Ivory Coast’s Sifca plans to invest $74 million in West Africa

Ivory Coast agro-industrial group Sifca, part-owned by Singapore’s Olam International and Wilmar International, will invest 35 billion CFA francs this year to diversify in West Africa, according to company executives. The company executives advised that part of the money will go to creating 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of palm oil plantations in Liberia and a further 10,000 hectares in Nigeria, executives said at a news conference late on Friday to discuss 2013 results.

The remaining funds will be used to build a biomass power station with a 23-megawatt capacity in Ivory Coast and to pay for a 49.5 percent stake in Wilmar Africa Ltd, the Singaporean company’s African subsidiary. Bertrand Vigne, Sifca’s managing director, also advised that the group’s 2013 turnover was stable at around 500 billion CFA francs.

Currently, the company is controlled by the Billon family of Ivory Coast, while the two Singaporean companies have a stake of around 25 percent. Vigne advised, “The group has a clear regional strategy and these projects should allow Sifca to continue to grow.”

Alassane Doumbia, Sifca’s executive vice-chairman, said the company raised the funds for the investment with a 35 billion CFA bond issue in July on the regional debt market. Doumbia went on to state, “Regarding green energy, talks are under way with the Ivorian government to agree a price per kilowatt-hour.”

Source: The Africa Report