The BUA Group is making a foray into the oil refining business and has announced the selection of France-based Axens for its proposed 200,000 refinery project which would be cited in Akwa Ibom state.
Abdulsamad Rabiu, BUA chairman , and Jean Sentenac, the CEO of Axens, signed the agreement at a ceremony in Paris, France.
Axens is a worldwide group that provides a complete range of solutions for the conversion of oil and biomass to cleaner fuels, for the production and purification of major petrochemical intermediates as well as for gas treatment and conversion options.
The offer includes technologies, equipment, furnaces, modular units, catalysts, adsorbents and related services
Nigeria plans to become a net exporter of gasoline and other petroleum products over the next two years as refinery projects in the country come on stream.
Similarly, a 650, 000 bpd oil refinery owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is already under construction in Lagos and is scheduled for completion in next year after several delays.
“Nigeria imports 90% of it’s petroleum products. We spend 35% of our foreign exchange on importing petroleum products,” Rabiu said.
KBR energy consultants, which managed the bidding process, will handle subsequent rounds for the engineering and construction phase.