Tata Chemicals shares fall after reports suggest Kenya President asks for ceasing operations

Shares of Tata Chemicals Ltd. opened 2% lower on Friday, September 4, after Kenyan President William Ruto reportedly directed Tata Chemicals Magadi to cease operations in the country.

Ruto said Tata has held the contract for around 100 years but has not done enough to develop downstream industries, create jobs or build infrastructure, according to reports.

The latest development comes weeks after the Kenyan government ordered Tata Chemicals Magadi to suspend its mining operations and halted its soda ash exports on July 28, 2026.

Tata Chemicals subsequently said it had submitted the required documentation to the authorities and was awaiting further directions from the Kenyan government.

Kenya operations

Tata Chemicals' Kenya operations contributed around 6% of the company's total EBITDA in FY26.

crore	FY26	FY25
Revenue	586	612
EBITDA	101	142
PAT	48	118

Tata Chemicals Magadi has an annual soda ash production capacity of around 350,000 tonnes.

Soda ash is used in industries including glass manufacturing, chemicals and detergents.

Shares of Tata Chemicals ended 1.43% higher at ₹643 on Thursday. The stock is down around 15% so far this year.