Nairobi, Nov 11 (IANS): India's Tata Chemicals has opened a $100 million soda ash plant here that enhances the capacity of its Kenyan subsidiary and places this East African nation on the global map for the production of this multi-utility commodity.

Tata Chemicals Magadi is now gearing up to boost its production capacity of soda ash -- a key material in glass-making -- to 1 million metric tonnes over the next three years, a company press release said, while celebrating the opening of the unit Thursday.

The new facility will propel Kenya to produce 2 percent of the world's naturalsoda ash, Tata Chemicals Director Prasad Menon said at the inauguration.

From a technical perspective, Menon said, the new plant will produce a superior product at 99-percent purity which is a key ingredient in the manufacture of flat, float and sheet glass, and related container glasses.

"The importance of this new facility is particularly vindicated by the fact that global demand for soda ash is expected to reach 58 million metric by 2015 against the current demand of 49 million metric tonnes," Menon said.

"With Tata Chemicals Magadi's production capacity expected to hit the 1 million mark before 2015, it's crystal clear that Kenya will be contributing close to 2 percent of the global production capacity," he added.

"This is a major feat for Kenya."

Tata Chemicals Magadi managing director Michael Odera said the capacity expansion will also raise the firm's export capacity through the port of Mombasa, where it operates from a dedicated berth.

Tata Chemicals is already the largest exporter at the Kenya Ports Authority's Kilindini harbour, loading close to 1,800 tons of soda ash daily. Odera said the company works on a 24-hour basis, delivering its product to Mombasa from Magadi Township by rail.

With a fleet of eight mainline locomotives, Magadi rail also operates and maintains more than 146 km of track between Magadi and Konza and has petitioned the government to fast-track efforts to upgrade the Nairobi-Mombasa railway line to a standard gauge.