2026, NSSF managing trustee David Koross left the EAPC board with effect from 10 April, ending the pension fund’s representation after its stake sale. EAPC appointed James Oduor, chief financial officer of Lemi National Cement in Ethiopia, as a non-executive director.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Kalahari Cement investing in EAPC?

More than US$200 million, about KSh 25.8 billion, for the first phase of EAPC’s modernisation.

How much cement will EAPC produce after the revamp?

Nearly 4 million tonnes a year within three years, up from an installed capacity of 1.3 million tonnes.

Who owns East African Portland Cement now?

Kalahari Cement, a subsidiary of Tanzania’s Amsons Group, owns about 69% after buying Holcim’s 29.2% and NSSF’s 27% stakes in 2025. Bamburi Cement, also controlled by Amsons, holds another 12.5%.

What will the money be spent on?

A new energy-efficient clinkerisation and grinding plant, upgrades to existing manufacturing infrastructure, and staff welfare programmes.