FG starts implementation of CBN’s $600m ‘energy’ expansion fund
The federal government has started the implementation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) N250 billion intervention fund for the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP), which is expected to create about three million direct and indirect jobs.
It was gathered that the intervention facility for the NGEP, which is targeted at stimulating finance to the critical sector and motivate investment in the gas value chain is being funded by the CBN.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Bitrus Nabasu, said the fund was available to finance the establishment of gas processing plants and small-scale petrochemical plants, gas cylinder manufacturing plants, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) regasification modular systems, automatic conversion kits or components manufacturing plants, CNG primary and secondary compression stations, as well as micro distribution outlets and service centres of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales.
Nabasu posited that the intervention fund was designed to meet certain objectives, including improved access to finance private sector investments in the domestic gas value chain and stimulate investments in the development of infrastructure to optimise domestic gas resources.
He stressed that it also set out to fast-track the adoption of CNG as the fuel of choice for transportation and power generation, as well as LPG as the fuel of choice for domestic cooking, transportation and captive power.
He stated further that the fund would equally provide leverage for additional private sector investments in the domestic gas market, boost employment across the country and fast-track the development of gas-based industries, particularly petrochemical (fertiliser and methanol, among others).
“It is expected that parties with the capacity to develop and operate any of the afore-listed projects would need to demonstrate project development experience.
“In addition, interested parties will need to demonstrate technical and commercial capacity,” the permanent secretary said.
Nabasu, advised that interested applicants were required to demonstrate evidences of experience and capabilities in their proposed businesses in order to access the fund.
He urged interested applicants to provide at least general information about them, particularly experiences and evidence of technical competence as well as organization all structure.
