‘Edo modular refinery will meet 100% of back oil demand’

The Edo Modular Refinery operated by Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company (ERPC) Limited with support from the Edo State Government will, at full capacity, meet 100 percent of Nigeria’s need of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO) otherwise called black oil.

The first phase of the facility, capped at 6000bpd, is on the verge of completion in Ologbo, Ikpoba Okha local government area of the state.

Chairman of ERPC, Michael Osime, in a statement, said when the company meets the local demand for LPFO, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will have to remove the product from its foreign exchange list.

LPFO is a fundamental input in steam generation in many labour-intensive industries like textiles (colouring), construction (cement), food (sugar) and beverages (sterilising), and is set to drive industrial growth.

According to Osime, “The modular refinery has achieved 95 per cent mechanical completion. The pre-commissioning activities are expected to commence soon.”

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He added: “Our expansion programme to 30,000bpd will save in excess of $350 million in foreign exchange per annum. The facility will also meet 100 percent of the demand for LPFO per annum. Therefore, with our production capacity, the CBN can remove LPFO from the foreign exchange list.

He commended the federal and state governments for their support which led to the speedy realisation of the project, saying “On behalf of the management of EPC contractor and staff of ERPC, I would like to express our gratitude to the Federal Government of Nigeria for creating good business environment under the ease of doing business programme and fiscal incentives such as duty waiver.

“We appreciate the Edo State government for giving support of N700 million and good business environment and our host community, the Ologbo community.”

Recall that as part of the state’s industrialisation drive, Governor Godwin Obaseki had in 2018 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese consortium and committed N700 million project support fund to start off the project, paving the way for the establishment of the refinery.