BY EMEKA EJERE
Ardova Plc is strategically boosting investments not only to remain an industry leader, but also to protect its market share against any magnitude of disruption that may come with energy transition, its Managing Director, Moshood Olajide, has said.
Olajide, who spoke at a press conference in Lagos recently to mark the company’s sixty years of existence, said mindful of the significant part of the transition that gas and renewable energy sources are going to constitute, is investing ‘’in those things that we know will disrupt our business in the future.”.
“We believe that in Nigeria, there will need to be a just transition. And part of that transition, gas is going to play a very significant part of that. Gas is a cleaner form of energy than other sources that we’re talking about. We believe that renewable energy sources such as solar and maybe wind and even hydro will play a significant part of that future.
”At Ardova Plc, what are we doing about that? What we’re doing about that is to invest in those things that we know will disrupt our business in the future,” Olajide said.
“Because if you look at our business, energy transition then is more or less a business disruptor for us. Because we supply energy right now, if there’s a new energy source, then it reduces our share of the market. So, what we are doing is investing in our own disruption. We’re investing in solar; we’re investing in gas.
”We have the single largest storage facility for LPG in the whole of West Africa. Each of our spheres that we have in Nigeria is the single largest sphere in Africa. So, it’s a huge investment for which we’re very, very proud. That’s what we’re doing on the gas side.
‘’On the solar side, specifically, we have a subsidiary that is called AP Renewables. As you can see, we’re very energized about the idea of renewables,” Olajide further stated.
According to him, the company is committed to delivering renewable energy solutions across various sectors, operating a distribution model that combines solar and waste to energy biofuel solutions to provide Nigerians with affordable energy sources to meet their basic lighting needs.
Ardova is also a leading supplier of Aviation fuel to local and international airlines providing aircraft refueling services through our aviation-joint hydrant in Lagos and our joint aviation depot in Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kano.
Olajide said ‘’at Ardova Plc, if you look at our structure, we’re probably the only downstream oil and gas business that has a fully integrated business model. We call it from coast to home. We have investments across all of that value chain. We’re used to investing across the value chain”.
Also speaking, AbdulHakeem Buhari, Chief Strategy Officer, Ardova Plc, noted that Nigeria with its abundant sunshine is exceptionally well suited for solar energy, especially in the north.
He said, “We have a concept called horizontal irradiation, which is how, not just the amount of sunshine you get, but how it heats the earth.
“And Nigeria is just exceptionally well suited for this. And so, for us, we see it as a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on that. I think the second thing is to highlight Ardova’s investment and commitment to renewables, like the managing director was saying.
“So, AP Renewables as an entity, we’re going to hear more about this in the coming months. But we’ve rapidly scaled up our investments in that space. So, over the next couple of months, you’ll start to see solarisation occurring at several of our retail locations powered by AP Renewables. You’re going to see us start to invest in solar-powered kits or solar home systems for small households, especially in rural communities that do not have the ability to afford big systems,” he said.
“You’re going to start to see us partner with commercial and industrial customers to give them industrial-level grid-like connections. And so, there is a lot of investment coming in that space within AP Renewables to ensure we disrupt ourselves. And internally, you’re going to start to see the solar entity or the AP Renewables entity battle for some of our traditional customers for the same attention.
”And we think that’s a healthy mix, right? And so, the final point I’ll say here is Nigeria will have a multi-energy future, no doubt about it. We will need gas. We will need solar. We will need diesel. We will need petrol. But that multi-energy future is the one we’re headed to.
Deputy Managing Director, Ardova Plc, Abiola Babatunde-Ojo, explained that Dangote Refinery is not a threat to the business of Ardova Plc, but a boost to ”our business operation through energy supply security”.
She said, ”Dangote Refinery is a major source of energy supply for us. In fact, we’re one of the biggest off-takers from Dangote Refinery.
“And it will interest you to know that when they started selling by coastal marine sales, our organisation, Ardova Plc, was the first organisation to off-take gasoline, that’s PMS, from them. And the way our business model is positioned, we see Dangote Refinery as a catalyst to our business. It enhances our way of securing products from them.
“We’re proud of what Ardova Plc has done, and we will continue to partner with them. We do not see Dangote Refinery as a disruption to our business. Rather, it is a way to aid our business operation through energy supply security,” she said.
Ardova Plc is a Nigerian leading indigenous and integrated energy company involved in the distribution of petroleum products.
With an extensive network of over 450 retail outlets in Nigeria and significant storage facilities in Apapa, Lagos and Onne, Rivers State, the company procures and distribute petrol (PMS), diesel (AGO), kerosene (DPK) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), among other services.
Ardova Plc was incorporated in 1964 as British Petroleum (Nigeria), before changing its name to African Petroleum Limited (AP) in 1979.
Emeka Ejere
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