By Chinwendu Obienyi and Chukwuma Umeorah
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has assured that Ardova’s newly-upgraded terminal can meet 50 per cent of the nation’s current demand for Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG).
The Authority Chief Executive, NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, stated this during the recent pre-commissioning tour of Ardova Plc’s (AP) newly upgraded terminal in Ijora, Lagos.
The facility, which was built to a capacity of 24,000 metric tonnes, is fully propane rated and the largest in West Africa. It consists of a 1.6KM 10-inch jetty line connecting the facility to the NPSC jetty in Apapa, in-tank and in-line blending capabilities. It is also expected to kick off operations in March 2024.
Ahmed, while commending Ardova Plc for following all the due process, said that the facility has other supporting infrastructure that can throughput about 700,000 MT per annum which is more than 50 per cent of the nation’s current LPG demand.
“I am very impressed with this project, and I commend Ardova Plc for following all the due process. From the beginning, the Company involved NMDPRA as a regulator, and we are glad to see that the progress on the project has been very efficient. The Company has put the requisite safety measures in place to ensure safe operation”.
According to Ahmed, the automation of the facility will help increase efficiency in what is already the largest LPG Storage facility in West Africa. “From the regulatory perspective, I can assure you, we are enablers of investment. We are here to encourage you in meeting the deadlines of delivering this project because the nation is waiting for it”, he said.
Also speaking, the Group Executive Chairman, Ardova Plc, Abdulwasiu Sowami, highlighted the project’s strategic significance for LPG supply security as well as price stability stating that this terminal when combined with its existing 6,000 metric tonnes LPG terminal in Oghara can bring the total capacity to 30,000 metric tonnes.
“This gives us the required flexibility to receive propane, butane or even mixed LPG from local sources efficiently and blend in our facility to meet the local standards in addition to any quantity we may import”, Sowami said.
For his part, the Managing Director, Ardova Plc, Moshood Olajide noted that the LPG Facility is part of a total upgrade of the company’s Apapa terminal which will see it increase the storage and loading capacities across all products.
Olajide said, “As part of the upgrade, we also built a new 52 million litres PMS storage infrastructure as well as a fully reticulated 15 million litres water hydrant system for the entire terminal. This upgrade is geared towards accelerating our growth as a market leader in the delivery of energy in Nigeria”.