The Federal government has agreed to forge strategic partnership with the Delta State Government on how to tap from the large gas deposit in the state through the exploration of the newly unveiled Methanol Fuel Technology Policy.
The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, said this when he received the Executive Governor of Delta state, Dr. Sen. Ifeanyi Okowa in his office on Thursday in Abuja.
The partnership, Dr. Onu added, would be a Win Win arrangement to both the state and the ministry as well as the nation as a whole.
He underscored the need for value addition to the nation’s raw materials, adding that it is when we add value to those raw materials that Nigeria can convert her enormous resources for job and wealth creation.
The Minister said that the implementation of the policy, will improve virtually all sectors of the nation’s economy and will also go a long way in solving the problems of the country.
The policy he added, will positively impact transportation, the environment, manufacturing sector etc.
He said the new methanol policy has entered its first phase of implementation and that the six geo-political zones would be sensitized on it.
Earlier in address, the Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, while commending the minister for his commitment to nation building described the Methanol Fuel Technology policy as a product of hard work and futuristic thinking on the path of the Ministry.
Dr. Okowa said Delta state has been making efforts on the effective use of natural gas resources, which resulted in the proposed establishment of the Kwale Industrial Park in Delta state.
He said the state will continue to discuss and strategize with the Ministry to ensure Methanol Fuel is effectively used to benefit the country and its citizens.
In his own remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Bello Umar, said that the implementation of the Methanol Fuel Technology came at the right time and commended the various stakeholders for embracing the policy.
He urged Dr. Okowa to encourage other Niger-Delta governors to embrace the Methanol Fuel Technology policy.
