By the 254.ke Newsroom
President William Ruto on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, broke ground for the Sh70 billion Devki Clinker and Cement Plant at Ngaaie in Mwingi North, Kitui County. It is billed as the county’s first cement manufacturing plant, built by Devki Group, and The Standard reports completion is scheduled for August 2027. Capacity, power supply and limestone reserves have not been published in the coverage reviewed by 254.ke as of October 29, 2026.
What is the Devki plant in Kitui?
The facility will turn local limestone into clinker, the intermediate product that is ground into cement, and then into finished cement. Devki Executive Chairman Narendra Raval unveiled a plaque with the President and laid the foundation stone, The Star reported. Construction Review says the project runs through a Devki subsidiary, National Cement Company Limited.
| Detail | What has been reported |
|---|---|
| Investment | Sh70 billion |
| Location | Ngaaie, Mwingi North, Kitui County |
| Developer | Devki Group |
| Groundbreaking | Tuesday, October 27, 2026 |
| Jobs | 4,000 during construction, more than 3,000 direct jobs once complete (The Standard only) |
| Completion | August 2027 (The Standard only) |
| Capacity, power source, limestone reserves | Not stated in the coverage reviewed |
Why does a clinker plant matter for Kenya?
In his remarks, Ruto argued that producing clinker locally keeps more value inside the economy. “By producing clinker locally, we retain more value within our economy, create skilled jobs, build technical expertise,” he said, according to The Standard. The government introduced an Export and Investment Promotion Levy on imported clinker in 2023, a measure that favours domestic producers.
Demand is one reason investors are betting on capacity. The Standard and Construction Review report that Kenya produced 8.85 million tonnes of cement in 2024 and 10.44 million tonnes in 2025, up 18 percent, and 7.62 million tonnes in the first eight months of 2026. The Dangote refinery planned for Lamu would itself need more than 2 million tonnes of cement, the reports say. For background on that project, see our explainers on the Dangote Lamu refinery court order and the Dangote KPC stake deal.
Who else is building clinker capacity?
Devki already runs a clinker plant at Sebit in West Pokot, commissioned by Ruto in April 2024 with a capacity of 6,000 tonnes a day. Bamburi Cement is due to break ground within about three weeks on a 5,000-tonne-a-day clinker plant at Matuga in Kwale County, according to The Standard and Construction Review.
What did Ruto and Raval say about the delay?
Business Today reports that Ruto said earlier attempts by other cement firms to set up at Ngaaie failed, and that the project was held up for nearly 15 years by bureaucracy and bribery. Raval said Devki began dreaming of the plant about 10 years ago. Both accounts describe delay, though they measure it differently, and 254.ke has not independently verified the allegations of extortion made in the speech.
Ruto also asked Devki to work with technical and vocational institutions on apprenticeships and to prioritise local suppliers, fair treatment of workers, safe workplaces, responsible water use, dust control and rehabilitation of mined land, The Star reported. “The success of this factory will ultimately be judged here in this community,” he said.
What is still unknown?
- Annual production capacity of the Ngaaie plant.
- How the plant will be powered and where its water will come from.
- The size of the limestone deposit.
- Any start-up date beyond the August 2027 completion cited by one outlet.
FAQ
How much will the Kitui cement plant cost?
Sh70 billion, according to The Star, The Standard, Construction Review and Business Today.
Where exactly is it being built?
At Ngaaie in Mwingi North, Kitui County.
When will it be ready?
The Standard says completion is scheduled for August 2027. Other outlets reviewed give no date.
How many jobs will it create?
The Standard reports 4,000 jobs during construction and more than 3,000 direct jobs after completion.
Read the original photo report from The Star.
