The Federal Government has reportedly issued 10 additional licenses for the establishment of modular refineries in the country, bring the number of investors in the oil sector to 32. The Director, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Mordecai Danteni made the disclosure on Thursday in Lagos at the third edition of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) event entitled Downstream Clinic.
Danteni hinted that "the issuance of licenses for the establishment of more modular refineries was part of government efforts to encourage more private investors to invest in the oil sector, so as to enable the country attain self sufficiency in petroleum product by 2019."
He added that by attracting private investors into the sector, the government was gradually paving way for total deregulation of the oil and gas sector.
It was gathered that as of 2016, 22 licenses had been granted to private investors for the establishment of modular refineries. However, only two of the investors have commenced construction.
Speaking at the event also, the President of LCCI, Dr (Mrs) Nike Akande stated that for the government to effectively harness the huge resources in the oil and gas sector, it must formulate the right policies and initiate the right programmes. She argued that the development will assist the government in conserving available foreign exchange currently being used for the importation of refined petroleum products into the country.
“An increase in investment in modular refinery and even bigger refineries will bring a lot of value to the Nigerian economy as it will conserve our foreign reserve as we import less products as well make Nigeria the oil and gas hub of the African continent”, she said.
