A steel manufacturing plant
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has announced a US$12million loan to Rider Iron and Steel Ghana Limited to support the company’s construction of a steel manufacturing plant that will increase domestic steel production, creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs.
IFC’s loan will support construction of the plant in Kumasi. When complete in 2021, the factory will produce roughly 240,000 tonnes of steel products annually using mostly locally sourced scrap steel. The plant will increase current production by more than 75 percent.
The plant will create about 450 direct jobs and generate more than 13,000 indirect jobs in the value chain, mostly among individuals and micro enterprises engaged in scrap collection.
Rider Steel Director, Walid Al Alami said: “This capital injection from IFC is a game-changer; not just for Rider Steel, but also the industry and Ghana. The loan will propel us to help meet domestic demand and support many other businesses along the way”.
Ronke Ogunsulire, IFC Country Manager for Ghana said: “We are pleased to support Rider Steel and contribute to job creation, local skills development and economic growth in Ghana, especially at a time when the global economy is facing serious challenges”.
The new plant will operate with an energy-efficient induction furnace and will use scrap steel as the main ingredient, reducing its carbon footprint compared to steel made from iron ore.
Increased domestic steel production from the new plant will reduce imports and help conserve foreign exchange by approximately US$125million annually at current prices, supporting Ghana’s balance of trade.
In the past 10 years, IFC has provided over US$4billion of financing and advisory services in Ghana for agribusiness, education, energy, transport, tourism and other sectors.
