OIL CLEANING BIO-PRODUCTS LTD.
PRESS RELEASE
OIL CLEANING BIO-PRODUCTS LTD. BOOSTS UK ENVIRONMENTAL SUPPLY INDUSTRY IN TRADE MISSION TO NIGERIAN OIL & GAS COMPANIES
March 1997
Oil Cleaning Bio-Products Ltd. and thirteen other British companies have just returned from a successful UK Trade Mission to the Nigerian oil and gas industry, having taken part in high- level discussions with oil companies and business leaders in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Warri, as well as in field visits to oil facilities in the Niger Delta. OCBP Ltd. was the principal representative of the UK environmental supply and technology industry and received many enquiries about the technical resources which UK companies could offer to Nigeria.
Commenting on the Mission, OCBP's Managing Director Richard Genochio said: "It was made clear to us that environmental protection is a key objective of the Nigerian government and of the oil companies. There is a strong determination to get this right, in terms of both the installation of new or upgraded facilities and the remediation of past pollution. There are great opportunities for British companies to supply equipment, materials and services as part of this effort. However, as I made clear in my speech, the front-line defence against pollution is prevention through high-quality engineering. In this respect also, British companies designing and manufacturing pumps, compressors, generators, valves, processing plant, flow meters, pigging equipment and pipelines can make a major contribution."
Speaking at the seminar hosted by the British High Commission, Mr. Genochio said: "Owing to the outstanding British science base and to the need to design and operate to the highest international standards, there is a resourceful and multi-skilled UK environmental service and supply industry. This industry now has a representative voice in The UK Environmental Industries Commission, which is planning to work closely with the British Government in a major new export initiative. UK companies in these fields will be looking not merely for customers but also for Nigerian distributors and partners with whom they will wish to make a long term commitment to this country. I am sure that in advancing our business interests in this way, British environmental companies will at the same time make a strong contribution to Nigerian industry and be of real benefit to the Nigerian people."
Mr. Genochio added: "The DTI and the British High Commission in Lagos and Port Harcourt deserve all praise for arranging a first-rate programme and for impeccable logistics in moving our party around Nigeria on a complex and intense itinerary. Government support of this quality is vital to British companies seeking customers and partners in high-potential markets."
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THE FULL TEXT OF MR
GENOCHIO'S SPEECH
NOTES FOR EDITORS
1) The Trade Mission lasted ten days. The following companies took part: Babcock King-Wilkinson, Bridon International Ltd., Costain Oil Gas and Process Ltd., Crosby Valve and Engineering Co. Ltd., Flowline Industries UK Ltd., Orbit Valve plc, Serck Baker Ltd., Skeltonhall Ltd., SNC Lavalin Europe Ltd., Sterling Fluid Products Ltd., TAD Eurotube Ltd., Triconex Europe Ltd., Triton Trading and Procurement Services Ltd. and Oil Cleaning Bio-Products Ltd.2) The companies visited by the Mission included: Shell, Mobil, Chevron, AGIP, Elf, Esso, BP, Texaco, Nigerian Gas Company Ltd., Nigeria LNG Ltd., and National Petroleum Investment Management Services. The Mission was led by Dr. Ken Forrest and John Major of the Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Supply Office of the DTI. For further details of the Mission contact John Major at the OSO, tel. 0141 228 3681, or David Pearey, Commercial Counsellor at the British High Commission in Lagos, tel. 00 234 1 261 9531.
3) The Mission held seminars in Lagos and Port Harcourt, attracting some 320 and 150 participants respectively. The Mission also visited oil and gas facilities at various locations.
3) The "Heg" products include: Hegol (biodegradable surfactants with natural oil-degrading bacteria, used for vehicle washing, oily machinery, oil-stained workshop floors and other hard or metallic surfaces); Hegfloor (low dust, non-abrasive non-leaching biodegradable plant-based absorbent, used for oil spills on floors, roads or concrete as a superior but economical alternative to granular clay, polypropylene, sawdust and sand); Hegsolv (quick-splitting biodegradable surfactants with rust inhibitor and natural oil-degrading bacteria, used for heavy duty cleansing, parts washing and degreasing); Hegrem (oil-encapsulating absorbent made from biodegradable plant fibres with oil-degrading bacteria, used for bioremediation of contaminated land and of oily sludges and wastes); Hegsorb (biodegradable hydrophobic/oleophilic absorbent used for spills on water and as a filter to separate oil and water in oily effluents); Hegacid (for the absorption, stabilisation and part-neutralisation of spilled concentrated acids); Hegseal (pliable clay with polymer for the sealing of leaking or punctured drums, tanks and pipework - easy for drivers to carry in road tankers for temporary emergency use to stop leakage from tanks etc. on customers' premises); Hegtrap (biodegradable surfactants with oil-degrading bacteria for the digestion of grease, fats and human waste in grease traps and drains); and a variety of biodegradable absorbent booms, pads, socks and pillows. These, together with Hegfloor, will be of particular interest to tanker owners and drivers as superior components of the on-board emergency spill kits which they are legally obliged to carry. Subject to minimum requirements, SOC will be able to supply kits made up to meet individual preferences. (Just 4 lbs. of Hegfloor will absorb and retain up to almost 8 litres of spilled oil, depending on type).
5) The full text of Mr. Genochio's speech to the seminar is attached.
6) OCBP is appointing a Nigerian company to act as Distributor of the "Heg" products in Nigeria. For further information contact OCBP Ltd., PO Box 46, Royston, Herts. SG8 9PD, England; tel. (+44) (0)1763 287 749. For further details of The UK Environmental Industries Commission, contact Adrian Wilkes on (+44) (0)171 624 2728.