Traders of charcoal like Sunday Okachi popularly known as oga Sunny are increasingly smiling to the banks as Nigerians have continued to patronise charcoal sellers as substitute for their daily domestic cooking, as the high cost of kerosene and cooking gas lingers. ADEOLA TUKURU writes.
The demand for charcoal as a source of fuel has continued to rise over the years on a daily basis in the country .
In big cities, such as Kano, Port Harcourt, Lagos and FCT, charcoal is continually found in big markets and thrives very well.
Undoubtedly, settlers in these cities have a high affinity for roasted foods like roasted plantain, roasted corn , Suya , roasted fish among others.
Using charcoal to prepare local delicacies
Also, foreigners in these cities and town also find charcoal quite useful as they use it to prepare most of their local delicacies.
For oga Sunny who hails from Delta state and lives in Karu, FCT said the high cost of kerosene and cooking gas had turned to be blessing in disguise for their business.
While recounting to Business Starter in Abuja, he said that many customers now patronised them and charcoal gained popularity.
He said most roasted yam and plantain sellers patronized him adding that he had recorded high sale as many customers now patronized him.
He explained that a full sack of charcoal, lasting one and half months depending on the usage has also increased from N1,500 to N2, 500 and N3,000.
In his words “I think the high coast of kerosene and gas is a blessing in disguise as I now sell about five bags per day, the same measure I sold in a week before,” he said.
He said that he made lots of gain in the past two weeks as many people now trooped to his shop to purchase charcoal in different quantities.
Benefit of charcoal for food vendors
“Food vendors are not left out in the rush for charcoal because they can no longer afford the prices of gas,” he said.
He explained that the high costs of kerosene and gas had suddenly given charcoal a sudden prominence adding that charcoal sellers now made brisk business and on high patronage.
“I knew people will rush to buy charcoal because it has happened many times, so I bought huge stock in December, so I am making more profit now,” he said.
He attested that charcoal was the best for cooking, saying that it burns blue flame like gas, urged the people to imbibe the culture of using it for their cooking.
He said Charcoal burns blue flame like gas and it is better compared to fire wood which burns red flame and make pots to be black and dirty.
Majority of the woods used to produce charcoal derived from trees generally described as a hard woods which exist in large quantities in the North-Central parts in Nigeria.
In another development, Mr James Adeniyi said that he had to buy a bag of charcoal for his wife because he could no longer afford the high cost of kerosene.
Call for FG to make Kerosene available
He urged the federal government to take drastic step in ensuring the availability of kerosene and cooking gas in order to make life more meaningful for the masses.
Starting a Charcoal business in Nigeria
With a large charcoal market existing in Europe, America, Asia, the global worth continues to retain it’s multi-billion Dollar value. This poses a huge opportunity for deep-pocket investors looking to make investments in an energy sector. For instance, 70% of the slightly over 60,000 metric tons of charcoal used yearly in the United Kingdom comes from Africa. The value of a ton of charcoal is between 200 Euros to 210 Euros. A charcoal supplier exporting between 1,000 to 10,000 metric tons yearly would be generating an annual revenue between the values of 200,000 Euros to 2,000,000 Euros. join the many Nigerians who are benefiting from charcoal business. For a very long time, Nigerians focused solely on exportation of crude oil, and many other natural resources that could be exported were ignored. But thankfully, things seem to have changed these days. Nigerians have now discovered other products that are in high demand in the international market and readily available in Nigeria. the export market in Nigeria is booming like never before. On the list of highly profitable and easy to find exportable products is charcoal. You can earn huge profits with very little effort just from exporting charcoal to foreign countries, especially European countries. Many Nigerians have become millionaires overnight just by engaging in this highly profitable business. This is the most popular business opportunity exploited in the charcoal industry in Nigeria, and around the world. With tens of thousands of metric tons of charcoal exported yearly from Nigeria, the revenues generated makes the sector lucrative. Here, the sales could be done by local traders in the market, or by large players exporting the charcoal products outside the country.
Charcoal export & distribution
There are markets for charcoal in other continents, the biggest market is in Europe. Therefore, when you want to start searching for buyers, you should look at countries like Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Belgium and Poland to mention a few. You don’t have to worry about competition in this business because the demand for charcoal exceeds supply by all means. Even though there are many other countries where charcoal is made (like Thailand, Malaysia, Brazil and several other African countries), the Nigerian type is mostly preferred over others because it is believed to be of better quality.
Where Charcoal can be found
This product is virtually available all over Nigeria as many local communities have perfected the technology of charcoal production. Some known charcoal deports Made in Nigeria are found in places like Oyo, Isheyin, Saki Igbo-Ora, Ogbomoso- all in the western part of the country. We also have depots in Jebba, Omu Aran, Egbe, Kabba in the Central States. Charcoal is found in abundance also in Minna, Jos and Kaduna. Besides, an individual can produce his own charcoal wherever he/she is located.
Uses & demands
Today, there is increased usage of charcoal. Besides being the fuel that cooks steaks, hotdogs, and hamburgers, a number of companies have discovered that charcoal can be used in certain metallurgical purifying treatments and as a filter to remove organic compounds such as chlorine, gasoline, pesticides, and other toxic chemicals from water and air. Getting clean, uncontaminated drinking water is a challenge in the world today due to pollution; our waterways, seas and oceans have been polluted, making it difficult for us to get access to clean, natural water. It has therefore become necessary for us to find ways to purify our drinking water without destroying the nutrients and benefits that natural water is supposed to offer. One of the ways this is achieved is by filtering the water with charcoal. If you have ever seen a black substance in a water filter, that’s charcoal. Interestingly, the concept of using charcoal to purify water is not a new one; it’s been around for ages and has been used for that purpose since far back as 2,000 years ago. But it is now being industrialized more than ever before. Filtration is not the only use of charcoal; it is also used in the medical industry to relieve gastrointestinal problems such as indigestion, flatulence, food poisoning and other health problems. It is also used for heating purposes. As you already know, it’s very cold in Europe and they rely on house heating systems to survive. Some of these systems are fueled by charcoal.
Charcoal export broker
There are many people who desire to invest in this business, and they have the funds but lack the required time and knowledge. As a smart businessperson, you can seize this opportunity to look for willing investors who would drop the funds to for running the business. You will then share the profit with them at the end of the day. You can even gather a group of investors in the event. For example, you can bring together a group of three to four investors under one umbrella to carry out the business and share profits together. You can start from there and before you realize it, you would have become an exporter yourself.
