Edea

The city is located 60 kilometers south-east of Douala and 150 kilometers south-west of Yaounde , 50 kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean , on the left bank of the Sanaga River .

Before the emergence of the city, in its place there was a settlement of the Bakoko people. The city itself was founded by the Germans in October 1891 , who appreciated its advantageous geographical position and built a bridge over the Sanaga River. Interestingly, the surrounding areas were taken under German control only in 1904. Despite the deployment of a garrison in the city, Edea was always under civilian control. After the First World War, Edea passed to the French .

There is a Catholic diocese in Edea (since March 22, 1993 ). ^[five]

The main enterprise of the city is the Peshine-Alukam aluminum plant, built back in colonial times by the French (in 1957 ). ^[6] This plant became the first aluminum smelter in West Africa. ^[7] In the 1960s, the plant produced 45-60 thousand tons of aluminum per year. ^[7] By 2005, its capacity increased to 90 thousand tons of aluminum per year. ^[8] It is currently owned by Alukam Joint Venture, managed by the Cameroonian government and foreign investors. According to some sources, the Cameroon government owns 39% of the company’s shares, ^[9] according to others - 46.7%. ^[8] Alumina for the plant comes from Guinea , which has the largest bauxite reserves in the world. The construction of the plant in Edea was due to the possibility of obtaining cheap electricity through the construction of a hydroelectric power station using the changes of the Sanaga River. The capacity of the hydroelectric power station in 1976 was 264 MW. ^[2] In 1971, the power plant generated 1.2 billion kWh of electricity , over 90% of which was consumed by the plant. ^[10] Thanks to the hydroelectric power station, Edea became the first electrified city ​​in Cameroon. The plant produces corrugated sheet aluminum (since 1962 ) and aluminum rolling (since 1968 ). Almost all products of the plant are exported. ^[11] In 2005, it was announced to expand the plant's capacity to 300 thousand tons of aluminum per year. ^[eight]

From other industries, steel production, woodworking, and paper production are developed. To the north of Edea is a bauxite mine. In the vicinity of Edea there are many farms that produce palm oil , grow bananas and cocoa .

The city of Edea is connected by rail and road with the cities of Yaounde and Douala. Edea has a very favorable transport position - until the 1980s , Edea had the only railway and road bridges across the Sanaga River in the province.

Products destined for export, mainly aluminum, are transported by rail to the port of Douala. In September 2007, it was announced the construction of a 130-kilometer railway to the city of Kribi , the port of which is more convenient for large vessels than a similar one in Douala.