Sapele (redirected from sapeles)

Sapele (səpā`lē), city (1991 est. pop. 123,000), S Nigeria, a port in the Niger delta. The center of the Nigerian timber industry, Sapele has sawmills and a large plywood and veneer factory; rubber is processed there, and plastics, chemicals, and shoes are manufactured. After the British established a vice consulate in the city in 1892, Sapele grew in importance as a port; in 1894 it came under British rule and served as a local administrative center.

---

sapele, sapele mahogany

A light-to-dark red-brown wood of central and western Africa; hard, relatively dense, frequently with ribbon-stripe grain; often decoratively figured.

---

Sapele 

a city in Nigeria, in Bendel State; situated on the Es-cravos River, an arm of the Niger. Population, 61,000 (1969). Sapele is a seaport, exporting timber and lumber, rubber, and palm kernels. The city has Nigeria’s largest enterprise for the production of plywood and enterprises for the production of palm oil.