Western Diamond Cement Ltd secures project loan, Ghana

Stanbic Bank has closed a US$20.15m loan deal with Western Diamond Cement Ltd, part of the West African Cement SA (WACEM) Group, to build a cement production plant in the western region of Ghana. The 1Mta cement factory will be located at Egyam Bokro near Takoradi and production is scheduled to start in 2014.

Speaking at a signing ceremony in Accra, the Chairman of WACEM Group Manubhai Jethabhai Patel said the Group is committed to developing the natural resources of countries they operate in, and this applies to Western Diamond Cement Limited.

“Our group seeks to develop the local resources of the countries we operate in for the benefit of the people. That is why we invest in the basic needs of industry. We move into countries to help in the infrastructure development process. This facility from Stanbic Bank will go a long way to ensure that we achieve our aim of making cement easily accessible to the people of Ghana,” he said.

WACEM has two associate companies currently operating in Ghana, namely Savanna Diamond Cement Limited (SDCL) in the Northern Region and Diamond Cement Ghana Limited (DCGL) in the Volta Region.

Commenting, Chief Executive of Stanbic Bank Ghana Alhassan Andani said: “As a developing economy, cement is critical to the infrastructure development process and we are delighted to be financing a project that will make cement easily available to Ghanaians.”

Stanbic Bank’s relationship with the WACEM Group started in 2011. WACEM has cement factories in most parts of West Africa including Nigeria, Cote D’Ivoire, (Nigeria and Cote D’Ivore are in project stage) Niger and Burkina Faso, and has recently commissioned a factory in Mali.

Head of Stanbic Corporate and Investment Banking Unit Kwamina Asomaning said: “Stanbic Bank CIB has consistently demonstrated its commitment to support Ghana’s infrastructure base. Cement is crucial in any physical development agenda. Adding a fourth factory to the local cement production structure will mean more jobs to people, and improvement in incomes. We enter into partnerships which produce results that matter.”