India says it is ready to help end the perennial fuel scarcity in Nigeria by boosting the capacity of Nigeria’s oil refineries through technical support.
The High Commissioner of India, Mr Ajjampur Ghanashyam, made this known at a Forum of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.
Ghanashyam, however, said that India would be able to offer the support on invitation of the Federal Government through a bid.
“India can come if you (Nigeria) want to technologically upgrade your refineries; if you want to increase the scientific value of your refineries; if you want to get your engineers become smarter than they are.
“If you want the same refineries to do the job at 120 per cent of their created capacity; if you want people to be proud of your refineries, bring the Indians.
“But this is a suggestion, which we have given to the government of Nigeria; but we will come in only when we are invited.
“So, if there is an occasion – if there is a bid, then we will participate; but this is an area in, which I would say, Nigeria has the solution.
“I believe personally that every solution to a problem is somewhere near the problem.
“You don’t need experts and philosophers from the East and the West to solve your problem.
“Your problems are solved here by people locally and you have the intelligence here, you have the capital here, you have the intellectual capital and you can easily resolve with yourselves.
“And tomorrow, if we (India) come here to help you, that is because you will be able to avoid making the mistakes we made, and it will help you add value your experience on the basis of our experience.“(NAN)
According to the high commissioner, Nigeria has the capacity to be a net exporter of refined petroleum products instead of being an importer of refined petroleum products.
`’You (Nigeria) are producing about two million barrels of crude oil every day and your requirement of petroleum products is about 40 million litres a day.
“Out of that (40 million litres), 70 per cent is petrol, just used for cars and the remaining 30 per cent is diesel, kerosene, aviation fuel.
“Now you have four refineries and I am told that most of them are actually ready to operate, that they were actually overhauled and upgraded during the last one and half years quietly by some good people, who meant well for this country.
“Problem is they have not been given allocation of crude oil. So if they get allocation of crude oil, they will produce at least half of your 40 million litres; you don’t have to buy that half.
“Aliko Dangote is building his petrochemical complex, which includes a major refinery. He is likely to produce much more than 20 million, much more than what the four refineries (can produce) put together or at least equal to that.
“Then you might end up becoming a country which stops exporting crude oil but starts exporting products of crude oil. Actually, you have everything yourselves.“
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