‘20 gas projects to accelerate Nigeria’s energy transition’

The Director, Decade of Gas Secretariat, Dr. Ed Ubong , has stated that investments are ongoing on priority gas projects that can unlock about 4.6 BCF in incremental supply to accelerate Nigeria’s transition into clean energy by 2030. Speaking during the Nigeria International Pipeline Technology & Security Conference in Abuja, Ubong said the secretariat’s goal […]

The Director, Decade of Gas Secretariat, Dr. Ed Ubong , has stated that investments are ongoing on priority gas projects that can unlock about 4.6 BCF in incremental supply to accelerate Nigeria’s transition into clean energy by 2030.

Speaking during the Nigeria International Pipeline Technology & Security Conference in Abuja, Ubong said the secretariat’s goal is to transform natural gas from a resource of promise into a driver of national developments.

He stated that while Nigeria is blessed with abundant gas reserves, the full potential of the reserves can only be realized through effective evacuation, distribution and market linkage.

 

 

 

To achieve this, Ubong said pipeline infrastructure is the physical backbone of the decade of gas and serves as a difference between gas in the ground and gas in the economy.

 

 

 

“Without it, production remains stranded, industries remain under supplied, and our vision of energy led industrialization remains deferred. The decade of gas initiative was conceived to reposition gas as a transition fuel that would become the very foundation of our economic transformation. As we progress through this critical decade, the imperative is clear that we must build robust pipeline systems that connect our gas supply to demand, but also connect ambition to opportunities both for this decade and beyond.”

 

 

 

He added that the success of Nigeria’s energy transition depends on the strength, resilience and reliability of pipeline infrastructure as it is the heart of the gas economy.

 

 

 

“With all of this in mind, and like you have been told, we have started to unlock supply and we’ve identified 20 priority gas projects that can unlock about 4.6 BCF in incremental supply.

 

 

 

“And we’ve started very recently doing the same on the demand side, so we’re looking at the priority demand projects that will be the sink for those supply projects. So for us at the Decade of Gas, we understand the criticality of the pipelines that connect these two efforts.

 

 

 

“They connect production fields to processing plants, industries, power stations and export terminals. At the upstream end, pipelines connect fields on processing plants, improving flow assurance and encouraging more producers to bring gas to market.”

 

 

 

He added that the government is given priority to the the Ajaokuta- Kaduna-Kano Gas Pipeline, the OB3 and ELPS expansion to ensure gas from operators get delivered to off-takers in the western and northern parts of the country and beyond.

 

 

 

On his part, the Chairman of Pipeline Professional Association of Nigeria (PLAN), Engr Geoff  Onuoha, said its role as professionals  is to make sure that Nigeria has  robust, sturdy, and well-maintained pipeline system.

 

 

 

“And when we say robust, it means from design, to construction, to operation, to maintenance, and also to decommissioning, when the time comes for that.  We are building a robust pipeline system for decades of gas and beyond. And we don’t want to limit it only to decades of gas, because decade of gas is only a portion of the industry that is served by pipelines. And we’re thinking of beyond, going beyond 2030, when the decade of gas ends.”