Latest report by Mckinsey & Company has shown that just as the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the plastics sub-sector in Nigerian will jump to 7 per cent over the next 10 years, supplies to come from emerging Dangote Refinery in Lagos and Quantum Petrochemicals in Akwa Ibom State will further deepen the performance of the sub sector.
Already, per capita consumption of plastics in Nigeria has grown by about 5 per cent annually over the past ten years, from 4.0 kg in 2007 to 6.5 kg in 2017 and is estimated to be 7.5 kg in 2020.
According to the report, Nigeria’s plastics consumption has grown by 7.8 per cent annually over the past ten years, from 578 kt in 2007 to 1.229 kt in 2017 and is estimated to be 1.533 kt in 2020. It made a further disclosure that the demand for polythene material in Nigeria currently stands at 80m metric tons representing a 30m metric tons increase over a 5 year period.
Quantum Petrochemical Company Limited which is expected to commence operations any time from now, at its $1.5 billion methanol plant in Akwa Ibom State would double the number of firms currently involved in polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) production, which is a key input for the country’s flexible packaging manufacturers.
Details from the Raw Materials Research & Development Council of Nigeria (RMRDCN) show that local PE and PP supply is dominated by Port Harcourt-based Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Limited and a good number of packaging companies in Lagos and Ogun States.