The management of AIPCC Energy, owners of Edo Refinery, has announced an 80,000 barrels per day refinery expansion in Koko, a border town between Edo and Delta State.
This was after the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) concluded its crude distillation assessment on the project.
A statement by the head, Technical Operations, Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited (ERPCL), Engr Segun Okeni at the weekend said the company is expecting to export the first cargo from the refinery by May 2025.
Okeni listed the by-products of the Koko expansion to include AGO, HPFO, Naphtha and gas, adding that, “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.”
The statement read in part: “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 – 24, 2024.
“By this time, there would have been mechanical completion and pre-start-up safety audit, and commissioning exercise would be completed.”
Recall that the regulatory agency (NMDPRA), had earlier issued an operational licence to Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited, Ologbo in Ikpoba-Okha local government area of Edo State.
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.
The regulatory authority Chief Executive Officer, Ahmed Farouk in a ceremony, handed the certificate to AIPCC, the parent company of Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited (ERPCL).