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CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS
MAY 2017
23
BUSINESS – USED EQUIPMENT
HIGHLIGHTING AFRICAN
USED EQUIPMENT
OPPORTUNITIES
There are unique challenges in the African used equipment market. The continent is vast and it
requires local knowledge to gauge the variable demand. The situation on the ground is economically
fluid and politically uneven. The perceived imbalance between risk and reward inhibits buyers.
However, there is a general consensus in the industry that Africa offers great opportunities for buyers
and sellers alike. The key challenge is defining just where and when?
Paul Williamson
, sales director
for Africa at IronPlanet, writes exclusively for
Capital Equipment news.
IronPlanet anticipates a very strong future for Africa, with
phenomenal opportunities available in the used equipment
marketplace.
L
eading online auction company
IronPlanet is currently replicating its
highly-trusted and globally successful
model for the African continent. As such,
it offers hard-won insight on avoiding
the pitfalls of dealing in used heavy
construction machinery.
No more so than in mitigating the
problems perennially associated with doing
business in Africa, such as corruption,
fragile economies, varying levels of red
tape and inadequate infrastructure.
Africa’s big questions
There are big questions over doing
business in Africa. Taking a broad view, the
biggest hindrance confronting participants
is the negative influence of despot
governments; while the biggest hurdle
remains corruption. However, corruption is
not solely Africa's problem.
The instability of the region reveals
itself in “one-trick” economies – in
particular, those countries in West Africa
– almost totally dependent on single
commodities to fund large and ambitious
construction projects. The global collapse
in oil prices, and the current situation
where oil commands prices of about $50 a
barrel, is in stark contrast to government
construction budgets based on receiving
a price of $100 plus.
Subsequently, many big infrastructure
projects have ground to a halt. As a result,
there is a huge amount of construction
equipment currently available on the
African market.