Emulate Dangote or get ready to lose your oil refinery licence, FG warns licensees
The Federal Government on Wednesday in far away Huston Texas, handed down a rare ultimatum to oil refinery licensees who are yet begin construction works to emulate Aliko Dangote or lose the validity as soon as possible.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, gave the warning at a World Press Conference on the sidelines of ongoing annual Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, U.S.
Business Hilights recalls that the Federal Government under former President Olusegun Obasanjo had granted licenses to several private companies and hurriedly registered Special Purpose vehicles (SPV) to build refineries, but only Alhaji Aliko Dangote, is putting his licence to use in Lekki.
Dangote Refinery coming with1.3 million metric tonnes of petrochemical per annum would commence operation in the last quarter of 2018.
Kachikwu said “I have spoken with DPR on the matter. Those who have not been able to move forward will have their licenses withdrawn,” stressing that the aim of giving licenses was to reduce the huge capital flight to fuel importation, meet local demand and look at possible exports.
According to him, government’s outlook for the year for the sector was to “have a robust relation with investors to increase production of crude to 2.5 million bpd and then to 3 million bpd”.
“Since they will be located in states, land will be provided and the modular refineries will be peopled around private sector, especially independent producers who already have the crude”.
