Utodio Kingsley Cyril is the CEO of Swestep Nigeria Limited. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Anatomy, but received special training in waste-to-fuel conversion. In this interview, he speaks with LAOLU HAROLDS on plans by his company to establish the first-ever bio-refinery in Nigeria.
Your company is going into conversion of wastes into biofuel. Why biofuel? What is the motivation?
The first reason is as a means of combating climate change. Combating climate change forces the world to seek alternative, low-carbon sources of energy and fuel. Since traffic is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas, i.e. carbon emissions, substituting fossil fuels with renewable alternatives such as biofuels is an efficient way to reduce these emissions. Secondly, it’s an effective way of responding to higher energy consumption. The expected increase in world population to 10 or even 15 billion by 2050, combined with significant economic growth in emerging economies will result in substantially increasing energy consumption. To be able to respond to this growing demand, we need to use natural resources more efficiently and increase the use of renewable energy, such as biofuels.
Going biofuel will also help secure energy supply. Increasing energy demand will pose challenges to security of supply as resources are scattered around the globe. Biofuels help to enhance and safeguard energy security by reducing the world’s reliance on fossil energy sources. Biomass is a resource that is more evenly distributed globally. Then there is the need to make the most of scarce resources. Using waste and residue as raw materials for biofuels is an excellent example of answering to the needs of a circular economy. Reducing the amount of waste and making the most of our valuable natural resources is crucial for our future survival.
Motivation? Well, some years ago in Rivers State, the National Association of Anatomy Students organised a conference, and we later went on a field trip to Songhai Farm. There I saw how agricultural waste was converted to biogas used in cooking for the staff that worked there. As at then, I was a student of Human Anatomy and was about furthering my studies in Medicine and Surgery. I knew if waste can be converted to biogas for cooking, then waste can also be converted to diesel, petrol, kerosene, aviation fuel and also BioLPG. That was how the motivation kicked in, and I was interested in creating a circular economy in Nigeria.
In terms of expertise, and experience, how technically grounded is Swestep to handle this project?
Our fuel has been tested and shown EN590 quality diesel and crude oil with the same characteristics as fossil oil. (EN590 is a standard published by the European Committee for Standardization that describes the physical properties that all automotive diesel fuel must meet if it is to be sold in the European Union and several other European countries). Our technology is also used by oil companies in processing crude oil to non-fossil fuel. Currently we are awaiting certification on our aviation fuel so it can be commercialized as our other products have been certified.
At what scale do you hope to operate in this? I reckon, industrial? What volume of waste do you hope to amass to generate what volume of biofuel?
Sure, it’s an industrial scale. We have different sizes of plants. (1)SWTP- 500 (has a production capacity of 500litres/hour and 4 million annually); (2) SWTP- 1000 (has a production capacity of 1000 litres/hour and 8 million annually) ; (3) SWTP- 2000 (has a production capacity of 2000 litres/hour and 6 million annually); (4)SWTP- 5000 (has a production capacity of 5000 litres/hour and 40 million annually). It depends on the type of waste that will be used. For instance: 3kg of biomass yields 1litre of diesel. 2.1kg of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) yields 1kg of diesel. 1.5kg of plastic waste yields 1litre of diesel.
How do you hope to generate the volume of waste you require?
We will make use of waste management agencies of the various states in which Swestep biorefinery will be sited. Instead of them dumping these wastes on landfill sites, they will bring the waste to the biorefinery site. We will also employ the services of private waste collectors who would bring the specific waste needed in tons… It’s a way of creating indirect employment to Nigerians.
Matters relating to energy generation are still largely under the control of the federal government. Do you plan to or is there already an arrangement to carry the government along?
Definitely, we are looking at a partnership between Swestep and the government, though for now we are currently visiting various state governments making them understand the benefits of the Swestep technology in their states. Just to mention a few, the benefits include job creation, making the states clean, reducing CO² (carbon dioxide) emissions, creating a sustainable and circular economy, starting a profitable business which would increase the internally generated revenue for the various states where Swestep biorefinery would be sited. In the course of time, we would explore partnering with the Nigerian Navy, supplying diesels to their vessels in helping them reduce their cost of operation.
Let’s put figures to this. In terms of budget, what scale are you looking to operate in this project?
This is also determined by the plant size. Let’s say within the range of 12 million Euros and €68 million.
Any collaborations?
Swestep Nigeria is a branch of Swestep AB based in Sweden, and we have several technical partners all over Europe and America.
Who will be the consumers of the energy/product you generate, and how will it be dispensed? How cheap will it be?
Apart from converting waste to fuel, we produce alongside CO2 for food and beverage industries, chemicals used for production of 3D printing, textile fabrics, plastics, cosmetics and medicine. We assure you, our products are definitely affordable.
