Buhari: New $1.3bn fertiliser plant to commence operations soon

President Muhammadu Buhari says a new $1.3 billion fertiliser and ammonia plant will be ready for commissioning in the coming months.

He said this on Thursday during a meeting with Fertiliser Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN) in Abuja.

OCP Group, a Moroccan phosphate producer, had signed a protocol agreement to build the fertiliser plant with Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

In November 2019, Mohammed Hettiti, head of OCP Nigeria, said the plant will be built in southeast Nigeria where gas suppliers have been identified.

The plant has the capacity to produce 750,000 tonnes of ammonia and one million tonnes of fertilisers annually.

“His Majesty, the King of Morocco and I, have agreed to extend the current Phosphate supply agreement between the Kingdom of Morocco and Nigeria,” Buhari said.

“We both believe that to consolidate and expand on the successes recorded thus far, we must secure raw material supplies to our blenders.

“Furthermore, to improve the balance of trade between Nigeria and Morocco, the two countries have signed an agreement to develop a $1.3 billion Basic Chemicals Platform in Nigeria that will produce Ammonia, Phosphoric Acid, Sulphuric Acid and various Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) and Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) fertilisers using Nigeria’s gas reserves.”

Buhari also said the new fertiliser plant when completed would complement the both Dangote and Indorama Chemicals facilities which produce urea, ammonia and other industrial raw materials.

The Dangote fertiliser plant is expected to commence operations in April.

He said these facilities in combination with the existing 44 blending plants present in the country will make Nigeria become a regional and global fertiliser power house.

Buhari commended Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, governor of Jigawa state, Thomas Etuh, president of FEPSAN, and his team, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), NSIA, security and intelligence agencies, federal and state government agencies for their collaboration in making the project possible.