Cameroonian business tycoon, Nassourou Issa has launched a $100-million sugar mill project to challenge the market dominance of the Castel family.

Backed by Société Générale and local lender, CCA-Bank, Issa's NASCO Group has secured financing to begin civil engineering works on the facility. The expansion plan aims to bring the refinery fully online by 2028.

For decades, Cameroon's processed sugar sector has been controlled by the billionaire Castel family through its subsidiary, Société Sucrière du Cameroun (Sosucam). Upon completion, the new NASCO refinery is projected to produce 300,000 tons of refined sugar annually. Because Sosucam outputs between 120,000 and 160,000 tons per year, Issa's plant would become the largest sugar refinery in the region if it hits its operational targets.

The timing of Issa's play is highly strategic, as reported by BillionairesAfrica. Cameroon faces a chronic structural sugar deficit, with national demand hovering around 300,000 tons annually. The shortfall routinely forces authorities to authorize expensive imports to keep shelves stocked.

By building a facility that matches total national demand, Issa is positioning his company to close the import gap entirely.

The move also comes at a vulnerable moment for the incumbent. Somdia, the agro-industrial arm of the Castel Group, recently signaled its intention to exit the Cameroonian market and is seeking to offload its 88.36 percent stake in Sosucam.

Despite securing strong institutional backing, industry analysts note that Issa faces steep operational hurdles. Achieving a 300,000-ton output requires an immense upstream supply chain of raw sugarcane. While Sosucam spent decades cultivating expansive plantations across the Upper Sanaga region, NASCO must rapidly establish agricultural networks to keep the new mill running at capacity.

With civil engineering underway, the market will be watching the 2028 timeline closely. If Nassourou Issa executes his blueprint on schedule, Cameroon will transition toward self-sufficiency with a homegrown producer at the center of the industry.