The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation announced on Monday that it had commenced a stakeholders’ engagement to sensitise residents of Iwure, Ojor and Osomba/Akin communities of Cross River State ahead of the proposed 14 megawatts oil palm-biodiesel project in that part of the state.
The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Ndu Ughamadu, said the 26,000-hectare facility was designed to accommodate an oil palm plantation co-located with biodiesel, crude palm oil co-generation plants and other facilities.
He explained that officials of the corporation’s Renewable Energy Division had already embarked on the sensitisation campaign across affected communities, providing information on the rationale and projected benefits of the biofuel project in the state.
Ughamadu said the NNPC Research and Development Division had been engaged for the conduct of Environmental and Social Impact Assessment for the projects.
According to him, the plant is projected to generate about 14MW of electricity from empty fruit bunches and the residue from oil palms.
Under the arrangement, the oil palm will be processed into fuel grade biodiesel and industrial crude palm oil as by-products, Ughamadu explained.
He said the biodiesel would be blended with diesel in a mix of 20 per cent biodiesel and 80 per cent diesel, and sold as B20 in the domestic market, adding that any unutilised biodiesel quantity would be exported to the international market.
The NNPC noted that its biofuel project with the Cross River State Government was in tandem with its drive to develop biofuels in Nigeria through partnerships with core investors and create a low carbon economy that would link the oil and gas industry with the agricultural sector.
It stated that this would also help mitigate the adverse effects of climate change as well as transform the NNPC into an integrated energy company with diverse portfolio.
Ughamadu further explained that the business model for the Cross River project would involve a Special Purpose Vehicle comprising the NNPC, the state government and the core investor.
Source: Punch
