CBN Headquarters in Abuja

Imo state government yesterday said that it has commenced discussion with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for a loan of N52 billion to be channelled into Adapalm plantation.

The General Manager of Adapalm, Goddy Esomobodo, disclosed this in Owerri, adding that the loan would be used among other things to replace the mills with mordern machines in order to increase the capacity of the oil production, improve the infrastructure as well as expansion of Adapalm to other zones of the state.

When Vanguard asked if Adapalm has started selling it palm oil, he said that while the production of palm oil is still ongoing that the governor placed an embargo on the selling of the oil for now, and that there was a plan to start exporting the product in large quantities.

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According to the General Manager, “The two most important steps to make this place survive is the mill and the plantation. Plantation gives you the raw material and the mill handles the raw material to the end product and give you the money.

“Today we are doing 40 tons and with the avalaibilty of fruits we now know we can achieve a mile stone in oil production but unfortunately this what we call the leap period in oil palm production. The period of surplus is gone what we are doing now is to use the little fruits that are available to us to keep the mill working.

“Unfortunately, we have not started selling oil. His excellency, Governor Hope Uzodinma, said we should not sell the oil may be we may use it to attract foreign investors who will take our oil to abroad.”

He was worried that due to neglect of the Adapalm plantation by past administrations that, “The management headquarters everything there is gone, GM, admin office is gone, account auditors office is gone, the police post gone, workshop gone, residential quarters for top management staff gone, electricity regulation, water gone.

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“When what happened, happened the police came protected this place and the mills otherwise it would have been the same story.”

He used the opportunity to reveal some of the few steps taken by the government for Adapalm plantation, “However, it does not discourage us. We are doing everything to make it come back. The only challenge we have if the fund can come either Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, already talking with the government the CBN, has agreed to give a loan of about N52 billion.

“So that this place and other areas can be brought back to live and with this loan it can help the government establish more palm plantations in the three zones of Imo. Also we can replace this mills with the latest mordern mill and increase the capacity of the oil production and you know a ton of red oil internationally is about N350,000 and you now know what it means to have hundred tons of oil by the time you multiply it.”

Vanguard