TPC Ltd, Global Rum Maker Isautier Drinks Partner on Landmark Distillery Project
The facility is billed to enhance the cane value chain, stimulate local employment, and boost revenues.
FRIDAY November 21, 2025
By Patty Magubira
The Tranquility News Reporter, Tanzania
Isautier Drinks Africa, a subsidiary of Isautier Group, a rum producer for more than 175 years from St Pierre, south of Reunion Island, is bringing its unrivaled distillery experience to Tanzania through a recently unveiled TPC Limited’s project.
Rum is an alcohol – a clear liquid made through the process of grinding, fermenting, distilling sugarcane molasses, and often aging the juice.
The history and tradition of Isautier Group dates back to seven generations, making it the oldest company engaged in rum distillery on Reunion Island.
Fascinated by the sugarcane grown on the island, brothers Louis and Charles Isautier founded the family distillery in 1845.
Barely a decade and a half later, Isautier did not only turn out to be an award-winning Group, but also extended its wings beyond the Reunion Island’s borders.
Right now, the Group is one of the few distilleries globally offering aged agricultural and traditional rums of the highest quality.
Besides buying 15 per cent shares in the TPC Distillery, the subsidiary of the Isautier Group – Isautier Drinks Africa – is a potential customer of the products of the $52 million state-of-the-art plant.
The facility is currently under construction at TPC Limited’s cane farm situated about 20 kilometres from Moshi Municipality, Tanzania, and the construction work is currently at 30 per cent.
TPC Limited is in partnership with Tanzania government holding the remaining 85 shares in the joint distillery aimed at adding value to molasses byproduct from the adjacent sugar plant.
TPC Limited is the largest employer in northern Tanzania with about 4,000 workers. It operates on 16,000 hectares, of which 8,000 hectares are dedicated to sugar cane cultivation.
The Company also pioneered cogeneration in Tanzania and was the first firm to enter into a Standardised Power Purchase Agreement with Tanesco, the national electricity supplier.
Tanzania’s Treasury Registrar Nehemia Mchechu admitted that the parastatal performed poorly, prompting the Office of the Registrar resolving to privatize it.
As a result, in 2024/25 financial year, TPC Limited achieved a new record for crushing 1,217,237 tonnes of sugarcane and producing 119,466 tonnes of sugar — surpassing its own record set during the 2022/23, when 1,143,909 tonnes of cane were crushed and 116,707 tonnes of sugar bagged.
This achievement represents a significant milestone in TPC Limited’s development since its privatisation 25 years ago, when the company was producing just 35,000 tonnes of sugar per year.
Speaking during the unveiling ceremony of the facility, Mchechu said the project was a testament of fruits accrued from strategic partnerships between public and private sectors.
It will be remembered that the Tanzania government had in 2000 transferred its 75 per cent shares in TPC Limited to Sukari Investment, a subsidiary of Miwa Group of Mauritius.
Mchechu was optimistic the arrival of Isautier Drinks Africa would further cement the partnerships, assuring investors of the government’s commitment to revisit its policies and laws with a view of attracting them and beefing up revenue in terms of dividends.
“This partnership is more than numbers, it is about people, progress, and promises,” Mchechu said.
Indeed, the facility is billed to significantly enhance the cane value chain within the TPC Limited, stimulate local employment, and bolster fiscal revenues.
Miwa Sugar Limited Chairman of Board of Directors Arnaud Lagesse said the distillery would open the door for innovation, create skill jobs, and allow the TPC Limited to turn byproducts into new sources of value.
“Most importantly, it’s central for long-term sustainability of the company,” Lagesse stressed.
Kilimanjaro Regional Commissioner Nurdin Babu, commended TPC Limited for its significant contribution to strengthening the economy, citing the new molasses processing plant as a true example of sustainable investment.
“This project will create jobs, add value to the sugar and energy sectors, and strengthen Tanzania’s competitiveness in the regional market,” he said in a speech read on his behalf by Kilimanjaro Regional Administrative Secretary Kiseo Nzowa.
Upon the project’s completion toward the end of next year, God willing, the facility will begin producing 16.3 million litres of Extra Neutral Alcohol annually in line with Tanzania’s industrialisation and clean energy agenda.
Other products will include technical alcohol, potassium-based fertilizer, carbon dioxide for industrial use, and 6MW of renewable electricity for supporting operations of the plant and reducing carbon emissionsΩ
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The Tranquility News Reporter/Sub Editor, Tanzania
Patty Magubira is an experienced environmental and business editor whose career started at the Tanzania's state-owned newspaper - The Daily News. He is a man of perfection. Aided by his extensive training as a community forestry expert before joining Tanzania School of Journalism. Magubira had successfully held various key posts in newsrooms, giving him an unmatched connections in media fraternity. Having worked as a bureau chief in Arusha and Mwanza, he managed to build a team work, boosting sales to the highest level ever. He was then promoted to a sub-editor after completing a training in Nairobi, Kenya. His incredible experience, critical thinking and exposure are critical to the quality of any media outlet.
