Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a national gas policy that aims to reduce the country’s dependence on crude oil by increasing gas exploration and facilities.
The policy was passed at FEC’s meeting last week, but only made public on Wednesday.
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, represented by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, stated this at the 2017 National Conference of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) in Abuja.
He said that gas presented a new horizon of opportunities for the country, adding that unless the country can build the twin engine of earnings between petroleum and gas, it is not likely to see an improvement in its economy, or see opportunities that a lot of people are beginning to miss in terms of job opportunities in the oil sector.
“What are the new horizons for opportunities? Gas, obviously, is item one. There is so much happening that needs to happen; that should have happened yesterday and must begin to happen now in the gas field.”
“Gas is a future for this country. Whether it is an investment that you play in; whether it is supported in terms of staff retooling and retraining that you play, whether it is providing the infrastructure that you play in; gas is the place to be, and we need to begin to look at that.”
Nigeria has the world’s ninth largest proven gas reserves, at 187 trillion cubic feet. A move to using gas could reduce the drain on foreign exchange that importing refined oil products require.
If coupled with infrastructure investment, Nigeria could also improve its creaking power grid, which forces many with no power or those plagued by frequent blackouts to operate costly generators.
The 100-page National Gas Policy seeks to set up a single independent petroleum regulator.
It also aims to separate upstream from midstream operations and to separate gas infrastructure ownership and operations from gas trading, the oil ministry said.
The policy will also divide the Nigeria Gas Company into separate transport and gas marketing companies and introduce “market-led wholesale gas pricing” after a transitional period.
Bunmi Banjo
