Nigeria’s first oil and gas park will soon begin to operate in Odupkani in Cross River State, even as more of it kind are similarly rising up in different parts of the Niger Delta part of the country.
The Parks are being put together by the Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to save the country from cash flight through foreign oil and gas companies.
The Director of Corporate Communications of NCDMB, Engineer Ginah O. Ginah, who spoke today, May 11, during a media tour of the park located in Odukpani, Cross River State, said: “this park is ready for habitation.
“We have already advertised for interested manufacturers and are presently going through applications to see those who are qualified.”
Engr Ginah said that all needed facilities have been provided to make the place conducive for the manufacturers.
The facilities include manufacturing hall, security, roads, 24-hour power supply, banking hall, restaurant, and state-of-the-art ICT facilities. Others include fire service, water treatment plant, mini parks for accommodation and free land for those who wish to build their own structures.
“All these are things that increase cost of production. So, this park is going to crash the cost of production.”
Engr. Ginah said that the facility, located on 25 hectares of land will go a long way to save the country some foreign exchange in billion of dollars.
He said that the Federal Government has encouraged the rapid take off of the project with a pledge of $50m to attract companies to the parks.
Engr Ginah said that several other such parks are under construction across the Niger Delta as part of NCDMB’s efforts to significantly increase local content in the oil and gas industry and generally drive Nigeria’s industrialisation.
“We have taken Nigeria’s local content level from 5% to 55%. The industry spends about $20 billion a year, so you are talking of about $10 billion saved annually.”
Engr Ginah stressed that NCDMB’s goal is to take the local content in the industry up to 70 percent by 2027.
“The only way to achieve that is to ensure local manufacturing of components, which is why we are building these parks.”
