Displaying items by tag: Cameroon

Cameroon: Dangote Cement will open its new 1.5Mt/yr Sinoma-built cement plant in Douala, Cameroon today. "Africa's future growth is intrinsically linked to cement," said Aliko Dangote earlier in August 2015, as he opened another new factory on the outskirts of Ndola, Zambia. Both plants are part of Dangote Cement's US$4.3bn expansion across Africa and Asia, which we reported on earlier.

Cameroon: According to All Africa, US$150m will be invested by Dangote Group to build a new cement plant in Yaounde. The board chair and CEO of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said that the investment's aim will be to 'totally eliminate' any future cement demand increase in the country."Cameroon will not lack cement. We can assure the government that we are here to stay and will continue to invest," said Dangote.

Cameroon: Cameroon's demand for cement has risen dramatically despite the increasing volume of imports and local production, according to sources at the Ministry of Economy and Planning. According to the ministry, Cameroon's cement demand grows by 8%/yr and the country currently has a deficit of 2.5 – 3Mt. In 2014, local cement production was estimated at 1.3Mt and imports were around 1.2Mt.

Despite the government's bid to ban imports to boost domestic production, foreign producers continue to have significant market share in the country, importing to almost 1.3Mt in 2014 compared with 561,190t of cement in 2011. Cameroon's cement production is presently estimated at 3.6Mt/yr.

Cameroon announced this week that it intends to ban imported cement to aid the sales from the new Dangote owned cement plant in the country. Readers should note that Dangote is a Nigerian-based company. Protective legislation such as this should come as no surprise given the rise of Nigeria's own cement industry and similar initiatives in that country. The difference here, however, is that the Cameroonian government is protecting investment by a foreign company rather than propping up any home grown concerns.

The new Dangote-run cement plant in Douala will start with a cement production capacity of 0.95Mt/yr with the intention to rise to 1.5Mt/yr in 2016. A meet-and-greet by company officials with local press in early April 2015 revealed that the company intends to snatch 30% of the local cement market in 2015 with prices primed to just undercut the other major producer.

What then of the country's two other integrated cement plants? Both have foreign ownership. Cimenteries du Cameroun, with a 1Mt/yr plant, is a subsidiary of France-based Lafarge. Ciments de L'Afrique, with a 0.5Mt/yr plant, is a Moroccan firm. Add the new 1.5Mt/yr Dangote cement plant and domestic production in Cameroon is anticipated to exceed local demand.

When this happens how will the Cameroonian government view the two non-Dangote producers who may well be importing clinker and other products into the country for their operations? If the experience of Nigeria is a model then a 'self-sufficiency' battle may ensue in the media. Alongside this the price of cement may well stay fairly stable despite any alleged 'gluts'. This week, for example, the Cement Producers Association of Nigeria has lobbied the President-elect of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, to cut the price of cement by half. The hypocrisy during the Nigerian spat over imports was that Nigeria wanted (and has become) a cement exporter.

At the time this column asked how that could work if imports at the time were so much more competitive that they had to be banned at home. Then as now deals seem to mark the way. At that time, in early 2013, Liberia relaxed its tariffs on cement just as Dangote was building a new plant there. Now, in Cameroon, once again Dangote appears to be negotiating some form of preferential treatment.

At the root of these issues, Cameroon's citizens and industry want to build and develop their country. Cheaper cement will enable them to do this by pushing up per capita cement consumption. Protecting their domestic industry or those that have invested in the country may not necessarily lead to cheaper cement.

Cameroon: Cameroon has announced a ban on imported cement as part of measures to boost the patronage of Dangote Cement products, according to local media.

Abdulahi Baba, general manager and head of Dangote's Cameroon plant, said that the company had already assured the government of Cameroon that it would help shore up local cement with the ban on cement imports. Baba added that Dangote appreciates the gesture of the Cameroonian government and stressed that the ban was a vote of confidence on the ability of cement manufacturers in the country, especially Dangote Cement, to meet and surpass local demand.

Baba said that with the addition of Dangote's 1.5Mt/yr of capacity, the three domestic cement manufacturers would surpass local demand. He added that Dangote management was already looking towards export prospects in Chad, Central African Republic, Garbon, Equitorial Guinea and Togo.

"Demand is growing everyday because of the infrastructural developmental efforts of the government. We will take the advantage of the ban on cement importation here in Cameroon," said Baba. "We are set to pursue aggressive market penetration and consolidation through appropriate above-the-line and below-the-line activities. About 170 distributors have been selected after the interview process and 85 distributors will start. The number will gradually increase with increasing production."

Senegal/Cameroon: Dangote Cement's new plants in Senegal and Cameroon have commenced operations. Dangote Cement plants in Ethiopia and Zambia are expected to start production in April 2015.

The new Senegalese plant in Pout has a total production capacity of 1.5Mt/yr. With the new plant, Dangote Cement hopes to meet local demand and serve the export market demand of 2Mt/yr.

Country head of Dangote Industries Senegal, Luk Haelterman, disclosed that the group has invested about US$300m in the cement plant. He added that production and sales started on 10 January 2015. "Senegal is a market with overcapacity of cement, because it had two cement plants already. Dangote has become the biggest and best because we produce only 42.5R grade cement, which is better than 32.5R grade cement product there," said Haelterman.

Cameroon: Dangote Cement's cement plant in Cameroon is set to enter production in January 2015, according to project chief, Baba Abduhallï. The plant was built on the banks of the Wouri River. It has already received its first raw material shipments from a quarry in the city of Tombel, which Dangote Cement Cameroon has approval to use for five years.

Initially, Dangote Cement Cameroon plans to produce 1.5Mt/yr of cement, raising national production to around 3.6Mt/yr, including 500,000t/yr from the Moroccan company, CIMAF and 1.6Mt/yr for Cimencam, Lafarge's subsidiary.

Cameroon: Dangote Cement has announced that its US$150m cement plant in Douala, Cameroon will commence production in August 2014. The company management said that the 1.5Mt/yr capacity plant was almost ready and would commence initial production at 1Mt/yr before production is stepped up to maximum capacity.

Dangote's general manager, Abdulahi Baba, said that the cement plant would revolutionalise the cement industry in Cameroon and help to stimulate the economy. According to Baba, the plant is ready for test running and what remains to be completed is the construction of access roads to the plant.

The Cameroon plant is also set to import clinker from other regions. Baba disclosed plans to build a jetty by the plant, which would make raw material imports and product distribution more convenient. The jetty will be situated close to the Douala Sea Port.

Africa: Chief Executive Officer at Dangote Cement, Devakumar Edwin said that the company plans to start operations in Sierra Leone, Cameroon and Zambia in 2014. Dangote, which has a production capacity of 20.3Mt/yr in Nigeria, also intends to add 9Mt/yr to production in Nigeria by the end of 2014.

Edwin said that Dangote is currently reviewing its operations in Kenya in light of the discovery of limestone deposits in the country. Dangote plans to increase the capacity of its proposed plant in Kenya from 1.5Mt/yr to 3.0Mt/yr.

"In Ethiopia, work is well underway to build 2.5Mt/yr plant at Mugher, with commissioning expected late in 2014. In Tanzania, we have begun work on a 3Mt/yr plant at Mtwara that will be operational in 2015. In Zambia, work is underway on a 1.5Mt/yr plant at Ndola with cement production expected in the second half of 2014," said Edwin.

The bid to expand is part of the company's long-term expansion strategy across the continent. Dangote has three plants in Nigeria and plans to expand into 13 other African nations, bringing its total capacity to more than 60Mt/yr by 2016. Edwin added that the company is stalling its business plan in South Sudan 'because of military conflict in that nation.'

Dangote recorded a turnover of US$2.3bn in the 2013 financial year, up by 29.4% from US$1.8bn in 2012. Profit before tax was US$1.18bn, compared with US$836m in 2012, while profit after tax rose to US$1.24bn, a 38.73% increase when compared to US$899m recorded in the same period of 2012.

Cameroon: Dangote Cement has signed an agreement with Gaz du Cameroun for the provision of gas for its 1.6Mt/yr cement plant in Douala, Cameroon. Commissioning of the cement plant is planned in January 2014 and the gas supply is scheduled to start in the second half of 2014. Construction at the Douala cement plant was delayed by a land dispute in 2012. The new plant is expected to reduce cement prices in the country.