The National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN) says the federal government will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Malaysian government to develop palm biomass.

Alphonsus Inyang, NPPAN president, disclosed this in an interview on Wednesday in Abuja.

Mr Inyang identified palm biomass as a multibillion-dollar economy.

“Biomass simply means agricultural waste and we are talking about turning waste to wealth,’’ he stated.

The president said NPPAN was working with its counterpart in Malaysia to replicate what was happening in Malaysian palm biomass and other biomass in Nigeria.

He said the development of palm biomass could contribute $10 billion to the national gross domestic product within four years and generate over five million jobs within five years.

Mr Inyang said Nigeria generated millions of agricultural waste annually, adding that signing the MoU would enable the country to produce industrial goods, generate electricity, produce medicine and fertiliser, among others, as applicable in Malaysia.

He said most of the imported furniture materials, like high-density fibre wood, medium-density fibre wood and other products produced from biomass, could be produced within the country once the MoU was in place.

“The palm tree is 90 per cent biomass and 10 per cent palm oil. So, the palm tree, the trunk, is biomass, the palm kernel shell makes up fibre, the empty bunches, palm front and many other parts of the tree are biomass which are currently wasted in Nigeria.

“But in Malaysia, it has become a multibillion-dollar economy. They are using this biomass to generate electricity, to produce furniture material, produce organic fertiliser, medicine and a lot of things.

“We have gone round many of these factories in Malaysia and they have agreed to sign MoU with our government to replicate same thing in Nigeria,” he said.

Mr Inyang said the association was working with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to develop a national biomass master plan for Nigeria.

Mr Inyang identified the plan as a template or policy document that would guide the implementation of palm biomass.

According to him, the MoU is between the Malaysia Biomass Industry Confederation and NPPAN.

Mr Inyang said the master plan would be in place on or before June.

He, however, appealed to the Ministry of Industry to facilitate the development of Nigeria’s national biomass master plan. 

(NAN)