UTURU, Federal Republic of Nigeria. An integrated energy firm, Masters Energy, has commenced works on a multi-billion naira industrial city in Onuaku, Uturu, Abia State. The project, which is at advanced level of construction, is expected to commence operations by September 2015.
Taking-off with integrated plastic making factory, noodles production and the organic fertiliser plant in the first phase, the industrial city will also have lubricant blending plant, storage facility, aluminium profile factory and pipeline manufacturing plant among others, when fully completed.
The Manager, Corporate Affairs, Masters Energy, Emmanuel Iheanacho, at the facility tour to the site at the weekend, said the project would become the industrial hub of the South-East region when completed. Iheanacho, expressed the company’s commitment to local content, adding that the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Uchechukwu Ogah was passionate about growing the local economy.
According to him, the industrial city will create about 14,000 jobs (direct and indirect) when fully completed, adding that it has already employed about 200 staff and over 800 contract workers, totalling over 1000 workers on site.
“What drives us at Masters Energy is the need to empower people and grow the domestic economy because creation of jobs will reduce crime rate and raise the local capacity,” he said Iheanacho also noted that the project would also save the nation of huge capital flight and have direct impact on the livelihood of indigenes of Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states.
Other facilities expected in the industrial city includes: an Information Communication Technology (ICT) centre, high-tech laboratory facility, a well-equipped hospital, police\security base, firefighting station and residential quarters for workers.
Iheanacho however assured on the quality of products that will be coming out of the city, “because we will follow the international standards with our state-of-the-art laboratory monitoring the quality of the inputs,” The Administrative Manager, Masters Energy, Emmanuel Arukwe, said safety is key in their operations, adding that the company has recorded zero-incidence since it started construction in 2011.
He noted that adequate programmes have been extended to the host communities as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). These include the donation of an auditorium for Abia State University; award of scholarships; electricity supply network; and health care centre, among others.
Masters Energy, an integrated oil and gas firms, has diversified into various sectors of the economy to emerge an one of the fastest growing industrial conglomerate in the country. The firm had also in 2006 acquired over 143 hectares of land in Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, for the construction of an ultramodern integrated oil and gas logistics centre, tagged, “Masters Energy City”.
Within the Energy City is a petroleum products storage facility of 158,000 metric tonnes storage, which has significantly bridged the supply gap of petroleum products in those areas.
Credit: Guardian (Nigeria)
