Capital Oil and Gas Pumps N67b Into Fuel Distribution, Acquires Two New Ships

Leading petroleum  sector down stream  operator, Capital Oil and Gas has pumped a whopping N67billion on acquisition of state- of- the- art equipment for products distribution and marketing
Managing Director of the company, Mr. Ifeanyi Uba, told journalists in Lagos last week that the company was also planning to additional two additional vessels; bringing its fleet to four. Once acquired, the two new crafts will be joining MT James and MT Alpha.
Shipping Position Weekly recalls that the company is already committing about N100billion into the expansion of its jetty in Apapa and commenting on the ambitious project, Uba explained that the objective of the jetty expansion and construction of new tank farm was to make fuel available to Nigerians as well as provide jobs to the citizenry.
He pointed out that the expanded jetty when completed can accommodate at least four vessels of 30,000 metric tones each, adding that the project is part of the company’s contributions to current efforts to reduce the hardship of transporting products from the NNPC refineries and other foreign refineries into the Nigerian markets and consumers.
He disclosed that when completed, the company’s tank farm facilities will be able to accommodate at least 168,000 metric tonnes of petroleum products.
According to him, the fresh investment will assist in eliminating the problems that are associated with congestion of petroleum products-laden tankers at the existing terminals.
“The vessels will improve availability of petroleum products through its Jetty tank farm located at Ibafon near Lagos.
“This is the first time a Nigerian firm would acquire four vessels at once, mainly for fuel transportation regardless of the challenges in the industry,’’ he said.
He said ultimately, Capital Oil and Gas hopes to improve its leading role in the downstream sector of the country’s oil and gas industry.
Giving an insight into the company’s projection, Mr Uba disclosed that “the building of mini-depots has commenced in Enugu, Kano, Suleja and Sokoto for effective distribution of fuel to different parts of the country, and added that “Capital Oil and Gas would soon diversify into refinery projects, having invested a lot in the distribution and marketing in Nigeria.”