Sugar around the world →
Copyright © 2006 - 2009 Ethical Sugar
Site created with SPIP by
A. LE FLOCH
Ebonyi State Government has joined the rank of states in Nigeria seeking alternative energy sources, following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, (MOU), with a Chinese-supported Nigeria firm to establish a $80m(N10.4bn) Ethanol producing factory that would utilize Cassava and Sugar cane as major raw materials.
Speaking during the MOU signing ceremony which took place at the Government House, Abakaliki, Governor Sam Egwu, noted that apart from creating an unusual wealth base, the initiative would classify the state among the oil-producing states and expressed optimism that the venture would be actualized in record time.
Egwu who was represented by his deputy, Prof. Chigozie Ogbu, explained that when completed, the factory would produce 20,000 gallons of Ethanol every year, by using close to 150, 000 metric tones of Cassava annually, adding that about 700 cassava farmers would be put to work to meet up with that quantity of raw materials.
'Today, what we want to do is to enter into a memorandum of understanding with Viscount Energy (Nigeria) Limited and their foreign partners to establish a factory here in the state that would utilize both cassava and sugar cane to produce Ethanol,' he stated, adding that the factory would engage no less than 100 permanent staff and establish a large cassava and sugar plantation in the state.
Speaking further on the initiative, Egwu said Ethanol could be mixed with Petrol to drive cars, saying it would not only reduce the price of fuel but that it is cleaner than the premium motor spirit alone. Speaking further, he discovered that the factory would help the state tackle the problem of unemployment which he said flows from the number of school leavers and the free education programme of his administration.
Justifying the establishment of the factory in the state, Egwu recalled that since energy was the sole drive of the nation's economy for many years and would continue to be for a long time. Therefore he reasoned that the effort to diverse the economy and bring new inputs into what we do to generate funds in the state and Nigeria as a whole is a continuous one.
The state is known for large scale production of cassava, and we have been trying to establish a lot of agro-based industries, so this is in addition to the energy needs of the country,' he added.
Responding, the representative of Viscount Energy Limited, Mr. Peter Osayande, noted that special independent power generating system would be specifically dedicated to the state for an un-interrupted power supply, adding that within the plant configuration, there would be facilities for the generation of electricity, part of which would be consumed by the plant itself, while the bulk of the energy would be hooked up to the national grid.
Speaking on the likely benefits of the venture, Osayande disclosed that the project would have a multiplier effect on the economy of the state since according to him it has become ,a forerunner of the project in south east Nigeria saying that there was a global search for energy alternative to hydrocarbon.