Photos: Gas Cylinder Plant Commissioned in Luwero 

Go Cylinder Uganda Ltd. has on Thursday officially opened an LPG-Gas-Cylinder-Factory in Luwero District.

The plant, located in Nyimbwa, in Bombo, was commissioned by the Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Hon Francis Mwebesa, together with the State Minister for Luwero-Rwenzori Triangle, Hon. Alice Kaboyo.

A bulk of the cylinders that will be produced at this plant is expected to be procured by the government to supply them free of charge to citizens in an effort to promote the use of LGP gas as an alternative to firewood and charcoal.

Other cylinders will be sold to private fuel companies in Uganda and neighboring countries.

Minister Kaboyo, while speaking at the event, thanked the investors for choosing Luwero as the home of this plant.

“I am very happy to see, that soon we shall have our own Ugandan Gas from Bunyoro in our own Ugandan-made gas cylinders. These cylinders are being manufactured from scratch here at the factory,“ she said.

Hon Kaboyo also noted that the government’s free distribution of gas cylinders will significantly contribute to the use of clean energy by eliminating the cost of the cylinder, which is often a disincentive to some consumers.

The Government of Uganda through the Ministry of Energy plans to distribute over 1 million 13 kg gas cylinders to households, once LPG extraction begins in the Albertine.

Hon Kaboyo’s sentiments were echoed by Minister Mwebesa, who noted that the gas cylinders will prove much cheaper than biofuels such as charcoal, which the government is already determined to ban completely.

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Francis Mwebesa, thanked the management of Go Cylinders Limited for choosing Uganda and for always keeping the Trade ministry team on their toes, to ensure that the Go Cylinders factory acquires relevant licenses, permits and product certifications required before full-scale production.

“Uganda now has two gas cylinder manufacturers and we expect this subsector to grow given the rising demand for your product and the growing oil and gas sector of the economy.“ Minister Mwebesa added.

Go Cylinder Managing Director Ali Tawfiq, however, informed the Ministers of a number of bottlenecks they have been facing, among them, the poor state of the road leading to the factory.

“We appreciate everything that the government has been doing for us, but we need some more support. The condition of the road is very challenging; so many containers got stuck there and it cost us a lot of money,” he said.

Tawfiq also revealed that the plant was suffering constant power cuts by Umeme, as well as delays to get tax breaks, as promised to them by President Museveni.

On these matters, Minister Kaboyo promised to make follow-ups to ensure that they are ironed out.

“This should not be happening because we are the ones who seek you out to come and invest in our country, you should not be having to suffer like this,“ she said.

Regarding the dilapidated road, Erastro Kibirango, the Luwero district chairman, said this is under the district and has already been budgeted for, and that the works should commence soon.

According to Mr Tawfiq, the factory is already employing over 70 people from this area.

He said they intend to double this number, as they scale up their operations once the government has addressed their current challenges.

On his part, Denis Ainebyona, the Commissioner for Industry at the Ministry of Trade, reassured that Go Cylinder Products are of high quality, having been duly certified by UNBS.

He also thanked the company for providing a conducive working environment for its employees by feeding them well and providing them with protective gear.