Page 13 - DMEA Week 18 2021

DMEA PETROCHEMICALS DMEA

Lummus wins contract to

build PP unit in Nigeria

AFRICA US-BASED Lummus Technology was this week and infrastructure specialist BUA Group, and
awarded a contract to build a 285,000 tonne per will be built alongside the Nigerian company’s
year (tpy) polypropylene (PP) facility in Nigeria’s planned refinery at Ntaikang in Akwa Ibom
Akwa Ibom State through its Novolen subsidiary. State.
In a press statement, Leon de Bruyn, Lum- BUA announced that it had chosen France’s
mus’ president and CEO, said: “Our world-class Axens to build the 200,000 barrel per day (bpd)
Novolen technology is well suited to meet Nige- refinery and petrochemical plant in September.
ria’s increasing demand for the growing petro- According to documents from Nigeria’s Depart-
chemical products market. It offers a flexible ment of Petroleum Resources (DPR), BUA’s
range of industry-leading products for all PP licence to establish (LTE) is for a 150,000 bpd
applications, and the industry’s lowest overall conversion plant.
capital and operational costs, while providing In September, Rabiu said: “Once completed,
customers with high process reliability and flex- this residual fluid catalytic cracking (RFCC)
ibility in responding to market needs.” based complex will produce high-quality gaso-
Meanwhile, BUA group chairman Abdul line, diesel [and] jet fuel meeting [Euro 5-qual-
Samad Rabiu expressed confidence in Lum- ity] specifications for the Nigerian market and
mus “to deliver a best-in-class, 285 KTA PP unit the larger region.”
for our refinery project scheduled to come on He added that it “will produce propylene,
stream in 2024”. an essential component for the petrochemical
While the value of the contract is yet to be industry used in polypropylene-based plastics
revealed, it will include basic design engineering, and packaging.
training and services, and catalyst supply. This large complex will help in reducing
The contract was signed with local firm BUA Nigeria’s dependence on imported fuels and
Refinery & Petrochemicals, a subsidiary of food petrochemicals”.™

PIPELINES

Tanzania, Kenya plan gas pipeline

AFRICA THE governments of Tanzania and Kenya hope construction of the proposed pipeline, he said.
to work together to build a natural gas pipeline The negotiations will cover design, cost and
along the coast of the Indian Ocean from Dar es other aspects of the project, he said.
Salaam to Mombasa. Hassan, for her part, told reporters that the
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan parties aimed to start building the pipeline,
and her Kenyan counterpart, Uhuru Kenyatta, which will pump gas from Tanzania northward
made an announcement to this effect earlier this to Kenya, as soon as possible. Tanzanian and
week, following a meeting in Nairobi. Kenyan officials have been instructed to start
They described the pipeline project as part discussions on the project immediately, she said.
of a wider long-term programme designed to “That is a long-term project, and we are thank-
help the neighbouring countries share energy ful that today we have signed an agreement and
resources. The conduit will be about 600 km long what remains is implementation,” she remarked.
and will carry a price tag of around KES121bn According to Kenyatta, the pipeline will allow
($1.12bn), they added. Kenyan thermal power plants (TPPs) to use gas
Kenyatta offered more details, saying at a as fuel for generation. The increase in gas sup-
press conference after the meeting that the two plies will help bring down the cost of power in
sides had signed a memorandum of understand- Kenya, while also reducing emissions, he added.
ing (MoU) on co-operation in the area of gas During their meeting, the two presidents
transport. also signed a package of MoUs on co-operation
This document provides for the energy min- in other areas, including animal health and san-
isters of both Kenya and Tanzania to negotiate itation, the arts, culture, national heritage and
with the aim of drawing up an agreement for social integration.™

Week 18 06•May•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P13