The Gulf of Guinea Oil Exploration Limited (GGOEX) has announced plans to construct a US$700mn methanol plant in Nigeria
With construction set to commence in 2015, the plant, which will be the largest in West Africa, will have a production capacity of 850,000 metric tonnes of methanol per year, according to National Turk.
Emmanuel Ejemurua, co-coordinator of the project, said, “The Delta Methanol Plant is ideally located to supply its major export markets in Europe and expectations are high that it will produce a competitive product, bring added value to society and further contribute to industrial growth in Nigeria.”
The project, which is to be financed by the International Financial Corporation (IFC) and fund syndication from local banks, will be the debut commercial-scale employment of the Mitsubishi Methanol Process (MMP) in West Africa.
GGOEX has submitted a Due Diligence Assessment to the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) and is awaiting approval for construction of the plant, which will be located at the Gas Industrial Park in Delta State.
Ejemurua disclosed that the global demand for methanol was growing at a rate of approximately four per cent annually and that the GGOEX project is intended to manufacture and export methanol to meet this demand. This will therefore enhance the monetisation of Nigeria’s huge gas reserves, he claimed.
Incorporated in 2011, GGOEX is a Nigerian Integrated Energy Company positioned to engage in the exploration, development and production of oil and gas reserves in established and emerging frontiers across the Gulf of Guinea.
