Russian Firm to Construct Refinery in Calabar

A Russian firm, Safinet Group, has expressed its desire to establish a 7,000 litres per day capacity refinery in Calabar with a provision to increase production to between 60,000 to 65, 000 litres a day.

Chairman of Safinet, Mr. Arsen Mudonov, disclosed this during a meeting with the Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, in Calabar recently.

Mudonov disclosed that his group decided to come to Cross River to establish the refinery because of the peace and tranquillity that the state is known for in addition to the hospitable nature of the people.

He said his company is into construction, oil and gas, with advanced technology in the construction of oil and gas equipment and machineries.

He said the company has been expanding its operations to different parts of the world including Africa in the last five years.

The Safinet Group Chairman said his company wants to take advantage of the conducive and peaceful environment of the state and its capital,Calabar, in particular to establish a refinery of 7,000 litres production capacity a day, which will be increased to 65,000 litres a day in the near future.

Responding, Ayade said his administration has turned the state into an investors’ haven by creating a conducive atmosphere for investment.

He reiterated that the peaceful and hospitable nature of the state and its citizens were recently attested to by the outgoing United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr John Erntwhistle, who picked the state as his favourite place in Nigeria.

Ayade informed the delegation that Cross River state is always the first port of call and choice for investors and that the state is on the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean in the south, which makes it a good candidate for oil and gas business.

“If you are putting a refinery and your sources of shipping in the crurude is by barges then the refinery being located by the waterside becomes easy. Even if you want a solid land location, we also have sold earth where you can have access to bring in your crude by barges and then have pipelines to take the crude to your refinery.”