The Dangote Group on Wednesday sealed a $3.3bn medium term deal with 11 local and foreign banks to finance the building of a petrochemical plant consisting of a refinery and fertiliser plant in the country.
The investment initiative is in form of a loan agreement for the construction of a petrochemical plant to be located at the Olokola Free Trade Zone in Ondo and Ogun states.
The refinery, according to the President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, will become operational in 2016 and generate over 10,000 direct jobs and end the importation of refined petroleum products into the country with the attendant multiplier effects on the manufacturing sector.
When completed, he said the refinery would to be the largest in Africa, thus turning Nigeria into a petroleum exporter.
The loan facility was coordinated globally by Standard Chartered Bank and was co-financed in Nigeria by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, Ecobank Nigeria Limited and Fidelity Bank Plc.
Other co-financiers are First Bank of Nigeria Limited, United Bank for Africa Plc, First City Monument Bank Plc, Diamond Bank Plc, FirstRand Bank and Standard Bank of South Africa Limited.
Speaking at the signing of the loan agreement in Abuja on Wednesday, Dangote said the investment was a way of dealing with the threat posed to Nigeria’s economy following the discovery of shale oil and gas by buyers of the country’s crude.
The investment, he said, was also a good step to support the Federal Government’s efforts at diversifying the economy.
Dangote said “As an investor who believes in Nigeria, knows Nigeria well and whose prosperity was made in Nigeria, we have responded to the challenge with our recent decision to invest over $9bn in a refinery/petrochemical and fertiliser complex to be located at the OKLNG Free Trade Zone. This complex will be the largest industrial complex project ever in the history of our great nation.
Culled from Punch
One man business, Chineke nyere anyi aka, anyi na amuamu
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