Niger Signs $1.9 Billion Agreement for Refinery and Petrochemical Complex, Capacity to Rank Third in West Africa

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Dimension News, August 15 — The Nigerien government signed a formal agreement with Canada's Zimar Group and its partner High Tech in the capital Niamey to build a refinery and petrochemical complex with a total investment of $1.9 billion in the southwestern city of Dosso. The project is located approximately 140 kilometers east of Niamey. Niger's Minister of Foreign Affairs Bakary Yaou Sangaré and Zimar Group CEO Benjamin Day Marc signed on behalf of both parties, with Niger's Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine attending the ceremony.

The project adopts a BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) public-private partnership model with a 16-year agreement term, including a 3-year construction period and a 13-year operation period, after which it will be transferred to the Nigerien government. The refinery is designed with a processing capacity of 100,000 barrels per day, supported by ancillary pipelines, storage facilities, and petrochemical units. Upon completion, it will become the third-largest refinery in West Africa, trailing only Nigeria's Dangote Refinery (700,000 barrels per day) and Ghana's Sentuo Refinery (120,000 barrels per day).

This is not the first contact between the two parties. Niger and Zimar Group signed a memorandum of understanding for the project in October 2024, after which the Nigerien government reviewed and revised the proposal. The project was initially considered as a modular refinery solution but was later adjusted to a conventional refinery configuration with more mature technology and larger scale. Zimar is required to complete financing arrangements and detailed engineering design within 4 months and achieve financial close within 12 months.

Niger currently has only one refinery, the Zinder Refinery, 60% owned by CNPC, which commenced operations in 2012 with a processing capacity of 20,000 barrels per day. In recent years, following Nigeria's removal of fuel subsidies, smuggled fuel from neighboring countries has sharply declined, exacerbating gasoline and diesel shortages in Niger's domestic market. Once the new refinery comes on stream, Niger's refining capacity will increase to five times its current level. Nigerien authorities estimate the country's oil reserves at approximately 853 million barrels, with potential resources of about 2.7 billion barrels in the Kafra Basin.