Kenya to host East Africa's first aluminium can production unit

Kenya’s manufacturing industry is set to grow with the entry of GZ Industries, one of Africa’s aluminium can manufacturers who are putting up a manufacturing plant.

The factory is expected to be ready in the first quarter of next year will costs Kshs. 8.3 billion ($100 million) and have an annual production capacity of 1.2 billion cans per year.

Speaking on Tuesday during the ground breaking ceremony for East Africa’s first aluminium can factory, the GZI’s CEO, Mr. Motti Goldmintz said the facility will be located on a 50 acre plot in Sultan Hamud.

This plant is logistically well placed for the local beer & beverage industry and will start supplying the local market by early 2015. He said the decision to invest in aluminium can line follows significant upturn and continuous demand in Kenya’s canned beverages market in the past two years.

He said Aluminium Can packaging has also been growing in the beer market as imported canned beer and soft drinks claim the interest of up-market drinks buyers. “Kenya already leads other East African countries in the beer market with total production of 2.8 million hectolitres (hl)”, he added.

“Fueled by the demands of our customers and in line with the country’s vision 2030 of being an industrialized economy, we mark our entry to Kenya as a way of contributing to the growth of the manufacturing sector,” said the CEO .

Besides developing the economy, they hope to change the landscape of Sultan Hamud and its more than 20,000 residents.

He said although Kenya currently does not have the technical skill to manufacture aluminium, expatriate employees will assist the local team in setting-up the plant and rolling out the training to ensure a fully skilled team of Kenyan staff and managers to take over the running of the plant.

All cans used in packaging canned beers and soft drinks are currently being imported into Kenya and East Africa, creating a rising import need with rising consumption of canned beverages increase, Goldmintz said .

The Sultan Hamud based plant will also generate new exports of its own, catering principally for the Kenyan market but also for the growing demand from other regional markets, including Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Burundi.

Goldmintz said the business will operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week once production begins. It is set to employ close to 200 employees locally as well as expatriates for specific skills set. GZ Industries Kenya Ltd was incorporated in March 2013 and is a replicate of one in Nigeria and is involved in manufacturing long, sleek cans currently used primarily for energy drinks.