The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, has on Wednesday reiterated the Federal Government’s determination to end fuel importation in the next couple of months by encouraging investments in local refining of crude oil.
This was divulged during an inspection of the first hydro-skimming private modular refinery being built in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State by Azikel Petroleum Refinery owned by a businessman, Dr. Azibapu Eruani.
In a statement by the company, Sylva said the President, Muhammadu Buhari, is committed to reversing Nigeria’s status as a net importer of refined petroleum products to a net exporter in the coming years.
He noted, “The refinery is important to Nigerians and the country’s search for economic prosperity.”
According to the minister, the refinery, which was about 75 per cent completed, has the capacity to process 12,000 barrels of crude per day.
Sylva further stated that the Azikel hydro-skimming refinery is a massive visionary and pragmatic quest to facilitate the FG’s objectives towards attaining self-sufficiency in the production of refined products such as petrol, diesel, aviation fuel and Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG).
The Azikel Refinery, he continued, is set to actualise the export of refined products from Bayelsa to other states in the Nigerian federation, with daily production of 1.5 million litres of petrol, one million litres of diesel 500,000 litres of kerosene and aviation fuel.
“This will reverse the stigma of Nigeria, the world’s fifth-largest producer of crude oil being a net importer of refined products,” he said.
Sylva added that the people-focused dream of the president to industrialise the Niger Delta, boost infrastructural development and facilitate employment-creation was being dynamically actualised by the Azikel Refinery through the additional workforce and encouragement of hundreds of youth towards the acquisition of vocational skills needed to fill paid and self-employment slots being rapidly created by the refinery.
For the supply of feedstock for the Azikel refinery, the petroleum minister lauded the Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in the development of the project, as well as the participation of the NNPC, Nigerian Agip Oil Company, Total Nigeria and Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).
In his view, the President of Azikel Petroleum Refinery, Dr. Azibapu Eruani applauded the FG for granting the company the license to build the refinery.
He, therefore, pledged to work assiduously towards actualising the government’s objective of industrialising the nation, creating positive economic multipliers, including jobs for the youth and other Nigerians.
His words, “The Azikel Refinery is only a subsidiary that genuinely mirrors the patriotism and innovations of the Azikel Group.”
