This major project worth $1.3bn was announced last Thursday by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari at a meeting in Abuja with the Fertilizer Producers & Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN)

This is a perfectly balanced business cooperation and a win-win partnership between the two countries, Orji told MAP. Nigeria and Morocco have two essential components for the production of ammonia, namely natural gas and phosphate, he explained.

The new facility under construction is an important one as Nigeria is one of the largest consumers of ammonia in the world, Orji noted.

The platform, part of an agreement signed between the two countries, will produce Ammonia, Phosphoric Acid, Sulphuric Acid, and various Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium (NPK) and Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) fertilizers using Nigeria's gas reserves.

"HM King Mohammed VI of Morocco and I have agreed to extend the current Phosphate supply agreement between the Kingdom of Morocco and Nigeria. We both believe that to consolidate and expand on the successes recorded so far, we must secure raw material supplies to our blenders," Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari had said.

Managing Director and CEO of NSIA Uche Orji also highlighted that through this platform and other units already operational, the development's dynamic will be strengthened both locally and regionally.

The Nigerian President had said during the meeting that the new plant, when completed, would complement the existing Dangote and Indorama Chemicals facilities which produce urea, ammonia, and other industrial raw materials.

"When these projects will be combined with the 44 existing plants, Nigeria will indeed become a regional and global fertilizer hub," he stressed.

For Orji, this intra-African partnership and the South-South cooperation advocated by HM King Mohammed VI and the Nigerian President can serve other countries, especially in Africa.