Page 9 - AfrOil Week 03 2022

AfrOil PERFORMANCE AfrOil

Despite this, “the outlook for the Nigerian econ- what is sold to Dangote in naira alone, it is going
omy in 2022 is largely positive,” it said, amid oil to be major forex saving for Nigeria. Right now,
price stability, the success of measures to ease the the overall forex we spend on imported items,
impact of the pandemic and continued growth the importation of petroleum products con-
in the service sector. sumes close to 30%,” including diesel, aviation
Presenting his findings, CPPE CEO Dr fuel, gasoline and other products.
Muda Yusuf, who is also director-general of the The refinery is expected to begin operations
Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, later this year and will receive 300,000 bpd of
said that the PIA would play an important role. feedstock from Nigerian National Petroleum
“We expect to see positive outcomes as investor Corp. (NNPC), which acquired a 20% stake in
sentiment in the oil and gas sector improves on the unit last year.
account of the reforms anchored on the PIA. It will pay $2.7bn for the shares, valuing the
This will, however, depend on the political will facility at around $13.5bn. However, it will pay
deployed to drive the implementation of the only around $900mn in cash for the sharehold-
provisions of the Act.” ing, with the same value being provided via
He added that the launch of the 650,000 crude feedstock discounted by around $2 per
barrel per day (bpd) Dangote facility at Lekki barrel and another third will be paid in profits
near Lagos would “also impact positively on the from the business. NNPC expects to receive
downstream sector of the economy”. $1bn in finance from the Cairo-based African
Yusuf warned, though, that despite the PIA, Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to fund the
the government may be continue to be burdened acquisition. ™
by subsidies, casting doubts about the govern-
ment’s ability “to exercise the political will to
effect the removal of petroleum subsidy given
the closeness of the timing to the 2023 elections”.
In October, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
Governor Godwin Emefiele said that the Dan-
gote refinery would save around 30% of its exist-
ing foreign exchange (forex) expenditure that is
currently spent on importing petroleum prod-
ucts. Another nearly 10% could be saved when
considering the neighbouring petrochemical
plant which is expected to come into operation
soon after the refinery.
Emefiele said that of Dangote’s 650,000 bpd
capacity, “there is a domestic component that is
about 455,000 bpd. Even if the 455,000 bpd is The 650,000 bpd Dangote refinery, shown under construction (File Photo)

POLICY
President says developing Ghanaian

workers’ skills in oil and gas “critical”

GHANA GHANAIAN President Nana Addo Dankwa the presidential offices.
Akufo-Addo has said that the country should He told his visitors it was important for
bolster the skills of its engineers and technicians, Ghana to become self-sufficient in both the
particularly in the key oil and gas sector, calling development and the management of its natural
it critical to the establishment of a modern and resources as part of achieving his government’s
industrious nation. ambitious “Ghana Beyond Aid” agenda.
“The skills enhancement of Ghanaians in the “That is why the initiatives that are taken
industry is absolutely critical. We can no longer in the sector, the efforts of GNPC in trying
count on them [foreigners]; we have to count on to develop a greater capacity to be able to be
ourselves,” he said, as quoted by Ghana Web. an operator of fields and enhancing the skills
Akufo-Addo made the comment on January of Ghanaians in the technical aspects of the
12, when beneficiaries of the Ghana National industry, are conjoined,” he said, according to
Petroleum Commission (GNPC) training pro- Ghana Web. “They are part of the same process
gramme who will study at Canada’s Northern and absolutely essential for the future of our
Alberta Institute of Technology called on him at country.”

Week 03 19•January•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P9