The Federal Government, through the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), has approved the construction of Ikwe-Onna Refinery to be located in Ikwe, Onna Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
The Approval To Construct (ATC) license for the modular refinery was conveyed to the investor in a letter with reference No:DPR/E&S/FAC/6239/S.308/V.2/23 and dated October 15, 2018.
A copy of the approval letter and the refinery project schedule seen by news personnel shows the refinery capacity to be 5,000 barrels per day .
The project, which is estimated to cost $60m, is expected to be commissioned November, 2019.
The ATC was issued following the satisfactory attainment of the requirements for the license.
In Nigeria, there are three stages of licencing for the establishment of private refineries: Licence to Establish (LTE), Approval to Construct (ATC) and Licence to Operate (LTO).
With the issuance of the ATC licence, the refinery investor is expected to commence on-site construction of particularly the refinery storage tank farm, mechanical, electrical and other installations, office complex and control room, power plant installations, as well as pipelines.
These processes, according to the project schedule, are supposed to last till October, 2019, when the company is due to apply for the LTC and commence production.
It was reported that the Muhammadu Buhari administration, as part of effort to increase local refining capacity and stop petroleum product importation, has issued more than 20 licenses to establish modular or mini refineries.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, recently performed the ground breaking of a 5,000 barrel per day (bpd) modular refinery owned by Waltersmith Refining and Petrochemical Company at Ibegwe in Ohaji, Imo State.
Two other modular refineries: OPAC Refinery in Umuseti, Kwale in Delta State and the Niger Delta Petroleum Resources Refinery, Ogbelle, in Rivers State, which have a combined 17,000 barrels per day capacity, are also expected to be commissioned in 2019/2020.
