From Tony Osauzo, Benin
The management of AIPCC Energy, owners of Edo Refinery, has announced an 80,000 barrels per day expansion of the refinery in Koko, a border town between Edo and Delta states.
The expansion plan followed the conclusion of the refinery’s crude distillation assessment by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
Head, Technical Operations, Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited (ERPCL), Mr. Segun Okeni, in a statement in Benin City, explained that the company is expecting to export the first cargo from the refinery by May 2025. He listed the by-products of the Koko expansion as AGO, HPFO, Naphtha and fuel gas.
“The company is hopeful that by the time the plant is completed, NUPRC would have allocated crude to the refinery through domestic crude supply obligation.
“We are pleased to announce the successful factory acceptance test conducted by NDMPRA on the crude distillation column of our 80,000 barrels per day refinery expansion in Koko, Delta State.
“We expect to export our first cargo from the refinery by May 2025. Assessment test was carried out from Sept 18 to Sept 24, 2024.
“The by-products expected from the Koko expansion are AGO, HPFO, Naphtha, and fuel gas. The Koko expansion project is owned by AIPCC Energy, the owners of Edo Refinery.
“By this time, there would have been mechanical completion and pre start-up safety audit, and commissioning exercise would be completed,” the statement said.
NMDPRA had earlier issued operational licence to ERPCL in Ologbo, Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area at a ceremony in which the regulatory authority chief executive officer, Ahmed Farouk, handed the certificate to AIPCC, the parent company of ERPCL.
The issuance of operational licence is the final stage of approval from the regulatory authority, which implies that the plant can now fully operate as a refinery.