Falcon Corporation has received an N19.41 billion debt facility for a 15,000 metric ton LPG storage facility. This is according to a December 4 announcement made on the company’s website.
A part of the announcement read thus:
- “Falcon Corporation has secured a N19.41 billion debt facility from the Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund (NIDF).
- The proceeds of the loan are earmarked for the development of a state-of-the-art 15,000 metric ton Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) storage facility and a dedicated jetty situated in Rumuolumeni, Saipem/Aker Base Road, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria.
In more detail, the Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund (NIDF) has committed an N19.41 billion debt facility to Falcon Corporation Limited for financing the construction of an initial 10,000 metric ton Liquefied Petroleum Gas storage facility and dedicated Jetty in Rivers State.
The process
The project is divided into two clear phases. The first phase concentrates on building a 10,000 metric ton spherical tank, which includes two tanks, each capable of holding 5,000 metric tons. Alongside this, they’re constructing a specific jetty and other related infrastructure.
The initial focus is on setting up these components. Following this initial phase, the plan is to move forward with an additional development stage.
This subsequent phase aims to add another 5,000 metric tons of storage capacity at a later time.
Timeline
The Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) project is anticipated to be fully completed and commissioned by the fourth quarter of 2024. In the statement from Falcon Corporation, they emphasized that the project has reached significant milestones thanks to funding from the NIDF, the Bank of Industry (BOI), and their internally generated funds.
It also stated that as of October 2023, the project has achieved a completion rate of 65%. This progress covers several crucial stages of development, including the finished construction of the jetty, substantial improvements in protecting the shoreline, and notable advancements in various engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) activities and installations.
According to Deputy Managing Director and Co-Founder of Falcon, Mrs Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, the company is deeply committed to the growth and advancement of Nigeria’s domestic gas industry.
She said:
- “We are expanding our investments across the Gas industry value chain, from our traditional role in the downstream sector to our current midstream investments, and positioning for an intended upstream play.
- The project aims to ensure the availability of LPG and deepen its market penetration and adoption within the catchment areas, contributing to the mitigation of ecosystem damage and greenhouse emissions caused by the use of other traditional fuels.”
What you should know
In August 2023, Felix Ekundayo, the President of the Nigeria Liquefied Petroleum Gas Association (NLPGA) told Nairametrics that LPG infrastructure in the country has experienced remarkable growth observed from 60,000 metric tons (MT) in 2007 to an impressive 1,500,000 MT today.
