Indian producer Dalmia Bharat
Sugar and Industries will invest $132 million to develop an integrated sugar complex in Tanzania, adding fresh momentum to the country's efforts to expand domestic sugar production and attract private investment into the sector.
The company's board approved the project on Tuesday, July 14. It will be developed through Eagle Agrotech Tanzania Limited, a subsidiary in which Dalmia Bharat Sugar holds a 51% stake. The project includes a 10,000-hectare sugarcane plantation, with the possibility of expanding the cultivated area to 20,000 hectares over the longer term.
The plantation will supply a sugar mill with an initial production capacity of about 70,000 metric tons of sugar per year, with the potential to increase output to as much as 150,000 metric tons annually.
The complex will also include a 20 MW cogeneration plant, expandable to 40 MW, allowing the company to generate electricity from biomass, particularly bagasse, the fibrous residue left after sugarcane is crushed.
Supporting Tanzania's sugar ambitions
The investment will further reshape Tanzania's sugar industry, where established producers already include Kilombero Sugar Company (KSC), the country's largest sugar producer, which is owned 75% by South Africa's Illovo Sugar Africa and 25% by the Tanzanian government, as well as Tanzania Plantation Company (TPC), Kagera Sugar, and Mtibwa Sugar.
Beyond increasing competition, the new complex supports the government's strategy to attract more domestic and foreign private investment into the sugar industry.
In February, Tanzanian authorities said they were seeking additional private capital to expand the country's production capacity and reduce reliance on imports.
According to the Sugar Board of Tanzania (SBT), the country produced more than 600,000 metric tons of sugar for the first time in 2025. While that marks an important milestone, authorities believe the industry must continue expanding to keep pace with rising domestic demand driven by population growth.
The government also wants Tanzania to strengthen its position in the regional sugar market, where more competitive producers such as Uganda and Mauritius currently dominate exports to sugar-deficit countries, including neighboring Kenya.
Tanzania benefits from several competitive advantages. Sugarcane reaches maturity in about 12 months, compared with roughly 18 months in Uganda and 24 months in Kenya, allowing producers to harvest more frequently.
Industry observers nevertheless say stronger public support will remain essential to unlock the sector's full potential. Improvements in irrigation, access to financing, and the availability of higher-yield sugarcane varieties are widely seen as critical to raising productivity.
Meanwhile, Dalmia Bharat Sugar's investment could bring more than additional production capacity. By combining its own plantation with sugar processing and biomass-based power generation, the company is expected to introduce industrial technology and management expertise across the entire value chain, from sugarcane cultivation and sugar production to the energy recovery of sugarcane byproducts.
