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Puma Energy, a Swiss-based mid and downstream energy company, said on Monday that it has delivered its first cargo of bitumen to Nigeria to aid road construction across the country.

The company said the discharge of the bitumen was completed today at its Calabar-based terminal under a joint venture with WABECO Petroleum Limited, which is registered as P.E. Bitumen Resources (Nigeria) Limited.

"This is a very important milestone for Puma Energy Bitumen. Nigeria is a key focus market for us as we keep building our global presence and it shows we can deliver bitumen on specification and on time anywhere across the world," said Olof Klintholm, Puma Energy's Global Head of Bitumen.

Puma Energy said the bitumen delivery comes at a critical time to assist the Nigerian government's effort in upgrading road infrastructure, which is a catalyst for the country's economic development.

The news about the delivery of the bitumen comes after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported last week that the Nigerian economy has slipped into a recession, following a contraction of 2.06% in the second quarter of 2016 after contracting by 0.36% in Q1. Construction industry GDP contracted by 5.37% in Q1 and 6.28% in Q2.

A key agenda of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is to revamp critical infrastructure across the country having increased capital spending by 185% from N557 billion in the 2015 budget to N1.59 trillion in 2016. Some of the major projects the government has embarked upon in 2016 include roads and bridges, power, railway, aviation, water projects, housing, and health projects.

“Puma Energy looks forward to working with construction companies in delivering high quality bitumen to their projects around Nigeria,” the company said in a statement.

Puma Energy supplies 25% of United Kingdom’s bitumen. It also supplies bitumen from its terminals in Europe (in Caniz, Spain) and South East Asia (in Langsat, Malaysia) for the construction of highways in other African countries like Angola and Mozambique.

Puma Energy has the world's largest system of bitumen ships and terminals, offering a wide range of products that meet local specification requirements. The company aims to support the construction of new and safer roads by assisting governments, highway agencies and construction companies in sourcing and supplying bitumen for major construction works.