The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC said it has signed an agreement with the Ondo State Government for the establishment of a 65 million litres per annum biofuel plant in Ondo State. In a statement signed by its Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, the NNPC said the project, which is to be sited in Okeluse, Ondo State, is part of its commitment to ensure unimpeded supply of petroleum products and safeguard the environment through reduction of carbon emission.
Speaking when the Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, led a delegation from the state for the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, for the project, Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Maikanti Baru, explained that the project was not a 100 per cent NNPC subsidiary, adding that some investors were also bringing in Foreign Direct Investment into the country for the project.
Baru said that Ondo State Government had already agreed to provide 15,000 hectares of land available towards the cultivation of cassava, adding that in the course of the project, it would invite people who are used to farming cassava as well as new entrepreneurs seeking to venture into the business to participate in the cultivation of the cassava that it is going to use for the production of the fuel ethanol.
He, however, allayed fears of any possible negative impact of the plant on the supply of cassava-based foods for human consumption, stressing that the cassava that would be used for the biofuel project was a special breed that would not be in competition for human consumption or interfere with the activities of farmers cultivating other breeds of cassava or indeed other crops.
He said, “We expect that this plant, when built, will be producing at least 65 million litres per annum of fuel ethanol that could be blended into our Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and will be used in Nigeria and neighbouring countries when exported.”
Baru said that the biofuel project would be fitted with a 40 megawatts electricity plant that would also supply power to the host communities, adding that the NNPC intended to commercialise the greenhouse gas emission reduction capability of the project to win carbon credit for the nation from the international community.
He added that the NNPC would also make money from such by-product as industrial starch and others which could be converted to animal feeds to boost food production in the country.
On the benefits of the project, Baru stated that the construction of the plant and the production of cassava feedstock could create at least one million direct and indirect jobs.
Other benefits, according to him, include reduction of fuel import, reduction of greenhouse gas emission to combat global warming, and boost in the production of animal feeds from by-products of the plant.
He said, “The benefits of this project to Nigeria and specifically to Ondo State are immense and NNPC is very eager to see it implemented. We are working with the investors who will invest because there are several dimensions to the project.” Also speaking, Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, expressed confidence that the biofuel project would take off for the benefit of the people of the state and the country in general. He assured that the state had enough farmers as well as cassava to sustain the biofuel plant, stressing that his visit was to show his commitment to the project.
