Domestic Investors to Embark on Coal Plant Projects

Jun 19 , 2021


Two coal processing plants are set to begin construction in Gurage Zone and Assosa, as announced by Takele Uma, minister of Mines & Petroleum, during foundation-laying ceremonies held three days apart this past week. In the Gurage Zone, the first is a coal washing and processing plant being erected by SUN Mining and Trading Plc, a subsidiary of the Sunshine Investment Group, projected to be finalised in 10 months with a capacity to process 800,000tn of coal annually. The other one in Assosa, being developed by NOC Ethiopia is projected to be finalised in 11 months. The Minister stated that several other companies are expected to join the coal production business in different parts of the country to boost overall production capacity to 2.5 million tonnes annually. Ethiopia spends over 200 million dollars a year on importing coal for cement production and energy generation.


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LOFTY CONSTRUCTS

A painting depicts traditional farming equipment at the Science Museum around the Arat Kilo area. Since the seizing of power by the current administration, large-scale architectural projects marked by grandeur have proliferated across the capital. The satellite city being built in the Yeka mountains, which is set to cost around 600 billion Br, according to the Prime Minister, is one such project yet to see the light of day. Some estimates put the plot size for the project at around 503hct despit...


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CLEAN BILL

A queue for diagnostics at the nation's largest state-owned hospital, Black Lion. As the health sector is largely funded by development partners from abroad, decreased support as donors shied away due to the war in the North has required the suspension of several new projects. Social health Insurance slated for next year was scraped due to a budgetary shortfall of five billion Birr. With the physician-to-patient ratio titering at around 1:30,000, queues in public hospitals are commonplace in Eth...


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ACRID GROUNDS

A street vendor puts up pepper for sale around the Lideta area. With agricultural produce accounting for the largest share of the nation's GDP at around 40pc, setbacks in the delivery of fertilizer have become a source of strife in rural Ethiopia. Only a third of the scheduled fertilizer of 1.3 million quintals has been distributed into the hands of farmers this year. This is despite the year being one in which the government claims to have met local demand for wheat and started exporting. Low p...