Description

In Nigeria, agriculture has remained the largest sector of the economy. It generates employment for about 70% of Nigeria’s population and contributes about 40% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with crops accounting for 80%, livestock 13%, forestry 3% and fishery 4%.

It plays significant roles in the nation’s economic development.  These roles include: contribution to the country’s gross domestic product; source of income and decent living for a large proportion of the population; provision of adequate food for the people; supply of raw materials required by the industrial sector; generation of foreign exchange through export; provision of employment opportunities for the teeming population.

Nigeria has a land area of 98.3m hectares. At present about 34m hectares or 48% are under cultivation. Under the (1999) Constitution, responsibility for agricultural and rural development is shared among the federal, state and local governments. There is no doubt that considering the vast area of uncultivated land coupled with the natural fertility of its soil, Nigeria has great agricultural potentials.

In like manner, Nigeria has great potentials for fertilizer consumption and use.  A study conducted by the Agricultural Projects Monitoring and Evaluation Unit (APMEU) in 1990 put the agronomic potential at 7 million metric tons.  With increased release of higher yielding and fertilizer consuming crop varieties, this potential is now much higher than the 7 million metrics tons.

Fertilizer consumption (kilograms per hectare of arable land) in Nigeria was 2.12 as of 2009. Its highest value over the past 7 years was 9.98 in 2006, while its lowest value was 2.12 in 2009.

Nigeria also has great potential to produce substantial quantities of its fertilizer requirements.  The abundant natural gas most of which is now being flared can be harnessed to produce large quantities of nitrogenous fertilizers.  Commercial quantities of rock phosphate deposits abound in Sokoto, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun axis that can be used for the production of phosphate fertilizers.  The only raw material that is not yet found in substantial qualities in Nigeria is the potassium deposits.  Even this can be sourced from our North African neighbors.
Due to the lack of local production most of the fertilizer used in Nigeria now is imported. It is important to note that over 80% of all the fertilizer consumed in the country is imported. The consequences of relying on imported fertilizer include drain on foreign reserve, insufficient supply due to high capital requirements for importation and consequent high retail prices for the farmers, which renders the input unaffordable.

These developments and actions which to a large extent were uncoordinated have caused the quantities of fertilizers available to farmers to remain abysmally low and very expensive.
This feasibility report seeks to examine the financial viability or otherwise of establishing an inorganic NPK fertilizer plant in Nigeria capable of producing different blends of fertilizers. The major raw materials for this project include – Urea, diammonium phosphate, muriate potash and calcium carbonate.

The proposed plant would comprise of Chain crusher, Elevator,Feed, Product and Retention Hoopers, Weigh Belt Feeders with PLC Control, Feed Belt to Mixer, Pneumatic Control Valves, Auto Packer, Rotary Mixer, weigh bridge and weighing machine, Slat conveyor with stitching machine, Hand Stitching Machine and stacking forklift with wooden pallets, Tools and Tackles, Project vehicles, official car, Generator, payloader and Dust Collection system, Electrical panel board, remote controlled push buttons unit, capacitor bank, foundation bolts, essential requirement for one year and electrical items.

The plant would operate at 90% of the installed capacity working double shifts of eight {8} hours each in 300 day per annum producing 200 tons per day of different combinations of NPK fertilizers.