The Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) has been given two weeks to connect the Dei BioPharma Ltd high-tech cassava processing plant in Kamuli to the national power grid, after prolonged electricity shortages hampered full-scale production.
Energy Minister Dr Monica Musenero issued the directive during a visit to the facility on Wednesday, where she met UEDCL officials to find a solution to the plant’s power challenges.
The facility, owned by Dei BioPharma proprietor Dr Matthias Magoola, has been ready for commercial production for about one and a half years but has depended on expensive diesel generators. President Museveni commissioned the facility on 20 November last year.
Dr Magoola, who took the minister on a guided tour of the plant, said the company spends about Shs15 million to run one generator for a single shift, making full production too costly.
“It has been painful having completed this facility for about one and a half years. We started production in June last year when we began testing it, but we have been using very expensive means of running generators,” Dr Magoola said.
He said the plant requires more than 5 megawatts (MW) to operate at full capacity but is not currently connected to the national power grid.
Minister promises government intervention
Dr Musenero said the government will not allow a major industrial investment to remain idle for lack of electricity.
“I am a hands-on minister, and my coming to this facility demonstrates that. I called my team at UEDCL to find a solution to this problem,” she said.
She said the government had given itself two weeks to address the power challenge at the plant.
“We are not only working to solve the power problem at this plant. We want to ensure that unreliable electricity supply is no longer a challenge to industries,” Dr Musenero added.
Dr Magoola said after the visit, that the UEDCL committed to connecting the plant and upgrading the infrastructure, including replacing conductors, within two weeks.
“They have assured us that this will be done in two weeks. When you come back here, you will be shocked because we are going to start full production,” he said.
Lack of power limits production and cassava processing
The lack of a grid connection has also limited Dei BioPharma’s ability to process cassava consistently.
Dr Magoola said the plant requires approximately 500 metric tonnes of cassava daily, sourced from across Busoga and other areas including Teso, Arua, Gulu, Lira and Bukedea. Production has, however, been limited to about once a week because of power constraints.
“We have been buying cassava from everywhere, but because of power we produce once a week. Even with that production, we are not getting the required quantities of cassava,” Dr Magoola said.
He said full-scale production would create about 50,000 direct jobs and provide a major market for cassava farmers.
Dei BioPharma is also encouraging farmers to continue growing cassava, with plans to manufacture more than 100 products from the crop and eventually expand processing to other crops, including sweet potatoes and maize.
Plant to supply the pharmaceutical industry
The Kamuli facility uses advanced technology to process cassava into pharmaceutical-grade starch and industrial sugars, including glucose, maltose and fructose.
Dr Magoola said the products will support the Dei BioPharma pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturing complex in Matugga, Wakiso District, while the rest will be exported.
“Our campus in Matugga cannot produce vaccines and drugs without the products we produce here,” he said.
The Dei Group plans to invest up to US$10 billion in advanced manufacturing facilities, including pharmaceutical, veterinary vaccine and biotechnology production.
Dr Magoola said all these facilities will require a reliable and adequate electricity supply to operate.
The Dei BioPharma Agro-Processing Park
The Dei Biopharma Advanced Agro-Processing and Biotech Park at Namasagali, Kamuli District, was launched by President Museveni on 20 November last year. The President also commissioned the Dei Biopharma cassava starch manufacturing plant, a US$50 million investment, marking a decisive step in Uganda’s quest for pharmaceutical self-reliance.
The factory produces pharmaceutical-grade starch, glucose and maltose for the pharmaceutical and food industries. Dr Magoola said the facility will extract more than 100 derivatives from cassava, maize and potatoes and requires 500 metric tonnes of cassava daily.
The project forms part of a larger US$10 billion investment plan to establish a biotech hub, including a 1,000-bed hospital for sickle-cell and cancer treatment and a veterinary vaccine facility.
President Museveni, who has consistently supported Dr Magoola’s pharmaceutical ventures, has praised the entrepreneur’s innovation.
The starch factory is one component of Dei Biopharma’s broader agro-industrial blueprint on its 5,000-acre estate in Kamuli. The fully integrated hub will include an organic fertiliser plant producing inputs from animal waste and a biotechnology complex for veterinary vaccines, including a foot-and-mouth disease vaccine facility with a capacity of 100 million doses annually.
By establishing an end-to-end manufacturing chain — from farm to finished pharmaceutical product — Dei Biopharma aims to position Uganda as a regional centre for biopharmaceutical innovation. The US$50 million investment is part of a larger US$10 billion, 10-year plan to transform the Busoga region into a regional biotech and agro-industrial hub.
The connection to the power grid is a major step expected to enable Dei BioPharma Ltd to begin full-scale cassava processing and increase demand for cassava from farmers across Uganda.
