Assa North-Ohaji South gas project to produce 600mscf/d, equivalent of 2.4GW of electricity – says NNPC

Ben Eguzozie

The multi-billion-dollar Asa North-Ohaji South (ANOH) gas project, one of the largest greenfield gas condensate development projects ever undertaken in Nigeria, is expected to produce 600 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, an equivalent of approximately 2.4 gigawatts (GW) of electricity for the country, the national oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has said.

Mele Kyari, group managing director of NNPC, said this while delivering a goodwill message at the 2020 South East Gas Utilization Forum (SEGUF) in Owerri, Imo State.

A statement by Kennie Obateru, group general manager, group public affairs division of the corporation, quoted Kyari to have commended the imminent completion of the landmark Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben “OB3” gas pipeline project which would help commercialize over two billion cubic feet of gas per day, and generate billions of naira in revenue, as well as create thousands of employment opportunities for Nigerians.

Kyari, who was represented at the occasion by Yusuf Usman, NNPC’s chief operating officer, gas and power, said the “NNPC as an enabler organisation, has since realised the obvious economic importance of gas; and has consistently made concerted efforts towards delivering the right infrastructure and commercial structures, in a bid to deliver value to customers and all stakeholders.”

He stated that the laudable initiative of the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) aimed at facilitating the optimal use of natural gas to drive industrial and economic growth aligns completely with President Muhammadu Buhari’s aspirations of prioritizing gas development for economic growth, power generation and the eventual industrialization of Nigeria.

In his keynote address, the minister of state for petroleum resources, Timipre Sylva, said the best way to diversify Nigeria’s economy would be by driving the development and utilization of the nation’s abundant gas resources, describing the South East as a region where an industrial miracle was about to happen.

Business A.M. in an earlier report in 2019 indicated that the ANOH gas project, being developed by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) is estimated to cost over $3.5 billion (though not confirmed by the oil company). It is sited on 200 hectares of land in Ohaji-Egbema local government area, provided by Imo State government, which was based on a request in June 2012 by Shell. The land is part of the state’s collaboration to the project.

Imo, an oil-rich state, is said to be awash with huge gas deposits in excess of 700 billion cubic feet much of which has not been harnessed. Whereas Nigeria has 200.79 trillion cubic feet of gas as of 2019, according to the department of petroleum resources (DPR).

Shell said the Assa-North Ohaji-South Gas project is in line with the local gas content policy of the federal government to boost power generation in the country.

In February last year, Shell inaugurated cluster development boards (CDBs) for the major gas project, in which the IOC would spend N1bn in the project’s host communities over the next five years. Industry experts described the move as a major game-changer in Nigeria’s energy sufficiency in gas-to-power and industrialization.

The CDBs are made up of principal officers of the Community Trusts from 11 communities of the Assa-North Ohaji-South gas development project, and would have the responsibility for implementing a global memorandum of understanding (GMOU) established for the project.

The Anglo-Dutch oil giant had earlier in late 2018 announced a final investment decision (FID) on the estimated $3.5 billion gas project. This was followed by signing of a GMOU with the project’s host communities in Ohaji-Egbema local government area of Imo State.