Nigeria’s state oil company says it will stimulate economic growth through aggressive gas development

Maikanti Kacalla Baru, group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has stated that the Federal Government has mandated the NNPC to pursue an aggressive gas development programme to stimulate economic growth in the country.

Baru made this disclosure on Tuesday in Lagos during a Gas Roundtable meeting for chief executives and directors levels of the oil and gas companies organized by the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA) where he was named the Pioneer Advisory Board Chairman of the NGA.

He said the mandate was to ensure that gas infrastructure development is enhanced for gas supply, stressing that this was a critical focus areas in the Federal Government’s 2016-2019 “Big Wins” for the oil and gas industry as well as in the NNPC’s 12 Key Business Focus Areas to grow the industry.

He noted that opportunities at the upstream gas development included the acquisition and operatorship of oil blocks, drilling rig leasing, provision of engineering services, heavy equipment leasing, seismic acquisition and processing, Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contracting, Fabrication of pressure vessel, running steel mills and provision of banking/financing services, etc.

Speaking on opportunities in the midstream of the gas value chain, Baru listed the following as areas that should interest investors: Investment in gas processing facilities, mini Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), floating LNG, Gas storage facilities, EPC of over 2000km gas pipelines, EPC of gas processing facilities, EPC of gas metering and monitoring system and Fabrication of pipes.

According to him, downstream value chain offered opportunities for investment in LPG bottling and marketing, Investment in gas-based industries (Fertilizer, Methanol, Petrochemicals, CNG stations and conversion workshop), EPC of fertilizer and petrochemical plants, manufacturing of LPG cylinders/accessories.

Baru added that the Nigerian gas sector remained the largest and most vibrant in sub-Saharan Africa with lots of potentials, especially in the deep water and untapped gas resources.

He averred that the gas reform was anchored on a robust strategic framework that is focused on maximum economic impact through gas, saying that it aims to drive linkages with agriculture, manufacturing and dispersed small enterprise through power.

Earlier, Dada Thomas, the president of NGA, Mr. stated that for the Nigerian economy to achieve its full potential there must be power anchored on gas development through active private sector participation.