Steel manufacturer opposes new tax plan

By Daniel Nzia A leading industrialist has asked President Kibaki to intervene and remove the 10 per cent duty imposed on galvanised wire.Nerendra Raval said the duty on the product, used to produce barbed wire, chain link and other related materials, will have a negative effect on consumers, especially small scale farmers.He said, the new tax, which is among the proposals contained in the current Finance Bill, should only be effected after adequate consultations with the steel industry players."It is my humble request that this duty is removed and zero rated as it has been the case for the benefit of farmers and the steel industry," Raval told the Head of State during the opening of National Cement Ltd, a subsidiary of Devki Group of Companies at Lukenya in Athi River.Raval, also chairman of Devki Group of Companies, called for a total ban on export of iron ore saying the country had limited reserves. "Iron ore is a core raw material for steel and we must stop any exports to enable investors put up integrated steel plants in the spirit of true industrialisation," he said.He said the new plant was aimed at achieving self-sufficiency in cement production in the market.He said he planned to invest Sh13 billion into the expansion of the state-of-the-art factory to produce 2.5m metric tonnes of cement per annum by next year, up from the current 400,000 metric tonnes."This step is in line with the Kenya Vision 2030 and will make Devki Group the biggest producer of construction materials in East and Central Africa," added Raval.Kibaki urged investors, especially in the manufacturing sector, to increase their investments as the government continued to improve the business environment.He said investors should also exploit the natural resources in the mining industry that include huge deposits of iron and coal.

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