Support for the carbonization and marketing of sustainable charcoal in Kinshasa République démocratique du Congo

Context of the service

Since 2008, Novacel has set up a carbon sink consisting mainly of plantations of Acacia auriculiformis (900 ha) but also 200 ha of other species (Acacia mangium, Eucalyptus urophylla and Pinus oocarpa) still in full growth. Acacias auriculiformis have been planted since October 2008 until April 2010, so the oldest will have 6 years completed in early 2015.
It is therefore possible to consider valuing these plantations by producing charcoal, which will allow the continuation of the planting of the carbon sink with the products of the sale of the first plantations.
The "Biodiversity and Forests" Programme (PBF), launched by the German-Congolese Cooperation in 2005 for a period of 13 years, aims to protect forest biodiversity and improve the living conditions of populations living near forests. The PFB intends to support Novacel's efforts.

Services provided

Two missions made it possible to carry out a sampling inventory of the plantations carried out in 2008 and to have discussions with the actors of the wood energy sector. The data were analyzed as follows:
- Evaluation of the wood resource available for carbonization and value of the standing stock (on 1100 ha);
- State of play of carbonization techniques and their advantages/disadvantages for the Ibi Batéké site;
- Comparison of several techno-economic scenarios: improved traditional carbonization vs. semi-industrial carbonization (wrong), internalized transport vs. outsourced, wholesale and semi-wholesale marketing vs. retail;
- Operating program with concrete recommendations: organization of sites, safety, contractual agreements, operating period, amount of manpower required, etc. ;
- Business plan 2015 - 2020, with different assumptions of profit sharing with operators.

Summary of the service

Support for the carbonization and marketing of sustainable charcoal in Kinshasa: Inventory of 1100 ha of plantations and the value of the standing stock; Evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages of various carbonization techniques adapted to the context of the Batéké plateau; Cost-benefit analysis of processing, transport and marketing options; Operating program; Business Plan 2015-2019.