Power cut to cost Mugher over 150mln birr in lost revenue
The economy is down to its knee; a serious deficit in power provision, estimated by independent experts to have reached
200Mw, has created a sense of desperation among managers of both large scale industries and small businesses in urban
centres. Fortune
31 May, 2009
Reporter - Mugher Cement Enterprise, the giant cement producer in the country, is set to lose 150.3 million birr in lost revenue this month due to power cut, it was learnt.
Owing to the current power constraint, the Ethiopian Power and Electric Corporation (EEPCo) cut almost entirely power supply to Mugher since May 9 along with other 99 factories whose power consumption is high. The power cut is scheduled to last for a month.
Mugher is currently undertaking maintenance and related activities with the diminished power supply it currently gets, although its program to do so was scheduled for next month, according to Elias Kifle, the enterprise’s project manager.
The factory produces some 3000 tonnes of cement per day and sells its product for 167 birr per quintal before it temporarily ceased production due to the power cut, according to Elias.
Accordingly, the loses the stated amount of money in lost revenue from its stalled monthly production.
EEPCo has told the factories that it would partially lift the power cut in June and would eventually totally lift the shedding once the rains filled the hydro-power dams during the June-September rainy season. Yet, the representatives of the factories fear that they may go bankrupt if EEPCo’s schedule failed to materialize according to plan.
“The current interruption may not be a serious problem for us because we
ourselves would have a maintenance program which was scheduled to take place
in June during which time we usually suspend production,” Elas said. “But
if the power cut continues for over one month, we shall go bankrupt.”
Fortunately, Mugher will now be very busy with more activities other than
the maintenance.
The major parts of the machineries imported from Germany and France for the enterprise’s new 1.5 billion birr plant have arrived at the site along with 320 Chinese experts which will install the machineries and set up the new plant.
The construction of the new plant, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2010, will have a capacity of producing 1.4 million tonnes of cement a year, an amount 55 percent higher than the enterprise’s current production capacity.
While the current domestic demand for cement is expected to be 3.5 to five million tonnes, the current local supply is less than two million with Mugher producing the bulk.
Mugher’s future plant, along with some others in the pipeline, is expected to alleviate the current shortage in cement.