Dangote Cement hits Cameroon with 1.5m TPA

The first set of the Dangote Cement bags, the 3X Premium, will hit the Cameroon market in January 2015, the management of the company has said.

Conducting the Cameroonian media round the 1.5 million metric tonnes per annum capacity plant in Douala, the General Manager of the plant, Baba Abdullahi, said the plant was already being test run and full production would start next month.

He said Dangote Cement would be deploying its state-of-the-art machinery and latest technology from the point of production to delivery to customers having been known for employing best practices in its operation.

According to him, the entry of Dangote Cement in the Cameroonian market would significantly contribute to the country’s growth and that the management is upbeat about the prospect of stimulating the construction and housing sectors of the economy.

Abdullahi stated that cement customers in the country are anxious to buy Dangote brand because the 3X 42.5 grade would be the first in the market that is produced locally.

“Everything is set for full production as the test run commenced earlier in the week. The imported clinker and gypsum are on ground and pozollan, which is locally sourced is available.

The power house, which is one of the last of the plant facilities to be installed is almost completed, to bring the plant to 100 per cent readiness.

The test run, he stated, will enable the regulatory authorities to carry out independent quality check. “Bodies such as LABO genie and ANOR would be carrying out check on the quality of the cement.”

It would be recalled that Dangote Cement started the construction of the Cameroon plant in 2012 and has over time employed thousands of artisans and technicians.

“Today it has over 250 permanent staff. The company has risen above all challenges during the construction phase and is set to produce 1.5 million tonnes per year.

Dangote Cement is Africa’s leading cement producer with three plants in Nigeria and plans to expand to 13 other African countries.

The group is a fully integrated quarry-to-customer producer with production capacity of 20.25 million tonnes in Nigeria and new operations beginning to come on stream across the rest of sub-Saharan Africa.

The group plans to have around 60 million tonnes of production, grinding and import capacity in sub-Saharan Africa by 2016.