Togo 2 sets of 500 tons flat bottom silo

A typical case of COBAN successful construction of two 500-ton flat bottom silo in Togo

Against the backdrop of the accelerating modernization of African agriculture, the standardization and efficiency of grain storage systems have become the focus of attention of governments and agricultural enterprises. As an engineering contractor specializing in grain storage solutions, Coban has been active in the West African market in recent years. This article takes the two 500-ton flat bottom silo projects successfully built by Coban in Togo as an example to comprehensively analyze its technical selection, construction execution and customer feedback for reference by relevant industry insiders.

Project Background: Togo’s Need for Modernized Grain Storage

Togo is one of the agricultural countries in West Africa, with corn, sorghum and millet as its main grain varieties. Due to the simple traditional grain storage facilities, grains generally face problems such as insect pests, high humidity mildew and transportation losses during the post-harvest processing stage, resulting in an average annual post-harvest loss of 10%-15%. To solve this bottleneck, local grain processors in Togo, encouraged by government policies, started the construction of standardized storage facilities.

Coban was commissioned to design and build two 500-ton flat bottom silo for a local agricultural product company for long-term storage of corn and transitional turnover before drying. The project site is located in Kara Province, close to the main agricultural product production area with convenient transportation.

Project Overview: Core Configuration of Two 500-ton Flat bottom Silo

The project was constructed by COBAN, a well-known Chinese grain storage equipment manufacturer. Each 500-ton flat bottom silos is made of galvanized corrugated steel plate, which has excellent corrosion resistance and structural strength. The silo has a diameter of 8.3 meters and a total height of about 10.5 meters. The designed grain storage period can reach 3-5 years. The supporting systems include roof ventilation, side wall ventilation, grain temperature monitoring devices, and manual/electric unloading systems to ensure that the grain quality remains stable for a long time in a hot and humid climate.

In addition, in order to adapt to the local manual operation mode in Togo, the entire flat bottom silo structure retains flexible discharge channels and adjustable discharge ports on the basis of simplifying the automation system, which is conducive to small and medium-sized farmers to discharge and sell grain in batches.

Construction and delivery: project management challenges in high temperature climates

The project started in October 2024 with a cycle of 45 working days. During the construction period, the team overcame problems such as high temperature, frequent power outages and inconvenient transportation. Coban deployed generators and sent project managers to the site to ensure the smooth progress of the construction period.

The silo foundation adopts a reinforced concrete ring foundation, and additional reinforcement is done according to geological conditions to improve the overall wind and earthquake resistance. All flat bottom silo accessories are uniformly packaged and shipped by the Chinese headquarters, and transported to the project site through customs clearance at the port of Lomé. There were no missing parts or delays during the installation process.

Feedback from use: Improving grain storage capacity and driving regional agricultural cooperation

Since its official commissioning in January 2025, the two 500-ton flat bottom silos have helped local farmers to store more than 860 tons of corn and millet. Compared with the traditional method of relying on sacks and open-air storage in the past, this modern grain storage model effectively reduces the grain loss rate and shortens the grain sales cycle.

More importantly, the cooperative uses the grain storage capacity of the flat bottom silo to unify procurement and sales, improves bargaining power, and attracts more surrounding farmers to join. There are currently plans to expand the third set of 1,000-ton flat bottom silos in 2026 to meet the growing demand for grain storage.

Conclusion: Application prospects of flat bottom silo in African agricultural development

The 500-ton flat bottom silo project in Togo not only improved the level of local agricultural infrastructure, but also provided replicable case experience for other African countries. As China-Africa cooperation continues to deepen, more similar projects will be implemented in the future to promote the modernization and standardization of Africa’s grain storage and transportation system.

Through reasonable configuration, scientific selection and localized construction, flat bottom silos have become an ideal choice in the agricultural field that is both economical and practical.