Biofuels will soon earn FX for Nigeria – Kachikwu
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Dr. Ibe Kachikwu has expressed optimism that biofuels will soon become Nigeria’s foreign exchange (Forex) earner if the country applies its mind and might to their exploration.
Kachikwu said this at the National Capacity Building and Sensitisation Workshop on biofuels with the theme, ‘Nigeria’s New Economy’, held in Abuja yesterday.
The workshop was organised by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) to enlighten Nigerians on the economic, environmental, agricultural and social benefits of biofuels - a type of fuel derived from plant and animal matter.
The agency, and critical stakeholders, is coordinating a biofuel policy review which when completed will be forwarded to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for ratification.
Kachikwu who was represented by his Special Adviser on Policy and Fiscal Matters, Dr Timothy Okon, expressed optimism that the policy would go a long way at engendering a formidable biofuel industry in the country when finally adopted.
The Acting Executive Secretary of PPPRA, Victor Z. Shidok, in his remark said the expected increase in agricultural activities, when the policy is implemented, will translate to enormous job creation and by extension contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth.