The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
President William Ruto has announced plans to bring in a new investor to take over mining activities at Lake Magadi following the revocation of Tata Chemicals Magadi’s licence earlier this year.
Speaking in Kajiado County during a development tour, Ruto said any company seeking to take over the operations would have to commit to establishing glass and chemical manufacturing plants in the county before receiving a mining licence.
The President accused Tata Chemicals Magadi of failing to make sufficient investments in Kajiado’s economy and infrastructure despite operating in the region for decades.
Ruto said Lake Magadi remains a major natural resource with the potential to drive economic transformation in Kajiado and across Kenya.
He criticised Tata for maintaining operations in the area for about a century without establishing significant factories or creating enough employment opportunities for local residents.
The President said the government had therefore decided that a new investor would be required to ensure greater local value addition and economic benefits from the resource.
The announcement follows the suspension of Tata Chemicals Magadi’s licence by the Ministry of Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs.
Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Ali Joho said the company’s licence had been suspended over alleged regulatory non-compliance and failure to meet obligations under Kenya’s mining laws.
Among the issues cited by Joho were the lack of a clear strategy for mineral beneficiation and value addition, outstanding royalty reconciliation and payments, as well as shortcomings in export reporting and reconciliation.
Tata Chemicals Magadi, however, said last month that it had submitted the necessary compliance documents to the ministry for consideration as it sought to have its licence reinstated.
The company warned that the prolonged suspension could put approximately 500 jobs at risk.
Tata Chemicals Magadi is owned by Tata Chemicals Limited, which is part of India’s Tata Group. The company extracts trona from Lake Magadi and processes it into soda ash, or sodium carbonate, alongside other salt and industrial mineral products.
Soda ash is an important industrial raw material used in the production of glass, detergents and chemicals. Refined soda products are also used in sectors such as water treatment and manufacturing.
The government’s planned change in investor comes amid growing calls for greater local processing of Kenya’s mineral resources, with Ruto insisting that future investors should establish manufacturing facilities within Kajiado rather than exporting raw materials with limited local value addition.
