- Nigeria and other African countries would have collaboration options to source fertilizer and petroleum products from the Dangote refinery
- Executive secretary of the NCDMB requested applications from potential investors and businesses looking to produce equipment, components, and spare parts for the industry.
- He said that domestic companies would be supported by a regional fund or financial structure that provides guarantees, lending facilities, and investment incentives
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has 5-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
The Dangote 650,000-barrel-per-day Integrated Refinery and Petrochemical Company will provide Nigeria and other African nations with partnership opportunities for sourcing fertilizer and petroleum products, Felix Omatsola Ogbe, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has said.
He made this statement at the 9th Sub-Saharan African International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (SAIPEC), which is currently taking place in Lagos.
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Similar projects that could benefit from partnerships, according to Ogbe, included the Grand Ethiopian Dam, the Konza Technology City in Kenya, the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos, and establishments like the SHI-MCI FPSO Fabrication/Integration Yard in Lagos.
The Executive Secretary also highlighted NCDMB's Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks Scheme (NOGAPS), which is being established in seven places throughout Nigeria. He asked interested investors and companies who want to manufacture industry-related spare parts, components, and equipment to apply.
Given the free trade area it has created by integrating 1.3 billion people across 54 African countries with a combined gross domestic product of over $3 trillion, he also emphasized the significance of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) as a crucial legal framework that could be used to achieve collaborative local content strategy in Africa.
In order to improve local content development, advance industrialization, and promote sustainable economic growth across the continent, Ogbe urged sub-Saharan African countries to keep up with emerging trends in the global oil and gas business and to take a coordinated approach.
The Executive Secretary acknowledged in a Keynote Address that countries such as Nigeria, Angola, and Ghana had made significant progress in the development of local content by increasing indigenous participation in the oil and gas industry, but lamented that "fragmented implementation continued to hinder collective progress."
He urged sub-Saharan African countries that produce petroleum to adopt a cooperative approach that would encourage the exchange of best practices and strengthen cross-border alliances that may boost local firms' competitiveness.
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In a paper entitled:
“Sub-Saharan Africa Local Content Collaboration Strategy,” Ogbe identified harmonisation of local content policies, human capital development, investment in infrastructure, funding for local companies and technology transfer, as key pillars to Africa’s collaboration strategy.
He stressed the need to develop a robust local content framework that positions the region for long-term economic prosperity which could be fostered “through the collaborative efforts of APPO (African Petroleum Producers Organisation) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union.”
Regarding human capital development, which he characterized as essential to the effective execution of local content, he stated that over 60% of Africa's population was under 25 at the time, and that this offered a special chance to accelerate development.
“A large, young workforce can drive expansion through increased productivity and expansion,” he noted.
Regarding funding, Ogbe stated that a regional fund or financial structure that offers guarantees, credit facilities, and investment incentives would support domestic businesses.
He also noted with satisfaction that an African Energy Bank, founded by APPO with the assistance of the NCDMB, which has invested equity in it, will soon be operational.
Dangote refinery crashes diesel prices
Legit.ng reported that Dangote Refinery has crashed diesel prices to N1,020 per litre from N1,075 at the loading gantry.
The Refinery said the move was to serve its customers and Nigerians better.
This is the third time the plant has reduced diesel prices since it started producing the commodity in January 2024 from N1,700 per litre to the current price.
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