The Federal Government of Nigeria has licensed NNPCL Exploration and Production Ltd. and Berema Sweet Export Terminal Co., Ltd. obtained permission to build a crude oil export terminal.
The license was approved by Farooq Ahmed, Chief Authority Officer (ACE) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) in Abuja on Tuesday and granted to the two companies.
NNPCL Exploration and Production Limited operates Utapate Export Terminal in Akwa Ibom State and Berema Suite Export Terminal Ltd. is located in Rivers State. These are the first crude oil terminal construction permits sealed and issued by NMDPRA. Ahmed, who signed the license for the terminal facility, said the development would add more than 4 million barrels to Nigeria’s export storage capacity.
He said the licensing was in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA 2021), which introduces new rules for the establishment of new export terminals. According to PIA Section 174(1)(a), “Unless in compliance with an appropriate license issued by the Authority, a person shall not engage in any of the following activities in connection with the midstream petroleum liquid business.”
He said the licenses he processed and approved allow him to design, build and operate terminals and other facilities for the import and export of crude oil and petroleum products. In response, Modibo Ahmed, the licensee on behalf of Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC Ltd), said the crude terminal would be operational within three months.
He said NNPCL E&P, a subsidiary of NNPC Ltd, is responsible for crude oil exploration and production and will soon receive the first batch for the benefit of Nigerians.
Thein Jackrich, CEO of Berema Oil Producing Limited, praised the federal government for facilitating business operations in Nigeria, stating that the terminal will make Nigeria a global leader in high-quality oil production. He said that he would change it to a simple terminal. Jackrich said the terminal has the capacity to generate more than $11 billion in sales and more than 400,000 barrels of oil per day, with storage points capable of storing 8 million barrels of oil.
“Basically, the terminal will create more than 100,000 jobs for the people of the Niger Delta and the entire Nigerian population, and Nigeria will benefit from that income once it is operational,” he said. He said the establishment of the Beremasuite crude oil export terminal positions Nigeria as a global leader in building climate-friendly crude oil export terminals that integrate renewable energy through a virtual power plant model.
Regarding the removal of subsidies, he said the development would increase the production of oil and crude oil for local refineries and consumption.
“That’s the description of what we produce. There is also another part of the project, which is to build a mini-refinery to refine the surplus capacity for local consumption,” he said.
