Suburban
Suburban Reporter
GOVERNMENT is working on plans to help local companies manufacture bitumen tar in the wake of the huge road rehabilitation projects currently being undertaken countrywide, Parliament heard recently.
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona told Parliament that his Ministry and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce were jointly working to ensure local companies are capacitated to manufacture bituminous products to reduce import costs.
“Mr. Speaker Sir, it is true that we also need the whole of Government approach as a nation when it comes to issues of bituminous products. It is true that Honourable Nkani has said that importing is very costly to the nation and we are now seized together with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce through ZIMCAM, where ZIMCAM is being capacitated so that we continue to produce our own bitumen products. This is the way we are partaking as we speak. I thank you,” said Minister Mhona.
He was responding to questions in Parliament during the question and answer session.
Chakari Member of the National Assembly Andrew Nkani had asked Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister Modi what was the Government policy regarding companies that manufacture bitumen tar in Zimbabwe.
“I am asking in the context of the vey huge projects that we face of road rehabilitations because most of the tar is imported. What is Government’s policy with regards to assisting companies to manufacture that raw material?” he said. The Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda deferred the question to Minister Mhona since his Ministry was the major consumer of bitumen tar.
Norton Member of the National Assembly Temba Mliswa asked Minister Mhona how much Government was spending on importing bitumen tar arguing it was necessary to know the cost benefit analysis of local manufacturing.
“… is it worth it in terms of the quantities and the price? Do we have the raw materials?” he said.
Adv Mudenda said the Norton legislator’s question was more operational than policy.
“It will require a written question so that proper research is done to quantify what is available and what is being imported so that Honurable Mliswa can get a satisfactory response,” said the Speaker.
Experts have been urging Government and local companies to expedite the manufacturing of bitumen to reduce the import bill after it emerged that over US$4,2 million was being used annually to import the product.
According to the World’s Top Exports, in 2019 Zimbabwean importers spent over US$4,2 million to import natural bitumen, asphalt and shale, up by 12,9 percent from the previous year. Also, Zimbabwean purchases of asphalt or petroleum bitumen mixes (up 140 percent), peat (up 51,6 percent) and petroleum oil residues (up 45,2 percent) grew at the fastest pace from 2018 to 2019.
With the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development’s geological survey stating that Zimbabwe has vast high-grade coal deposits occurring as fossilised carbon and about 12 billion tonnes of quality coal, industry experts have suggested that the country should utilise its coal deposits to manufacture bitumen.
Banker and founder of Bouyancy Capital Private Limited, Mr Innocent Chigwendere said the country was realising less foreign currency as most of the bitumen was imported instead of being locally manufactured from the vast coal deposits.
“We have vast coal deposits in the country and most of them have not been fully deployed. It’s that area as a nation that we should look at, and develop that resource. Instead of using billions of dollars importing bituminous materials for infrastructure development such as road construction, roofing, waterproofing, and other applications let us utilise our coal deposits and manufacture bitumen locally,” said Mr Chigwendere.
He added that roads in the country were in a bad state and the progress of repairing them was taking longer than expected as there were less resources and most of the bitumen was being sourced from other countries.
Mr Chigwendere also noted that there was need for import substitution to save foreign currency in the country and focus on projects aimed at locally manufacturing bitumen, thereby creating employment and producing more for export.
Buy Zimbabwe chairman, Mr Munyaradzi Hwengwere said manufacturing bitumen locally was key.
“Bitumen is a key ingredient in the construction of the roads and if it can be manufactured locally, let us start moving towards that’s direction,” said Mr Hwengwere.
About 29 coal localities are known in Zimbabwe with the major producers being Hwange Colliery and Makomo resources.
