NNPC assures on speedy completion of $3.6bn brass methanol plant

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said it will do everything within its powers to ensure the timely completion of the $3.6bn Integrated Gas Processing and Methanol Plant in Odioma, Brass Island, Bayelsa State.

The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mele Kyari, made the commitment at the signing of the Final Investment Decision (FID) on the project at the weekend in Abuja.

He stated that the facility is projected to be the largest methanol plant in Africa and the first in Nigeria.

The project is being executed by the Brass Fertilizer and Petrochemical Company Limited (BFPCL), an incorporated entity owned by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), DSV Engineering, and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

Speaking at the event, Kyari, said the corporation would do everything possible to make the project come to fruition, noting that NNPC was pleased with the current efforts by the Federal Government to provide value for Nigeria’s gas resources.

Describing the FID as one of the most significant FIDs in recent times, Kyari said the project was in tandem with the earlier declaration of 2020 as the year of gas and 2021-2030 as the decade of gas by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.

He noted that the construction phase of the project would create about 30,000 in addition to the 5,000 permanent jobs which would come in place when the plant becomes operational.

Earlier in his welcome address, the BFPCL Board Chairman, who is also the NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Gas & Power, Engr. Usman Yusuf, disclosed that already a lump sum Turnkey Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract has been awarded to the China Tianchen Engineering Corporation (TCC) while TATA Consulting Engineers are providing project management consultancy for the delivery of the plant in 2024.

“In 2017, BFPCL secured an Initialled Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement (GSPA) with SPDC JV for a 25-year supply of 270MMscf/d rich gas to the project. The integrated project is estimated to cost about USD3.6 billion and is expected to deliver 10,000TPD Methanol products to the export and local markets,” he stated.

In his presentation, the Executive Vice-Chairman of BFPCL, Mr Ben Okoye, said the signing of the FID was an affirmative vote and consent by the board to construct the plant.

He explained that with a production capacity of 10,000 tons per day (tpd), the facility would be the largest methanol plant in Africa with a huge potential to provide gainful employment to many youths both at the construction and operational stages.

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