Nigeria to begin urea exports by 2028, says NMDPRA

The Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has said that the country would begin exporting urea in 2028.

NMDPRA also said that Nigeria would soon begin large scale fertilizer exports.

Saidu Mohammed, NMDPRA chief executive, made the disclosures on Wednesday while fielding questions from newsmen during a tour of facilities at the Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited in Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State.

Mohammed was in the state on a three-day tour of select midstream and downstream facilities.

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He said Nigeria wanted to become a major hub for value-added products in the oil and gas industry and that the midstream is highly profitable, but requires huge investment to reap the gains.

Mohammed stressed that Nigeria had no business importing products in the petroleum value chain like urea and fertilisers due to investments by some private concerns in-country to boost oil and gas, as well as related sectors.

His words: “The midstream of the oil and gas business is really a tremendous segment that requires a lot of investment. We need $30 to $50 billion today if we must get what we need to get Nigeria on the right footing as being the hub of not only oil and gas, but whatever secondary recovery we can have.

“Value-addition products like the fertilizers, urea, and what have you; we have no business importing any of those things and behold, with the expansion of what is going on today at Indorama and many other places including Dangote fertilisers, I am sure that in the next 24 months Nigeria will join the league of urea exporting countries and that is where we should be.

“And not only being a hub for energy but also being a hub of secondary derivatives of oil and gas.”

Mohammed lauded Indorama for its investment saying, “It is really a manifestation of what Nigeria needs to have. We need a lot of these in the midstream. Definitely fertiliser plants and any value addition that we have on the hydrocarbon sources is what is needed for this nation to propel.”

He said Rivers State was chosen for the tour due to its strategic importance in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, as it houses critical national assets such as refineries, manufacturing facilities and processing plants, among others.

“You know the midstream and downstream segment of Nigeria and Rivers State has a lot of them. There is no sample that we cannot take, if we want to see anything on the gas process, we will. If we want to see anything about the manufacturer, we shall. If we want to see any on the refinery, we can.

“So we have selected just a few for us to be able to have an overview of what is going on and that is the main mission.

“The authority is there to facilitate, for us to continue giving them the support that they need, to create the environment for them to continue to add on the investment while we are attracting more and more investments to grow. That is the whole essence.”

Speaking, the Chief Executive Officer of Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited, Munish Jindal, said the visit was important for the regulator to see and better appreciate what is on ground, including the operations, successes and challenges.

Jindal noted that Indorama has been operating for over 20 years, and that Mohammed has been involved in the establishment of the Indorama company.

He stated: “We thank the authorities for the understanding that they have developed all these years for the midstream industry. In the beginning when we came it was a big challenge for us, to make them understand the set of problems, how we operate, and what is more critical for us, I think that understanding has evolved in the past 18 years.

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“We are appreciative of the new regulators and we fully support that. However, there are one or two issues many believe that would benefit our oil and gas industry and they are no more relevant to midstream companies like us.

“However, we have made a keen request to the authority to kindly look into it, and see that this is not relevant in the manufacturing industry, if we are given an exemption.”

The tour is expected to end on Friday, but Mohammed indicated there would be another visit to look at facilities in other companies, as three days were not enough to go round.