Gov´t, int’l firms consulting on SONARA rehabilitation, modernisation.

This is the focus of a meeting dubbed “international market sounding consultation” which went underway in Yaounde Monday. The Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze, opened the discussions. 

Participating at the consultations are officials of SONARA, several members of government and investors. 

Officials stated that the goal is to rehabilitate and modernise the company to move its processing capacity from 2.1 million to 3.5 million tons per year. 

Experts also said the envisaged SONARA will reduce the importation of refined products by 80%. Discussions with potential investors are said to be around a Development, Finance and Maintenance, DBFM, Public-Private Partnership, PPP, scheme which officials stated will make SONARA outstandingly viable.

SONARA under the scheme being discussed in Yaounde, experts explained, will manage every infrastructure while partners will reap through revenues under established guidelines.

The works expected to last 36 months, engineers said, are tied to specific timetables. They explained that by the fourth quarter of this year, the international tender for the project will be launched. The third quarter of 2027, precisely in the month of September, is set for the financial closing 

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze, reminded the international partners and other participants of the pain that the nation has been going through since the 2019 fire incident at SONARA.

He stated that the nation has largely been importing petroleum products with devastating consequences on the economy. SONARA, he said, boosts the industrial base of the nation; creates jobs and makes substantial contribution to the State coffers.

The MINFI boss stated that the rehabilitation of SONARA is an emergency which must be handled to restore Cameroon’s energy sovereignty.

A functional oil refining company, Motaze stated, will improve the country’s balance of payment and the vitality of the treasury. Rehabilitating SONARA, the Minister went on, will also revive the city of Limbe where it is found.

The MINFI boss said whoever wins the contract to rehabilitate SONARA must be ready to adopt the Design, Build, Finance and Maintain, DBFM, format.

He said the new-look SONARA Cameroonians are expecting, must be competitive and profitable for the State and investors. Upholding such standards, he said, will help mobilize local expertise and reduce risks on state budget. 

The refinery becoming functional again, he asserted, will reinforce resilience of national economy, reduce shocks especially inflation on households.

He insisted on the strict respect of rules of transparency, optimal allocation and equitable sharing of risks. The minister assured them that selection will be done respecting the highest standards of public private sector partnership in executing such works.

The government, Motaze reassured, is open to suggestions, and counsel to make the rehabilitation a success.

The General Manager, GM of SONARA, Bako Harouna, told journalists that the consultation marks turning point in the series of engagement to reconstruct SONARA.

He thanked the government and the Head of State, Paul Biya, for the consistent support given to SONARA. Harouna said with the new plan being discussed, new units will be added to SONARA.

The Chairperson of the Board of Directors of SONARA, Ndoh Bertha Bakata, also expressed gratitude to the State. She said SONARA is on the process of bouncing back at a time when “many people thought that we were dead”.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3833 of Tuesday June 30, 2026