By Adewale Sanyaolu
INDORAMA Group, the core investor that took over the assets of Eleme Petrochemicals Company Limited, has announced plans to inject fresh investments worth about $2.2 billion.
The investment, which is to come through an expansion plan would see the project become the largest petrochemicals hub in Africa by 2020.
Managing Director of the firm, Mr. Manish Mundra, while making a presentation at the investigative hearing by the House of Representatives Committee on Privatisation on the privatisation process and performance of the company which held in Abuja, Tuesday, said the expansion plans would be achieved through investments in the company’s 2nd train of fertiliser project and polymer plant expansion.
He said that with the revival of the company and the implementation of “these projects, Nigeria has taken first mover advantage in West and Southern African countries in terms of import of technologies, employment generation and sustainable living standards as well as enhanced economic activity in the country.”
Mundra equally stated that by the first quarter (Q1) of 2016, the company had paid $710 million dividends to the Federal Government, Rivers State government, host communities and the Nigerian staff and that this was expected to rise to $1.09 billion by 2020.
He said the company’s tax remittances up to December 2015 were $380 million, which would be expected to rise to $838 million by 2020 as it has earned the country $11.8 billion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) up to 2015, which is expected to peak at $30.6 billion by 2020.
According to him, the realisation of a fertiliser project within 36 months in the country has created a benchmark for others to follow worldwide.
Despite the milestones, the Mundra said the company was faced with some challenges, which he called on the committee to intervene to ameliorate them.