NLNG Bags Gas Company of the Year Award

Speaking on his vision for NGA, Ubong said the association would continue to promote the utilisation of natural gas as the preferred energy source in Nigeria for the benefit of the nation and the various stakeholders in the Nigerian gas value chain. These include upstream gas producers, transporters, gas-based industries, power generation and distribution companies, virtual pipeline operators, LPG market players, industrial and manufacturing customers and the energy professionals who provide critical support for the sector

“The regulatory framework is a key determinant of success of the gas industry. So, the NGA will continue to work with government and regulators to ensure the right laws are in place to create an enabling environment for the sector to thrive over the next decade. Time is of the essence as the Energy transition is on”, he said.

He described the 2020 council of the NGA as the first council in Nigeria’s decade of gas, and pledged the commitment of NGA under his leadership to work closely with all stakeholders to accelerate gas development and domestic gas utilisation over the next 10 years, in line with the gas ambition of the Federal Government.

Ubong restated that Shell’s investments in the Assa North Gas Project; four unitized gas fields; Brass Fertilizer Company; and the cluster development of Okpokunou/Tuomo West gas project, multiple NLNG trains, were aimed at supporting government’s drive for national development and energy sufficiency.

Incorporated in 1998, Shell Nigeria Gas (SNG) is a fully owned Shell company for the downstream distribution of gas to over 120 industries and manufacturing plants in Nigeria. The company’s over 150-kilometre gas transmission and distribution network serves several distribution systems, including Agbara-Ota industrial cluster in Ogun State, the Aba Cluster in Abia State, and the Port Harcourt Cluster in Rivers State.

The Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) has won the Gas Company of the Year Award at the recently concluded 12th Nigerian Gas Association (NGA) Biennial International Conference and Awards event.

The company made this known in a statement by Dr Sophia Horsfall Manager, head, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, in Abuja, recently.

She said NLNG was recognised for its outstanding contributions to the gas industry in Nigeria.

“This is coming on the heels of the World LNG Summit and Awards in December 2020, where NLNG was adjudged to be one of the two organisations that have made most outstanding contribution to the industry globally,” she said.

She quoted the General Manager, External Relations & Sustainable Development, Mrs. Eyono FatayiWilliams, as saying that the award was a clear validation of the growing relevance and importance of natural gas as a game-changer in Nigeria.

“It is indeed the Decade of Gas. Gas is undoubtedly the future. Gas is cleaner, cheaper, more abundant and the smartest partner to renewables for sustainable development.

“Our success story is a testament to what is possible in this Decade of Gas. This is time for Nigeria to diversify its economy from oil and to fly on the wings of Gas,” she said.

She added that NLNG’s Train 7 would provide about 12 billion dollars in Foreign Direct investment to Nigeria and over 12,000 jobs at the peak of construction.

“Still, even at that, our ambition is to ramp up to Trains 8, 9, 10 and more, with the support of our shareholders and the Federal Government.

“The transformative effect of this increased use of our nation’s abundant gas reserves on its economy will be wholly positive and thoroughly beneficial,” Fatayi-Williams said while receiving the ward.

She stated that the company firmly believes that gas development would translate to more jobs, cleaner and cheaper energy, more industries, more food through fertilizer, cheaper transportation, and a much better quality of life for all Nigerians.

She further commended the NGA for recognising NLNG’s resilience and excellent delivery amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, and dedicated the award to a better and prosperous future for Nigeria.

Leading energy company, The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), has restated commitment to support the Federal Government of Nigeria’s goal of using the country’s proven gas reserves to trigger economic activities for gas-based industrialization.

SPDC’s Managing Director and Country Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria,

Mr. Osagie Okunbor, said Shell’s support is shown in the company’s multi-billion dollars investment in four of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) ‘Seven Critical Gas Development Projects’.

Speaking at the Nigerian Gas Association’s 12th International Conference and Awards, held virtually on February 25, 2021, under the theme,“Powering Forward: Enabling Nigeria’s Industrialization via Gas”, Mr. Okunbor said, “Shell has invested in the Assa North Gas Project; Four Unitised Gas Fields; Brass Fertilizer Company; and the Cluster Development of Okpokunou/Tuomo West (OML 35/62) to support the government’s drive for national development.”.

He said, “I am very happy that NNPC and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board have taken key roles in these projects. These are positive steps.”

He commended the government’s recent progress in gas development and stated support for NNPC’s aspiration to grow domestic gas usage in Nigeria to 5 billion cubic feet of gas per day from its current 1.7 billion cubic feet of gas per day by 2022.

Okunbor said, “Nigeria has launched out on a few audacious and, frankly, great projects to essentially drive our ambition as a country in this regard. Let’s find a way to make sure that we stay the course and begin to put our efforts in a consistent manner towards downstream where our country can get ultimate benefit for gas.”

He counselled for robust engagement in discussions for an agreeable price framework in order to attract investments in the country’s rich gas sector.

“A robust pricing framework would be very helpful to unlock Nigeria’s proven gas reserves, especially for Power, Agriculture and Industrial sectors.”

Okunbor said the current pricing regime does not quite fit the wider framework of what the gas industry does. “We want to incentivize methanol and fertilizer production, which is extremely important, to gear up our agricultural sector but the price regime now in that sector is lower than the kind of prices that you have for supply to the Power sector and industrial establishments”, he said.

“To make domestic gas work, we do need a right price regime. It might just mean that some sectors are supported more than others that can naturally carry themselves. The Petroleum Industry Bill provides that framework.” Okunbor said.

He urged policy makers to strike a careful balance between trying to raise funds – in terms of the kind of taxes and royalties that are put on gas – and understanding that this is actually much more of a resource that drives national development. “Gas is by far more important as a catalyst for development, he said.”

With over 200 trillion cubic feet of gas proven, the world’s 9th largest proven gas reserves, Osagie said Nigeria can satisfy both domestic and export markets of gas if the right policies and processes are put in place and the country continues to drive those policies, processes and gas infrastructure.