The Nigerian Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of the Republic of Niger to import petroleum products from Niger Republic to Nigeria. The deal was signed on the sidelines of the just concluded 39th session of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) Ministerial Council.
The MoU was signed by the Group Managing Director of the National Oil company of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari, and the Director-General of the National Oil Company of Niger, Societe Nigerienne De Petrole (SONIDEP), Alio Toune, on behalf of both countries.
In a statement, the Nigerian Ministry of Petroleum said that the Soraz Refinery in Zinder, Niger Republic, refines 20,000 barrels per day, with the country demanding only a quarter of the daily production, leaving a surplus of 15,000 barrels per day for export.
The signing was witnessed by the Ministers of State for Petroleum of the two countries – Timipre Sylva of Nigeria and Foumakoye Gade of Niger Republic. The signing aligns with the mission of APPO “to promote cooperation in the field of hydrocarbons of its Member countries,” as both are member countries of the Organisation.
Commenting during the event of the signing, the Nigerian Minister of Petroleum said, “This is a major step forward. The Niger Republic has some excess products which need to be evacuated. Nigeria has the market for these products. Therefore, this is going to be a win-win relationship for both countries.”
“My hope is that this is going to be the beginning of deepening trade relations between Niger Republic and Nigeria.”
The GMD of the NNPC said, “With this development, we hope to have a long-lasting and sustainable commercial framework to have a pipeline from the Soraz Refinery in Zinder (Niger) into the most proximate Nigerian city so that we can develop a depot.”
“We are happy that we have reached that conclusion and our two ministers have endorsed this framework. We are also working on a detailed MoU between our two companies so that we can continue the execution process immediately.”
