Ogun will soon joined oil producing state, set to host $3b refinery in Tongeji Island - Dapo Abiodun

By Yetunde Oluwo, Abeokuta

The Governor Dapo Abiodun-led administration in Ogun State on Wednesday took a major step in making the state an oil producing one as a firm, Gasoline Integrated International, expressed its readiness to build a $3b refinery in Tongeji Island, Ipokia Local Government Area of the state.

A statement issued in Abeokuta by the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Kunle Somorin said the refinery when completed will be refining 400,000 litres of crude oil into petrol per day.

The chairman of the company, Dr. Lukman Bolaji, who disclosed this when he led the  company's directors on a courtesy call on the governor, Governor Abiodun in his office at Oke-Mosan Abeokuta, noted that the firm is into upstream and main stream and had acquired an oil block at Tongeji Island.

The refinery, he explained, would be located at Ipokia and would refine 100,000 litres per day and other petroleum products at the beginning, and later expand to 400,000 litres per day in the future.

He said that the project would sit on 800 hectares of land that had already been acquired.

"We are bringing in a capital inflow of N3bn into the State. We would have being on site by now but for the COVID-19 pandemic. With this project, Ogun State will have security and guarantee of petroleum products at all times because we intend to serve our immediate environment before taking it outside", Bolaji noted.

While also disclosing that the company would generate 110 Mega Watts of electricity, starting with 37 Mega Watts, he stated that about 10,000 direct and indirect employment would be generated, just as the project would boost the internally generated revenue of the state as well as expand infrastructural facilities and transfer technology to Nigerians.

He said though the project which would delivered in 36 months, would be powered by Chinese technology, it would be a multinational in nature featuring officials from Nigeria, Taiwan and the United States of America.

Also speaking, the Olowu of Owu, Oba Saka Matemilola, who led the team, said the company was in the state to prospect oil and build refinery for petroleum products, saying the project would help the state to be an oil producing one in the nearest future.

Responding, Governor Abiodun revealed that Ogun and Lagos states consume about 70 percent of petroleum products in Nigeria, saying the project is coming after the state lost similar project to a neighbouring state.

He said his administration has created investments hubs across the zones to promote business activities, while agencies have also been created for seamless relationship between the State government and investors to promote ease of doing business in the state.

The governor stressed that the project is in tandem with Public Private Partnership policy of his administration to promote individual prosperity, saying it was a welcome development.

Abiodun described Ogun West as important zone that has contributed largely to the state being an industrial hub of the country, adding that his government was determined to promote industrialization of the area by paying attention to it in line with its economic agenda.

He, however, said a team would be set up to liaise with the company for further discussions, noting that "project like this is not a walk in the park".

"I want to assure you that as an administration whose thrust is encouraging investors, a team to work with your team to deal with issues that may arise will be set up. It will be our joy for Ogun State to be an oil producing state.

"Tongeji is important to us. We are working to ensure that something happens in that Island", the governor submitted.