Ethanol plant project begins in Ondo

Construction work on the proposed ethanol plant to be established by the Nigeria Cassava Grower Association, NCGA, in Ondo State, in conjunction with the private sector will commence as soon as the State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko releases land for the project. 

The project which will generate nothing less than 3,000 jobs when it take off, would be sited around Bolorunduro- Ogbese axis in the state. Disclosing this during an interview with newsmen yesterday in AKURE, the state capital, Chairman of the Association, Mr. Fola Olorunmodimu disclosed that the project will cover an expanse of 6,000 hectares of land. 

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Olorunmodimu who said the government has assured them of it total support by providing the necessary land for the association, asserted that the plant will improve the economic status of all cassava farmers in the state. 

The chairman further said that the association will not mind if the land is not in the same location in as much as it is not far from the proposed site of the plant in order for them to be able to have adequate access to the plant. He further added that the plant will also help in eliminating the processing problem encountered by all cassava farmers in the state. 

Olorunmodimu also said that the association us very much concerned with processing unit of cassava, hence it is encouraging many if its members to go into this unit. In his words, we are very concerned about the processing unit of cassava, when we plant and cultivate our cassava, where to process it has also been a challenge. 

The thing about cassava is that when it is matured and not harvested on time, it begins to rot This we want to avoid, we are encouraging our farmers to go into processing, he explained.

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 The Chairman also stated that the ethanol plant is not the only project the association is working on, but because the association’s operational headquarters is in AKURE, with the president residing in the state, they have upper hand to start the pilot scheme of the plant in the state.