Investment opportunities
There are over 2000 industrial establishments in the country. Among these are a giant oil industry, Iron complexes, steel rolling mius, pharmaceutical industries, food processing, car assembling and the up-coming Export Processing Zone (EPZ). Government economic policy favours and places priority on greater investment in agricultural production and manufacturing and exports of production, abundantly skilled and versatile human resources and access to a vast local market of over 100 million people and beyond in the sub-region. Sectoral highlights are addressed in the following sections:
Priority Areas of Investment
There are four Industrial Sectors which are considered priority areas of development because of their linkage effects on the other sectors and potential catalytic role in the overall growth of the industrial sectors. These priority areas which are most favoured in the administration of government industrial incentives are:
-Metallurgical/Engineering Industries
-Chemical/Petrochemical Sector
-Construction Sector
Specifically the industrial projects desired from these sectors are:
-Foundries and Forges;
-Metal Fabrication/Machine Tools;
-Pharmaceuticals;
-Rubber and Plastic;
-Leather and Leather products;
-Cement
-Other non-metallic material building materials; bricks, ceramic glass;
-Food Processing
-Sugar, Confectioneries and Beverages
-Cereal and Grain Milling;
-Fruits, Vegetables, Vegetable Oils, Oil Seeds, Roots and Tubers.
In addition to the twelve identified priority areas menfioned above, investors are welcome to also participate wholly or jointly with Nigerians in the following specific projects
1) Gemstones cutting and polishing;
2) Gold Processing
3) Mini-sugar production plants;
4) Multi-mineral plant for gypsum, talc, kaolin, marble/dolornite, baryte etc;
5) Cement production (700- 1000 metric tonne per day)
6) Lead and zinc project
7) Processing of salt from sea water;
8) Sodium trisphosphate production
9) Small medium scale plant for sheet metal roduction
10) Mining of industrial minerals; bitumen etc
11) Stone cutting/polishing;
12) Fabrication of spare parts;
13) Exploitation of coal with known reserve of 293 140 000 tonnes in Enugu, Kogi and Adamawa States
The agricultural potential of Nigeria is barely being tapped and this explains the inability of the country to meet the ever increasing demand for agricultural produce. Although the agricultural sector remains a dominant employer of labour, serious investment is needed across the board to enhance production and increase the contribution of the sector to GDP. Investment is required in the following priority activities:
(a) Crop production to achieve food security and to provide industrial raw materials. Potentials exist for the following crops:
-Cereals: Maize, rice, sorghum, corn, millet, wheat.
-Root crops: Cassava, yam, ginger, potato, coco yam.
-Legumes: Soya beans, groundnuts, cowpeas.
-Fruits: Mango, banana, oranges, guava, papaw, pineapple.
-Vegetables: Cabbage, green pepper, carrots, lettuce, spice, onions, melons.
-Tree crops: Oil palm, cocoa, rubber, coconut, kola nut, coffee, she nuts, beniseed, cotton, cashew nut, sugar cane.
-Others: Commercial growing of flowers and ornamentals and experimental orchards for more temperate fruits-apples, grape vines and pears have been successfully established in the high plateau regions
(b) Food processing and preservation involving industries that will use agricultural produce as raw materials.
(c) Livestock and Fisheries production which possess great potentials for development. Grazing lands are abundant, facilities for animal feed production are plentiful, and the in-land rivers, lakes and coastal creeks are sufficient to augment ocean fishery resources.
(d) Agricultural inputs supplies and machinery, water resources development especially for flood control infrastructure
(e) and irrigation. Commodity trading and transportation.
(f) Development and fabrication of appropriate small-scale mechanized technologies for on-farm processing and secondary processing of agricultural produce.
(g) Exploitation of timber and wood processing activities. A wide range of wood resources abound
Opportunities in the oil and gas sector
Foreign and domestic investors are being encouraged through improved fiscal incentives in the Nigeria oil and gas sector. In the Upstream and Downstream sectors, the following are some of the areas where there are pressing needs for investors
A) Upstream Activities
(i) Petroleum Exploration and Exploitation.
(ii) Search for development of local substitute for such items as Medium pressure valve, pumps, shallow drilling equipment, Drilling mud, bits fittings, drilling cements etc.
(iii) Manufacturing of consumable materials in exploration such as explosives, detonators, steel castings, magnetic tapes etc.
(iv) Other areas in the services sector of the upstream are:
1. Construction and Installation
2. Maintenance
3. Pipelining
4. Well Services and
5. Transportation Support Services.
B) Downstream Activities
(i) Domestic Production and marketing of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)
(ii) Manufacturing of LPG cylinders, valves and regulators, installation of filing plants, Retail distribution and development of simple, flexible and much less expensive gas burner to encourage the use of gas instead of wood and other fuels.
(iii) Establishment of processing plants and industries for
- The production of refined mineral oil, petroleum jelly and grease.
- The manufacture of bituminous based water/damp-proof building materials such as roofing sheets, floor tiles, rubber products, tarpaulin. Building of asphalt storage, packaging and blending plants to handle the product for export.
(iv) Establishment of chemical industries such as distillation units for the production of naphtha and other special boiling point solvents used in plant and other food processing industries.
(v) Establishment of industries for processing Linear Alkyl Benzene, Carbon Black and Polypropylene
(vii) Participation in all phases of the Nigeria Gas Industry development programmed from exploration, gathering, production and processing to transmission.
(viii) Establishment of small scale industries to produce chemicals and Solvents, for example Chlorinated methane, Formaldehyde, Acetylene, etc., from natural gas
(ix) Refining: One condition for purchasing Nigerian Crude Oil is the ownership of an efficient refinery. The shelter which the domestic petroleum products market enjoys, almost completely seals the prospects and viability of privately financed refinery for locally consumed petroleum products. However, opportunities exist for the construction of a refinery in bonded premises with adequate export facilities for dedication to the export market. Companies with the technological know-how can undertake turn-around maintenance of refineries. Refineries consume a lot of chemicals and utilize a broad range of spare parts. There is tremendous scope for small scale joint venture manufacturing concerns with foreign technical partners. Such ventures can start warehousing arrangements that will ensure continuity of supply at competitive prices. Other investment opportunities contingent upon refining and Ancillary activities are the manufacture of special products such as:
- Industrial and food grade solvents
- Insecticides
- Cosmetics
- Mineral Oil, petroleum jelly grease
- Bituminous-based water/damp-proof building materials such as floor tiles, rubber products, tarpaulin, etc., and
- Asphalt storage, packaging and blending plants to handle products for export and local use. Export of refined products surplus also exists as an opportunity in refining.
(x) Products Marketing: Petroleum Product Marketing would seem sealed with hardly any opportunity except by way of establishing an independent marketing outfit or aspiring to establish dealership with the marketers.
While indeed those opportunities remain viable, far more challenging opportunities may be explored in the areas of product transportation, by road and coastal tankers.
Associated with products distribution and marketing is a chain of manufacturing and maintenance business such as lubricating oil reprocessing, LPG bottles and accessories, oil cans reconditioning, etc.
The nations pipeline and depot network consists of 3,001km of pipeline of varying sizes as well as sixteen (16) storage depots. These pipelines and networks traverse the length and breath of the country. The system therefore must be maintained in a healthy state for effective and efficient distribution of products.