This article makes a strong case for the establishment of a Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Federal Government of Nigeria. This is in order for Nigeria to harness to the fullest the 35 years window of opportunity Nigeria’s 2060 net zero emission target presents for the maximum development of its gas resources for power generation, industrialisation and household utilisation. The article is a follow-up on the previous two articles titled, “Upping the ante of Nigeria’s gas ambition” (part 1) and (part 2), which reviewed the impressive progress made in the last 30 months in the implementation of the Decade of Gas initiative, particularly the completion/near completion of three major gas pipeline projects and the imminent completion of the NLNG Train 7 in the first quarter of 2026 and subsequent commissioning later in the year. The articles recommended a radically revised and upgraded 10-year gas development plan terminating in 2035 targeting the production of 20 billion cubic feet/day (bcf/d) as against 7.5 bcf/d) in 2025.
To be certain, there exists an office of a Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas). In effect what this article is recommending is the upgrade of that office to a Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation. ‘Gas development and gas industrialisation’ perhaps aptly describes the portfolio of the extant Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), but creating a full-fledged ministry enhances both the mandate and capacity of the ministry to drive Nigeria’s gas ambition with a tremendously more mission-driven focus to transform Nigeria into a gas-driven economy. This will ensure that Nigeria’s gas export earnings double that of oil exports within a record predetermined timeframe, given that Nigeria has twice as much crude-oil-equivalent proven gas deposits as crude oil deposits.
The overall goal of Nigeria’s gas ambition as contained in the Decade of Gas (DoG) initiative is to rapidly develop Nigeria’s enormous proven gas reserves of over 210 trillion standard cubic feet (tscf) for domestic consumption and industrialization; and export, making the country a major gas producer, a major domestic gas consumer and a major gas exporter. Thus, the overarching mandate of the proposed Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation will be to vigorously pursue accelerated development of the gas sector for rapid domestic adoption/consumption and industrialization; and rapid expansion of gas export.
Gas industrialization in Nigeria’s context is the strategic orchestration of the development of its enormous gas assets for gas-based industrialization: rapidly expanding the use of natural gas for power generation, use of gas as cleaner and cheaper energy for manufacturing and industrialization, including the use of natural gas as feedstock for more fertilizer plants, petrochemical plants, methanol plants and smaller scale LNG plants for domestic utilisation; and more large scale liquefaction (LNG) plants including floating LNG (FLNG) plants for rapid expansion of natural gas exports to more quickly diversify Nigeria’s export earnings away from crude oil export revenue. This will require a huge nationwide gas pipeline infrastructure backbone. The Nigerian Morocco Gas Pipeline Project for the export of Nigerian gas is expected to materialise in stages over a period of two decades.
The following are justifications for a Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation:
• Nigeria currently produces only 1% to 1.5% of its proven gas reserves, which is the 8th largest in the world. This means Nigeria’s gas sector is grossly underdeveloped and needs radical transformation.
• Nigeria has the 8th largest proven gas deposits globally but is the 15th largest gas producer in the world.
• Nigeria is more of a gas country than crude oil, with twice as much crude-oil-equivalent gas deposits as crude oil deposits, but crude oil, not gas, has been Nigeria’s primary source of export revenue, with crude oil contributing 80% to 90% more foreign exchange than gas.
• Natural gas is Nigeria’s chosen energy transition fuel, so Nigeria needs to maximise and optimise its benefits from its immense gas deposits within the window of opportunity of 35/34 years before its net zero emission commitment kicks in by 2060.
• The criticality of accelerated gas development to unleashing Nigeria’s economic potential with regard to the $1 trillion gross domestic product (GDP) aspiration by 2030 cannot be overemphasized.
• Nigeria needs a more globally visible focal point for accelerated gas investment and development.
• If Nigeria can create a Ministry of Livestock Development where a Ministry of Agriculture already exists, so could it also establish a separate Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation, alongside the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The following are the objectives the proposed Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation will seek to achieve:
• Position and develop the Nigerian gas sector, for optimal result results, as separate and distinct from, though closely related to, the crude oil sector.
• Prepare a 10-year strategic development plan (2026-2035) and a 25-year perspective plan (2026-2060) for the Nigerian gas sector.
• Set achievable timelines for Nigeria to raise the percentage of gas production to proven gas reserves from the current 1%-1.5% to 5%; and to 10%, respectively.
• Continue to improve on the fiscal framework and business/investment environment of the Nigerian oil and gas sectors, working in collaboration with other ministries, departments and agencies of government to make Nigeria’s oil and gas sectors globally competitive.
• Develop business cases for investments in the entire gas development and commercialization value chains in Nigeria in collaboration with relevant agencies in the oil and gas sectors and other stakeholders including oil and gas sector professional and trade bodies, investor groups, financial institutions, local and international oil and gas companies in Nigeria, international oil and gas organizations and agencies including the International Energy Agency (IEA), the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) and the African Energy Council (AEC) and local and international NGOs.
• Identify specific gas plants and gas related plants (gas processing plants, small local LNG plants for domestic utilisation, large scale liquefaction/LNG/FLNG plants for exports, fertilizer plants, petrochemical plants, methanol plants, among others.
• Create gas-based industrial parks or provide the framework for private sector investment in gas-based industrial parks nationwide.
• Develop a 10-year and 25-year national gas infrastructure master plans, both upstream major gas pipelines and downstream pipe distribution networks to industrial zones, industrial/commercial clusters and homes/residential estates.
• Facilitate and encourage hosting of local gas investment conferences and forums.
• Attend international gas conferences and undertake annual or biannual international gas investment road shows
This list is by no means exhaustive.
The proposed Ministry of Gas Development and Industrialisation will in essence be the Nigerian gas sector development and investment promotion agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria. As such, it will of necessity need to adopt a less bureaucratic and more proactive, project development/management and investment promotion operational framework and accompanying ethos/core values.
If this proposal makes any sense to the Federal Government of Nigeria, then the President may need to reconsider and relinquish his position as Minister of Petroleum Resources and consider appointing two substantive ministers: a Minister of Petroleum Resources; and a Minister of Gas Development and Industrialization.
• Mr. Igbinoba is Team Lead/CEO at ProServe Options Consulting, Lagos
