“Indorama’s success story a manifestation of Buhari’s vision for private sector-driven economy”

THE acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has attributed commissioning of the Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Petrochemicals Plant to Buhari administration’s commitment to the private sector.
Speaking at the formal release ceremony to discharge Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Limited, (IEPL) from the monitoring programme of Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, the acting President said what Indorama is accomplished is very much in line with President Buhari’s vision for a country that produces what it consumes and grows what it eats.
According to him, “It is impossible for government to ever be able to provide all the capital needed to invest in infrastructure, or to catalyze economic activity. The best that we can do, and what we should be putting all our energy into, as government, is acting as a catalyst, an enabler, supporting private capital to achieve maximum impact in an economy that so desperately needs all the investment it can get.”
He stated that, the Fertilizer Initiative has created significant economic opportunities for companies like the IEPL. I have been informed that Indorama will this year alone supply about 360,000 MT of Urea to Fertilizer blenders, who will in turn produce NPK fertilizer for the benefit of farmers across the country, he said.
The acting president said, “This is the kind of economic progress we’re after, in which every unlocked opportunity proceeds to unlock several others, across multiple sectors of the economy.”
Osinbajo revealed that, President Buhari established a Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) last year whose results are now starting to be felt across the country.
According to the acting President, the kind of economic growth and prosperity that we’re aiming for cannot happen without private capital, and that private capital cannot be unlocked without reforming the business environment by removing obstacles and roadblocks to investment and to business operations.
In his word: “We know for a fact that it is impossible for government to ever be able to provide all the capital needed to invest in infrastructure, or to catalyze economic activity. The best that we can do, and what we should be putting all our energy into, as government, is acting as a catalyst, an enabler, supporting private capital to achieve maximum impact in an economy that so desperately needs all the investment it can get.
And this is the entire point of the privatization programme in the first place – it is about getting government out of the way so that businesses can do what they need to do to create jobs and prosperity. I’m glad that we’re here today to see one of the success stories of the Federal Government’s privatisation programme.”
He pledged government support for Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Limited’s expansion ambitions, saying our commitment to the privatization programme is equally assured, and we will continue to do everything to support investors to maximize the potential of their assets.
In 2006, 75 percent of Eleme Petrochemical Limited’s equity was sold to Indorama Consortium Ltd, the present Core Investor of the Company, for US$225million while 10 percent was sold to the NNPC Pension Fund for US$30million. Following this, the company was handed over to its new owners on October 26, 2006.
In 2009, the National Council on Privatization (NCP) graciously approved the sale of 7.5 percent and 2.5 percent of the remaining government’s 15 percent reserved equity in the company to the community and staff of the company respectively, leaving a balance of 5 percent with the BPE on-behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria.