Active Mixed AidData Chinese Aid

CBMI provides $408 million supplier credit for Ndola Cement Plant Project

$408M USD

Funder	CBMI Construction Co., Ltd. (Sinoma)
Recipient Organization	Central African Cement Company Limited (CAC)
Country	Zambia
Start Date	Dec 04, 2018
End Date	Oct 31, 2026
Duration	2,888 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`88390`

Grant Description

CBMI provides $408 million supplier credit for Ndola Cement Plant Project On December 4, 2018, CBMI Construction Co., Ltd. (Sinoma) reportedly provided a $408 million supplier credit to Central African Cement Limited (CAC) for the Ndola Cement Plant Project. The terms of this supplier credit (loan) are unknown.

Central African Cement Limited (CAC) is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) and joint venture of Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) and China Machinery Construction Group Limited (SinoConst) that was created in July 2018 to design, finance, and implemented the Ndola Cement Plant Project.

ZCCM-IH holds a 35% equity stake and Sinoconst holds a 65% equity stake in CAC.

CBMI Construction Co., Limited (Sinoma) signed a $480 million EPC contract with CAC on July 30, 2018 to implement the project. The Ndola Cement Plant Project is located in Ndola within Masaiti District and Copperbelt Province.

It involves the construction of a plant with a daily output of 5,000 tonnes of cement and two coal-fired power plants (2X25MW) to provide electricity to the cement plant.

According to ZCCM-IH's Chief Executive Officer, Pias Kasolo, the construction of the cement plant was originally scheduled to commence in April 2019. However, as of February 2022, AidData had not yet identified any evidence of project implementation.

📋 Staff Comments

This project is also known as the “CAC 5000 tons per day clinker production line and supporting 7.5 MW waste heat power generation and annual output of 2 million tons of cement powder' project. The Chinese project title is CAC项目 or 赞比亚CAC 5000TPD熟料水泥生产线及配套电厂 or 中非水泥有限公司日产5000吨熟料生产线及配套7.5兆瓦余热发电、年产200万吨水泥粉磨站和2X25兆瓦热电厂项目.
One official source indicates that CBMI sought to cover 85% of EPC contract value on a seller’s credit basis (EPC+F). 85% of the $480 million EPC contract value is $408 million. Another official source indicates the CBMI secured an export seller’s credit for this project.
A 2021 SAIS-CARI report says “[t]he Central African Cement Limited (CAC) borrowed US$408 million from CBMI Constructions Co Ltd in 2018 for the Ndola Cement Plant in Copperbelt, although there is no evidence that this latter project has moved into implementation. We follow guidelines in the World Bank Debtor Reporting System Manual which do not include joint ventures with minority government ownership in public external debt statistics unless there is a government guarantee, which does not appear to be the case.

📚 Sources & References

New Cement Factory to be set up in Ndola
CBMI Signing the EPC Contract of Zambia CAC 5000TPD Clinkerisation and Cement Production Line and Captive Power Plant Project
CBMI Signing the EPC Contract of Zambia CAC 5000TPD Clinkerisation and Cement Production Line and Captive Power Plant Project
中材建设签约赞比亚CAC 5000TPD熟料水泥生产线及配套电厂项目EPC总承包合同
Central African Cement Ltd established to build 5000tpd plant in Zambia
Central African Cement Ltd
Zambia’s Chinese Debt in the Pandemic Era - Briefing Paper
Zambia to build $548 million cement plant
Chinese Loans to Africa Database
ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM.zm) HY2019 Interim Report
ZCCM-IH Zambia’s profit after tax up 480% to K510 million for Half Year 2019
NEW CEMENT PLANT TO BE SET UP IN OUR CITY OF NDOLA.
Central African Cement to become Zambia’s biggest ever producer
EPC - 0827 Announcement
US$480M Ndola cement plant construction set for April 2019
中材建设与中非水泥有限公司签署4.8亿美元重大经营合同
CBMI Signing the EPC Contract of Zambia CAC 5000TPD Clinkerisation and Cement Production Line and Captive Power Plant Project
ZCCM-IH Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.