African Development Bank $100 Million Loan to Boost Nigeria Fertilizer Production
The Board of Directors, African Development Bank (AfDB), has approved a loan of $100 million to boost fertilizer production in Indorama Eleme Fertiliser and Chemicals Ltd (IEFCL) to build and operate a gas to urea fertilizer plant.
The regional bank said in a statement on Thursday in Lagos that the loan would enable the company to build and operate a gas to urea fertilizer plant located in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State in south-eastern Nigeria.
“The IEFCL plant, located in the existing Eleme industrial complex, will produce urea to be sold in export and domestic markets," it said.
It noted that the products if the company would serve markets in Benin, Brazil, Ghana, India, Nigeria, South Africa, the UK and the United States.
According to the statement, the project will allow Nigeria, which relies heavily on imported fertilizer, to progressively become self-sufficient and a major exporter of fertilizer.
It said that the project would support job creation in the area and enable the country achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the areas of food sufficiency and a cleaner environment.
The other project components, according to the bank, include an 84-km pipeline and a multipurpose jetty and terminal infrastructure at the Onne Port, 16km from the project site.
It added that the project would create 3,854 jobs, of which 250 were direct and 348 indirect local positions during construction and operation.
The statement also noted that the project would generate revenue for the host communities, Rivers State Government and the federal government of Nigeria from dividends, taxes and foreign exchange savings through import substitution.
The company is Africa’s second largest polyolefin producer and has a majority market share of polyethylene and polypropylene in Nigeria complemented by exports to nearby countries.
Source African Press Agency
African News from NetNewsPublisher.com
Category: Africa
