(Business in Cameroon) – Bocom Petroleum, part of Cameroonian billionaire Dieudonné Bougne’s Bocom Group, is building two new gas bottling centers in Maroua and Ngaoundéré in northern Cameroon. The announcement was made on October 21 in Douala during a four-day working visit by Fuh Calistus Gentry, the acting Minister of Mines, to companies in the economic capital.
Jean-Louis Fosso, Deputy Director-General of Bocom Petroleum in charge of specialized products, shared that the new centers are set to begin operations by the first quarter of 2025, each capable of bottling 1,000 gas cylinders per day. Fosso highlighted that the project, though the cost was not disclosed, will help improve gas distribution across the country, especially in remote areas.
Currently, Bocom has a bottling capacity of 6,500 gas cylinders daily across its existing facilities in Douala-Bonaberi (5,000 cylinders), Yaoundé (1,000 cylinders), and Bansoa in the West region (500 cylinders). With new equipment already acquired, Bocom plans to boost its bottling capacity at Yaoundé from 1,000 to 2,500 cylinders daily and at Bansoa from 500 to 1,500 cylinders per day. By 2025, this expansion is expected to raise Bocom’s total production capacity to 11,000 cylinders per day.
This capacity increase comes as Cameroon faces a continued shortage of domestic gas supply. According to the Cameroonian Oil Depot Company (SCDP), the country’s annual liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) supply rose from 35,000 tons in 2000 to 170,000 tons in 2021. Yet, Cameroon still relies on imports for about 80% of its LPG needs to ensure household supply. To ease access, the government subsidizes the cost, allocating CFA43.6 billion in subsidies for 2024, down from CFA75 billion in 2023.
