Controversy as Ruto reveals his hand in Tata Chemicals’ closure

President William Ruto on Thursday confirmed that he kicked out of Magadi investors in multinational soda ash mining company Tata Chemicals, as leaders in the Opposition accused him of scaring away investors to serve personal interests.

The President launched a scathing attack on the company, accusing it of failing, in its more than 100 years of existence, to establish a local glass and chemical manufacturing industry.

He said the company had instead continued exporting Kenya’s natural resources at the expense of the local community and the country at large. 

"I have told them to ship out. They have failed to set up a glass factory in the country. They only ship our natural resources to their country. We (government) will bring in a new investor under new terms and conditions. I have instructed my Water Cabinet Secretary to allocate funds for water supply to Magadi people. It’s the only thing Tata Chemicals claim to give our people,” said President Ruto.

He urged Kajiado Governor Joseph ole Lenku to support him in pushing the company out of Kajiado County.

The Ministry of Mining, in a statement dated July 29 2026, ordered the immediate and indefinite suspension of mining activities at the company, citing compliance issues. The case No. HCJR/E280/2026 before Justice William Musyoka is active and will be heard on October 6, 2026. 

Earlier in the day, allies of former Deputy President Rigathi, led by the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) secretary-general and Nyandarua Senator John Methu, had accused President Ruto of frustrating Tata Chemicals investors for alleged personal monetary gains. 

They termed the company’s closure a reckless, economically suicidal and legally rogue directive by the Ministry of Mining that amounts to a dictatorial decree, issued under the guise of regulatory compliance in a scheme of State-sponsored economic sabotage.

They also said the company's closure would plunge thousands of Kenyan families into desperation.

"The flimsy excuses given are just a decoy. The truth of the matter is, there are huge deposits worth trillions of shillings of lithium metals underneath the Magadi area. Further, there are huge oil prospects in the same vicinity within which Tata Chemicals Limited operates," Senator Methu said.

Read: How Sh50 soda ash land rate grew to Sh17bn tax battle

Last month, DCP leader Rigathi Gachagua, during a political rally in Kajiado, without providing evidence accused President Ruto of having demanded a Sh3 billion bribe from the investor.

Tata Chemicals Limited is based in Magadi, a striking, hot and arid region in Kajiado County, located about 120 kilometres southwest of Nairobi. 
It is centred around Lake Magadi, an alkaline soda lake famous for its thick crust of white and pink trona salt. Most locals are pastoralists.

The company mines soda ash (sodium carbonate) from underground or surface deposits of trona ore using dredging, underground conventional mining or solution mining.

The versatile alkaline chemical is used primarily in manufacturing glass, producing soaps and detergents, softening water, regulating pH in swimming pools and industrial processes, and fixing fibre-reactive dyes for crafts such as tie-dye. 

Tata Chemicals, formerly Magadi Soda, is among the country’s largest mining employers and the largest producer of soda ash in Africa. It is also one of Kenya’s largest single exporters, contributing approximately six per cent of Kenya’s exports and generating nearly $100 million in foreign exchange earnings annually.

Over the years, the company has undertaken several Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives in health, water supply, education and other empowerment programmes. In the last one month, the company has reportedly downsized its services. 

The company has previously been engaged in a protracted court battle with the County Government of Kajiado over land rates and mineral royalties running into billions of shillings. 

Governor Lenku has also been pushing the company to relinquish part of the vast land in its possession.

Last year, the Court of Appeal ruled that mineral royalties belong to the national government under the Constitution and Mining Act.

In earlier in the week, in interviews with the Daily Nation, a section of residents of Magadi town and its environs painted a bleak future, one month after the company’s closure.

“The Tata Company water tankers are no more. We depend on GSU tankers for few jerricans of water. Sometime, it can take a week before the tanker supply us with water,” said Ms Sharon Shananga, a resident.

At Magadi Level Four Hospital, the number of patients seeking treatment has also dropped significantly. On Monday, the 52-bed facility had only nine patients. 

Medical Superintendent Raymond Birya attributed the decline to reduced circulation of money in the local economy following the closure of the company, which he described as the backbone of the local community. 

Meanwhile, President Ruto has defended the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund (SASDF), saying it has transformed sports in the country. 

Dr Ruto said at least 32 new stadiums are under construction countrywide under the fund.

“The fund was in existence from 2013 to 2022, but funds were being embezzled. In the last four years we have 32 stadiums under construction across the county,” said Dr Ruto.

Notably, under the fund is the 60,000-seater Talanta Stadium that is nearing completion in Nairobi. 

In the 2026/27 financial year, the government allocated Sh25.2 billion to the SASDF.

Read: Firms surrender Sh273m amid mining levy purge

President Ruto who is on a three-day tour of Kajiado County is expected to inspect ongoing projects in five constituencies, including the ongoing construction of the Rombo-Ilasit-Loitoktok road and the Modern Irrigation Project at Rombo in Kajiado South Constituency. 

President Ruto’s tour is perceived as an effort to consolidate the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) political base, following recent grassroots mobilisation by his political allies.

At the same time, the Head of State said his administration is committed to boosting tomato farming in the Rombo agricultural belt, with an assurance that the construction of the Sh1.2 billion tomato agro-processing factory, which is currently 70 per cent complete, will soon be complete.

The area’s tomato production stands at 70,000 metric tonnes annually, a supply that the factory is expected to absorb, reducing farmers’ reliance on intermediaries who often exploit them by offering low prices. 

“When the factory is complete, our local farmers will enjoy tomato value edition to expand their profit margin. Presently, farmers are buying fertilizer at Sh2,000 per bag that used to cost them between Sh5,000 and Sh6,000 several years ago,” said President Ruto. 

At the same time, the President has reiterated that his administration would not be swayed by court cases from pursuing what he described as a noble cause to serve Kenyans. However, he pointed out that it was the democratic right for those opposing government projects to challenge them through the courts. 

“They (critics) moved to court to stop the Social Health Authority (SHA); the government won. They moved to court over affordable housing but the court cleared us. They have moved to court over Amboseli [transition of management] but I promise Kajiado residents, by December the park will be handed over to County government. It was the decision of my government,” President Ruto said.

Three days before President William Ruto handed the Amboseli National Park transfer deed to the County Government of Kajiado on November 14, 2025, conservation activists filed a petition at the Nairobi High Court challenging the move, setting the stage for a fresh legal battle over one of Kenya’s most iconic wildlife parks. 

Under the three-year Transition Implementation Framework, KWS was required to remit 50 per cent of its revenue on July 1, 2026. The agency is expected to remit 80 per cent of its revenue for the 2026/2027 financial year before surrendering 100 per cent of its revenue in the 2027/2028 financial year. 

"Slogans do not scare me. We used to have Tibim and Tialala, which were famous with ODM during the 2017 and 2022 polls. Now we have Wantam, Kasongo etc. I will meet them at ballot box,” Dr Ruto said. “They (Opposition) have no agenda or plan for our country."

At one of the rallies, President Ruto promised Rombo Girls Secondary School Sh10 million, asking area MP Samuel Parashina to look for the school’s account number as he appealed to the students.

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