Page 14 - DMEA Week 12 2022
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DMEA PETROCHEMICALS DMEA
Nigeria second phase of
Dangote fertiliser plant
AFRICA NIGERIAN President Muhammadu Buhari agropreneurs who will add value to farming and
opened the second phase of Africa’s largest fer- make the nation self-sufficient in food produc-
tiliser plant, a brand-new $2.5bn facility near tion,” Buhari said.
Lagos, the country’s biggest city, on March 22. According to the billionaire Dangote, the
The plant, owned by Africa’s richest man, plant will not only help Nigeria become self-suf-
Aliko Dangote, has already begun shipping to ficient but will also give it the spare capacity
the US, India and Brazil. It adds significantly to to export fertiliser to rest of the continent and
Nigeria’s already substantial fertiliser production around the world.
capacity and will allow the West African country Fertiliser prices have risen significantly since
to become a net exporter of urea. Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an
Tuesday’s inauguration is timely, as the Rus- invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Russia is
sian invasion of Ukraine has significantly dis- the world’s leading exporter of fertiliser materials
rupted the world fertiliser market. As such, it is in value terms, followed by China and Canada.
likely to see Nigeria become a serious player in African importers are likely to see significant
the export market. cost increases when buying fertiliser.
“Nigeria’s dependence on imported products According to South African economist
in the agriculture sector will soon be a thing of Wandile Sihlobo, the war could continue to push
the past,” President Buhari said, suggesting that fertiliser prices higher, even though the market
the plant would “greatly create wealth, drasti- has already seen a significant spike over the last
cally reduce poverty and secure the future of our 18 months.
nation”. “In some cases – for example, in ammonia
Agriculture accounts for about a quarter – prices rose by 260% between December 2020
of Nigeria’s GDP. Until now, though, farmers’ and December 2021,” Sihlobo said in an article
output has been limited by the availability of for The Conversation. “The generally higher
imported fertiliser. commodity prices – specifically, [for] grains
The new $2.5bn plant puts Nigeria in a and oilseeds – provided financial flexibility to
position to meet domestic demand in full and absorb some of these costs, but not fully. The
become independent from fertiliser imports. Russia-Ukraine war will now be an added upside
“We expect the rise of a new breed of risk on prices for farmers.”
P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 12 24•March•2022
