2merkato

Derba Cement, one of MIDROC Ethiopia’s subsidiaries, is planning to expand its cement plant at a cost of300 million USD. The expansion project is expected to take from 18 – 24 months.

Derba Cement’s CEO, Haile Assegide, explained Derba was preparing to build a second plant in Chancho City. Upon completion, the plant would have the capacity of producing 25 million quintals of cement in a year, he furthered.

Draft bill has been submitted to the parliament in the aim of issuing Special Government Bond which will serve as capital injection for Development Bank of Ethiopia (DBE). The bonds are worth 2.56 billion Birr and bear no interest.

Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) concluded a 1.2 billion Birr agreement with Larsen Arsen & Toubro Limited, an Indian company, for capacity improvement and expansion project at power distribution stations. The main aim of the expansion project is avoiding power interruptions.

85 percent of the cost is financed by a loan secured from French Development Agency while the rest 15 percent will be covered by the Ethiopian government.

Study conducted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change showed around 14 plastic bag factories in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, are producing below standard bags. The study added 2 of these factories operated without a license.

Ethiopia’s telecom giant, Ethio Telecom, is planning to bring into play a system which is said to prevent theft, making illegal international phone calls and using below standard handset.

The company aims to launch the system in less than a month's time.

The first 6 months of the current fiscal year has blessed Ethiopia’s telecom monopole, Ethio Telecom, with 10.9 billion Birr gross profit. This was a 111 percent achievement of the company’s plan.

Endowment Fund for the Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT) concluded a 5 billion Birr agreement with the Chinese CEC Engineering Corporation and Fengda Chemical Planning and Design for the establishment of an integrated Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin manufacturing plant in Tigray, Ethiopia.

Following the severe drought that hit Ethiopia, the country will not be able to meet its projected 11 % economic growth for the current fiscal year. It will expand only by between 7% and 10%.

Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn noted, “The economy will continue to register growth, if not a double-digit fast economic growth”.

Ministry of Mines, Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoMPG) announced Ethiopia would provide potash for the international market in the coming 4 years.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Cooperation faced 14.4 billion Birr budget deficit in the first six months of the current fiscal year. The Ministry generated 80.5 billion Birr income but its expenditure was 95 billion Birr.

The six performance show there is a 7.7 percent increment in tax revenue when compared to last year’s performance. However, this was lower than what was planed.