(Business in Cameroon) - For over a month now, the orange domestic gas cylinders of the Société Camerounaise de Transformation Métallique (SCTM), leader in the domestic gas distribution in the country, are desperately empty. Resellers say they have not been supplied for several weeks, despite purchase orders sent to the main depot of the capital.

Many housewives holding SCTM cylinders have gone back to using charcoal, while the wealthier ones have simply decided to switch their cylinders to the competition. No official information has been issued so far to explain the reasons for this extended shortage, whether by the company or the Ministry of Trade.

We can however recall that at the end of 2015, the Group of Oil Professionals (GPP in French), the association of operators in the oil products distribution sector in Cameroon, has threatened to suspend the supply to SCTM because of non-payment of transfer rights to Tradex, for the supply of oil products. These arrears amount to over FCfa 2 billion as at now, we learned from reliable sources.

As a reminder, since the demise of its entrepreneur in July 2011, SCTM has been going through a rough patch. A situation whose consequence is a gradual loss of market share. For example, between 2013 and 2015, the company lost 5% of market share, from 38% to 33%, according to official statistics.

BRM