Dangote Industries
Limited, 4th September 2013 signed a loan agreement with a consortium of both
local and international banks to the tune of $3.3billion for the purpose of
constructing the biggest Petroleum Oil Refinery & Petrochemical/ Fertilizer
Plants in Nigeria.
The plants, which
will cost a total of $9 billion will generate up to 9,500 direct and 25,000
indirect jobs, in addition to reducing current volumes of refined fuel imports
by around 50 per cent and effectively stopping the importation of fertilizer.
The USD9billion
project will be financed by USD3billion equity and USD6billiion loan capital.
The signing
ceremony commits the first tranche of loans secured by Dangote, comprising a
USD3.3billion term loan facility supported by a consortium of 12 local and international
banks.
This first
facility was jointly co-ordinated by Standard Chartered Bank as the Global
Coordinator, and Nigeria’s Guaranty Trust Bank plc as the Local Coordinator.
With the refining
capacity expected to reach 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day and producing a
variety of refined fuel products from local crude resources, Nigeria will cut
its current volumes of imported fuel products by a massive 50 per cent.
The 2.8 million
tonnes of urea will be channelled into growing the local agriculture sector
which is essential in producing healthy crops and promoting Nigeria and West
Africa’s agricultural development.
The Petrochemical plant will produce
Polypropylene which is a common component of most plastic and fabric products,
for example it is used in various forms of packaging, ropes and agro-sacks.
According to Segun
Agbaje, Managing Director/CEO of Guaranty Trust Bank plc, this is the largest
syndication by Banks in Nigeria and it is being undertaken with the knowledge
that the successful implementation of Dangote Refinery and Fertilizer project
will have far reaching implications for Nigeria’s economic growth.
No comments:
Post a Comment