Oil and Gas
Gas Revolution
The New Fuel Of Choice For Nigeria’s Economic And Industrial Revolution Crude oil has been the choice of fuel for Nigeria for quite a while however with the nation armed with a Gas Master Plan and several key players at work; Nigeria is poised to become the gas hub of west Africa.
NIGERIA
NEXT LEVEL
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When President Buhari put forth the 7 Big Wins platform, his administration ensured that under their watch, the “old’’ Nigeria would slowly disappear while a new era would arise. Focusing on security and the new ease of doing business in Nigeria, they promised progress on reforms in the oil and gas sector. Compared to other alternatives, natural gas is the cheapest available fuel source. However, despite this, the use of natural gas is not as widespread in the country due to limited gas reserves development, inadequate pipeline infrastructure, supply insecurity and the absence of clear fiscal terms. Nevertheless, with a an extensive roadmap in place, the Gas Revolution is on the right track to usher in Buhari’s vision for a next level Nigeria. The recent rise in Nigeria’s current proven gas reserve up to 202 trillion cubic feet allows a more rapid development of the country’s energy sector while revitalising other sectors with the provision of affordable electricity. The earliest large-sized project to be completed to monetise Nigeria’s gas resources was aimed at the domestic market. The one billion cubic feet a day Escravos–Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS), commissioned in 1989, was primarily intended to supply gas from Escravos
region in the western Niger Delta to Egbin power station near Lagos. The 440km-long pipeline, grid length pipeline now supplies natural gas to several industries in the country’s southwest. The same year that ELPS was completed, the country inaugurated a Liquefied Natural Gas Company: Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited. Ten years later, in 1999, the first cargo of Liquefied Natural Gas was exported out of a plant on Bonny Island, in the east of the country. Over those 20 years, some six trillion cubic feet of gas have been converted to exports as LNG and Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs), earning the government over thus helping to reduce gas flaring by upstream companies. With six trains currently operational, the entire complex is capable of producing 22Million tonnes per annum (MMTPA) of LNG, and 5MMTPA of NGLs from 3.5Bscf/d of natural gas intake. The second large export project, the West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) was completed in 2006 and commissioned in 2011. It extends, by 678km, the ELPS, supplying Nigerian gas pumped from Escravos to Benin, Togo and Ghana. WAGP is the first regional natural gas transmission system in sub-Saharan Africa.
