This substantial financial facility is specifically intended to support the supply of raw materials and semi-finished products, essential for feeding the plants of the steel and metallurgy leader in the sub-region, in a context marked by the scarcity of scrap metal deposits on the local market.


This financial oxygen boost comes at just the right time for a sector facing deep structural mutations and complex operational imbalances. According to data from the Cameroonian Organization of Steel and Metal Transformation Industries (Ocitram), local collection now covers only about 40% of the scrap metal needs of national steelworks. This chronic shortage forces industrialists to massively increase their imports of steel billets — these molten scrap metal ingots or bars destined to be transformed into reinforcing bars, mechanically weighing down liquidity needs to maintain production rates.


Meanwhile, the entire sector faces a major macroeconomic challenge linked to the overcapacity of the productive apparatus. With installed capacities nearing 1.2 million tonnes per year for an estimated domestic national demand of around 450,000 tonnes, production infrastructures show a supply nearly 2.7 times higher than local market needs. Combined with supply difficulties and energy constraints, this situation leads plants to operate, on average, at half their capacity, generating significant stock accumulation in industrial warehouses.

By securing the support of a premier multilateral financial partner such as Afreximbank, Prometal equips itself with the indispensable levers to optimize its operating cycle and navigate through these conjunctural turbulences.


This partnership illustrates the convergent will of continental institutions and major industrialists to accelerate industrialization, durably structure regional value chains, and transform Central Africa's manufacturing potential into a true engine of economic growth.


Nlend Flore

Tags: prometal afreximbank financement matières premières sidérurgie cameroun importation billettes ferraille insuffisante surcapacité industrielle afrique centrale ocitram valorisation chaînes valeur