Cement sector expands to meet consumer demands

After Cimaf was installed a few months ago, alongside Cimencam and Dangote these companies await in the next month, two for other investors. In the cement sector in Cameroon, the eyes are currently tilted toward the plant Dangote (one million tonnes of annual production).

On the market, Cimencam (with an annual production of approximately 1.6 million tonnes) has been joined, a few months ago by Cimaf whose annual production is estimated at 500,000 tonnes.

According to estimates at the Ministry of Mines, industry and technological development, with Cimaf and Dangote, running at full speed, the local production could be between 2.5 and 3 million tonnes of cement.

Local demand is estimated at 2.8 million tonnes. In this sector where the needs are constantly increasing, the imported brands continue to occupy a prominent place on the stalls.

According to figures of the Cameroonian customs, the quantities of imported cement rose from 1.1 million tonnes in 2010 to nearly 1.7 million tonnes in 2013 for an amount of approximately 88.5 billion F.

With the forecast of demand estimated at eight million tonnes of cement per year in 2020, the market remains an opportunity for investors.

Last Tuesday, two new investors reported in this sector, among them, a Turkish operator. Through its Cameroonian subsidiary Medcem Cameroon Ozsezikli, director general of Eren Holding Company hopes to see its structure start its activities in six months, that is to say in February 2015.

It announced a production of 600,000 tons of cement per year, with a possibility of extending to a million tonnes over the years. Before this multiplicity of the offer, the expected effects on the prices have been slow to materialize. The price of the bag of 50 kg of cement sells for an average of 5,000 F. a tariff still judged high by consumers.

With these new entrants in the industry, the new configuration of the cement market in Cameroon by the end of 2015 or early 2016, given in perspective a sector shared between five operators, a competitive situation which should greatly impact the final price of this product to the consumer.

Among the major consumers of the yards in current and future: social housing, dams, administrative buildings, road works, etc, things that can explain the investor enthusiasm for this market.

A side of these private investments which are born, other projects is underway to enhance the offer. Cement plants are planned to Nomayos (Center), Limbe ( South-west ) and Mintom (South).