THE BITAR FAMILY
JOHN BITAR & CO. LTD
Wealth: INHERITED, LUMBER
Known For: JOHN BITAR & CO. LTD
OVERVIEW
John Rachid Bitar, was a Ghanaian of Lebanese origin who established John Bitar & Co. Ltd. He was a cash crop farmer in the Brong Ahafo region in 1955 and his company has grown to become Ghana’s leading producer of premium-quality wood products under the Free Zones Initiative. Operating three large factories, the company specializes in the manufacture of various products from the finest tropical hardwoods and softwoods.
John Bitar & Co. Ltd undertakes logging and sawmilling activities and exports high-grade tropical hard wood timber to the European, North American and African markets.
As a family business, it has its headquarters at Mempeasem, Sekondi and two plants at Sefwi Dwinase near Sefwi Wiawso and at Apowa near Takoradi, all in the Western Region of Ghana.
NET WORTH SUMMARY
The Bitar family wealth is mainly from timber processing, the company has a total forest concession of 1,000 km2 comprising 536 km2 of forest reserve and 464 km2 of off reserve and employs over 3,700 workers with an average annual turnover of over US$40 million.
In 1968, John Bitar & Co. Ltd acquired R. T. Briscoe, a timber-processing company in Sekondi. John Bitar & Co. Ltd moved its operational headquarters to Sekondi in 1999. In that same year, John Bitar & Co. Ltd acquired Gliksten West Africa Limited, a timber-processing company based in Sefwi Wiawso in the Western region.
In 2006, John Bitar & Co. Ltd acquired Metrostar Limited, a plywood processing plant based in Apowa, near Takoradi. In 2010, the company also acquired concessions in Gabon.
The company has a log input capacity of 200,000 m3 per annum. Its sawmill has the capacity to process over 18,000 m3 of lumber, strips, shorts and blanks.
Its sliced veneer plant produces about 15,000,000 m3 of sliced veneer, 36,000 m3 of rotary veneer and plywood and 6,000 m3 of moulding (value added) annually.
John Bitar & Co. Ltd processes over 15 different species of wood. Only 5% of output is sold on the domestic market, some 25% is exported within West Africa with most of the remaining 70% going to Europe.
Visibility Ratings: B
A great company employing more people.
ReplyDeleteMy late Dad is part of their beautiful history. He was the general manager/PM for close to 20 years of reforming it... His best and only friend/inlaw osei tutu also was part of their history... In 1995 I had the opportunity to work there as young college boy..
Gazan, Muhammad and fiko