The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), has said the approval of the concessioning of its two projects by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), would attract up to N180 billion to Nigeria.
A statement by the Commission’s spokesperson, Ifeanyi Nwoko, yesterday, listed the projects to include the Cassava Biomass and Bio-ethanol Value Chain, and the National Fire Detection And Alarm System (NAFDAS).
Nwoko said the concessioning will create wealth, reduce poverty, improve food security and nutrition, provide jobs and renewable energy, and reduce carbon footprint.
“While the NAFDAS project will generate a total of N75 billion in the 15-year concession period, the cassava bio-ethanol value chain will generate a total revenue of N105 billion within the five-year concession period.
“The cassava bio-ethanol value chain, which will be done on a pilot phase, aims to build a Bio-technology Industrial Park on a 20-hectare plot across 20 universities, academia and research and development institutes.
“In the pilot phase, 5,000 special hybrid cassava (TME 419) stems will be planted per hectare, (totalling) 100,000 stems for the 20 hectares,” he said.
The concessioning will create wealth, reduce poverty, improve food security and nutrition, provide jobs and renewable energy, and reduce carbon footprint.
In addition, he said the project would supply organic fertiliser, boosters, conditioners, pre and post-emergent herbicides, pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, and knapsack sprayers.
“The project also seeks to double cassava production from the current 62 million tonnes to an output of about 120 million tonnes.
“With improved tropical agro-ecology, bio-technology, intense mechanisation, and effective partnership resource mobilisation, Nigeria can double output to 120 million metric tonnes in five years,” he said.
Nwoko said the key goal of the cassava-bioethanol pilot project is to demonstrate the efficacy of a private sector-led approach in promoting investment in renewable biomass and creating wealth.
“Also in providing jobs, reducing poverty, improving food security and nutrition, providing renewable energy and reducing carbon footprint,” he said.
He said the project is proposed to be financed with a grant from the Federal Government and concessionaire investment totalling N11.9 billion.
He added that the revenue stream presented by the project includes the sale of cassava stem, cassava flour, garri, starch, and bio-ethanol. “Total revenue for the five-year concession period is N105,610,000,000.”
He said the NAFDAS project will provide fire mitigation hardware, software, and equipment that would be linked to a cloud network, which would be supervised by the Federal Fire Service through a private entity. (NAN)
