Update: BUA Group has let a contract to OLAX Engineering to provide project management consultancy services for the FEED of BUA Refinery’s 200,000-b/d grassroots integrated refining and petrochemical complex under development in Nigeria's state of Akwa Ibom (OGJ Online, Sept. 7, 2021).
Privately held BUA Group, Lagos, has let a contract to Lummus Novolen Technology GMBH to provide technology licensing for a new petrochemical unit to be built at subsidiary BUA Refinery’s 200,000-b/d grassroots integrated refining and petrochemical complex under development in Nigeria's state of Akwa Ibom (OGJ Online, Sept. 2, 2020).
As part of the contract, Lummus will license its proprietary Novolen gas-phase polypropylene (PP) technology for a new 285,000-tonnes/year PP unit at the refinery, as well as deliver basic design engineering, training, services, and catalyst supply for the project, the service provider said on Apr. 29.
Scheduled for startup in 2024, the new PP unit will solve increasing demand for high-performance grade PP in Nigeria, the Gulf of Guinea, and Sub-Saharan Africa, said Abdul Samad Rabiu, BUA Group’s chairman and chief executive officer.
This latest contract for the integrated complex follows BUA Group’s September 2020 award to Axens Group to deliver basic engineering, proprietary equipment, catalysts, adsorbents, as well as training and technical services, for the planned multibillion-dollar RFCC-based complex that—alongside propylene, an essential component for the petrochemical industry used in PP-based plastics and packaging—will produce high-quality gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel meeting Euro 5-quality specifications for the Nigerian and regional markets.
On Apr. 14, Jean Sentenac, president of Axens, said BUA Refinery’s project is currently advancing on schedule for on-time completion, according to a BUA Group release.
Sited in Akwa Ibom to take advantage of the location’s proximity to raw feedstocks and export routes to regional countries, BUA Refinery’s integrated complex—slated for commissioning in 2024—will help reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported fuels and petrochemicals, as well as reduce the country’s costs of shipping its domestic crude production abroad for refining by other operators, Rabiu said.
