The Nigerian government has entered into a $1.2bn (R21.67bn) contract with Chinese state-owned engineering company (CNCEC) to upgrade a critical gas processing facility that supports domestic aluminium production, according to the petroleum ministry.
The agreement between CNCEC and BFI Group, core investor in the Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria, constitutes the inaugural step in rejuvenating the smelter, which has been dormant for years owing to protracted legal and financial issues.
According to the ministry’s announcement on Monday, CNCEC will revive the dormant smelter’s 135-million standard cubic feet per day gas processing plant, enabling annual production of approximately 300,000 tonnes of aluminium.
Minister of state for gas Epkerikpe Ekpo said the plant’s restart would allow Nigeria to develop multiple stages of the aluminium production process and position it “as a major producer of aluminium in Africa and globally”.
The plant is expected to produce about 1-million tonness of aluminium annually and generate up to 540MW of electricity, Ekpo said.
