As in Kenya, also in the Republic of the Congo il agri-feedstock project tip on castor. After the signing of the memorandum of understanding with the government last October, Eni launched a pilot phase that allowed the company to define an industrial plan with the start of production as early as next year. The pilot phase began in October 2021 and the project involves the construction of a agri-hub a Loudima, in the Bouenza department. It will be a seed oil processing plantbut also a multifunctional center where local farmers can avail themselves of training and technical support.
The first production of oil, guaranteed by the cultivation of castor, is expected in 2023 and will have a capacity of 30,000 tons per year of vegetable oil until it reaches 200,000 tons per year in 2030. It will then continue with the construction of other agri-hubs to achieve by 2026 a production of 150,000 tons of oil per year with about 90,000 workers in the agricultural sector.
In the later stages, the cultivation of other crops, such as for example, will be promoted cardamom and the brassica, always with low impact (low Iluc), which are well suited to the consolidated agricultural systems of the Congo, with vast availability of mechanization. This project opens a new area of activity for Eni in the African country, in support of the Congolese national development plan for agriculture 2018-2022, and is based on Eni’s commitment to contribute to the decarbonisation of the energy mix of African countries.