Following mutual deals in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), between the Federal government of Nigeria and Niger Republic, Nigeria is set to commence importation of petroleum products from their West African neighbor.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Petroleum Resources explained the MOU was slated for the transportation and storage of petroleum products as it expressed satisfaction over the negotiation.
In attendance were the Group Managing Director, NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari and the Director-General of SONIDEP, Mr. Alio Toune, under the supervision of the two countries’ Ministers of State for Petroleum, Chief Timipre Sylva and Mr. Foumakoye Gado, respectively with the Secretary-General of the African Petroleum Producers Organisation, Dr. Omar Ibrahim.
Speaking on the development, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva said it was a great move to developing trade relationships between the two countries.
He said, ”This is a major step forward. Niger Republic has some excess products which needs to be evacuated. Nigeria has the market for these products. Therefore, this is going to be a win-win relation for both countries.”
The Managing Director, NNPC, Mallam Kyari added that both countries had been tied over the months to bringing back the importation of ”excess” petroleum products from Niger into Nigeria.
“With this development, we hope to have a long-lasting and sustainable commercial framework to having a pipeline from the Soraz Refinery in Zinder (Niger) into the most proximate Nigerian city so that we can develop a depot,” Kyari said.
It was gathered that Soraz Refinery in Zinder, Niger Republic has an installed refining capacity of 20,000 barrels per day, against its domestic requirement of about 5,000 barrels per day; therefore having a massive surplus of 15,000 barrels per day.
Ozoemela Chikwas reporting, Obinwannem News
