Viana - A salt refinery with the capacity to produce 3,500 tons per month, in a private investment of US$5.5 million, was inaugurated this Friday in the Municipality of Viana, in Luanda, by the minister of Industry and Trade, Victor Fernandes.
According to the minister, the country needs about one hundred industries of this nature and it has only four, so he appealed to entrepreneurs to invest in this area of salt refinery.
But, according to the minister, the fundamental question is not in the quantity of refinery plants, but in the quantity of processing that these industries have.
The minister also said that the promotion of this industry is of capital importance because it will help primary producers who are suppliers of raw material that "now can count on this factory, in order to refine salt with all the quality for human consumption".
Regarding the self-sufficiency of this product, Victor Fernandes stressed that Angola is not yet self-sufficient in refined salt production, but it is in primary salt production, without advancing quantities, counting only on a "never ending" sea coast and favourable weather conditions.
The infrastructure, which started its first phase in November 2022, currently produces one thousand tons of refined iodized salt and has generated 50 direct jobs.
The refinery will distribute salt to bakeries and other industries, in 250 and 500 gram, one kilogram and 25 kilogram bulk packages, and expects to increase the number of workers to 140.
In declarations to the press, the general manager of the refinery, Rajesh Gurbani, of Indian nationality, referred that this is the first time that investments are being made in this area, although he has been in the business for many years, with the purpose of substituting imported products for national production.
According to him, the company has no problem in the acquisition of raw material, coming from various points of the country, with emphasis on the provinces of Bengo and Benguela.
Available data indicates that the production of salt in Angola was of 182.6 thousand tons, between July 2020 and July 2021, equivalent to a growth of 13.5%.
According to data from the Association of Salt Producers and Transporters of Angola (APROSAL), by now the country has more than 20 salt works in operation, spread over the provinces of Benguela (seven units), Namibe (6) and others operating in Luanda, Zaire, Bengo, Cuanza Sul and Cabinda.
