By Tapre Timine, Bayelsa
The Bayelsa State Government has requested an equity stake in the $3.5 billion Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical Company Limited project, which is scheduled to break ground on Brass Island in October 2025.
Governor Douye Diri made the request on Tuesday while receiving the company’s management team at Government House, Yenagoa.
He explained that the state’s demand was driven by what he described as the exclusion of oil-producing states and local governments from the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), a move he said had complicated the law’s implementation and fuelled disputes in host communities.
The Governor argued that the legislation ignored the constitutional powers of state governments over land, stressing that these flaws had created a precedent for conflict. He expressed confidence that the Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical project would avoid similar pitfalls and called on its promoters to collaborate closely with the state to prevent disputes.
Diri commended President Bola Tinubu for reviving the long-delayed project, recalling that it was initially conceived in 2009 but stalled despite some progress under a previous administration.
“Let us ensure that the state is not totally excluded from being partners in progress in this whole process. The PIA is one good example,” he said.
“When it was in its formative stages as a bill, we made a presentation through the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, after consultations with our people, communities, and chiefs. At the end of the day, our inputs were ignored and thrown overboard as the PIA excluded the oil-producing states and their local governments.
“The federal government now interacts directly with the communities, which is an affront to the Nigerian Constitution. The Constitution says the land belongs to the state government and not the federal government.
“The Constitution recognises communities as under the local government and the state government. These anomalies in the PIA have made the law a time bomb.
“Today, because of the PIA, there are intra and inter-communal conflicts and litigations. So even funds that have been realised for their development cannot be disbursed to the communities. If anybody thinks the state is not much important, we will then wash off our hands,” the Governor warned.
Managing Director of Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical Company, Chief Ben Okoye, confirmed that construction would commence in October. He attributed earlier delays to unresolved issues surrounding the gas component of the project, adding that a presidential directive last year paved the way for an agreement reached in January.
Okoye commended the Bayelsa State Government for constructing the Nembe-Brass road, saying it would save the company approximately $100,000 in logistics costs for moving materials to the site.
Project Coordinator Mr Cyril Akika disclosed that the methanol plant would produce 10,000 metric tonnes per day, creating over 15,000 jobs during construction and 5,000 permanent positions once operational.
He added that the initiative would generate significant tax revenues, royalties, internally generated revenue, and dividends for the state. Other benefits, he said, include the development of a gas-fired 300MW power plant and the transformation of the Brass Free Zone into a global petrochemical hub.
