President Muhammadu Buhari says Nigeria has moved a step closer to the nation’s dream of fully utilising its abundant gas potential.
The president said this on Tuesday at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa while inaugurating the Integrated Gas Handling Facility and LPG Processing and Dispensing Plants.
The plant was built and operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, an Upstream Subsidiary of NNPC in Oredo, Edo.
According to him, the Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility and its associated NGLs depot will be delivering 240,000 metric tons of commercial grades Liquefied Petroleum Gas and Propane.
He added that the facility would also deliver about 205 million standard cubic feet per day of lean gas to the domestic market.
“In addition to its import substitution benefits that brings us a step closer to self-sufficiency in LPG production and also supporting the growth of small and medium enterprises in the host communities, this project will create hundreds of direct and indirect employment opportunities for our teeming youths (both skilled and unskilled).
“Apart from being the largest onshore LPG plant in Nigeria with the potential of supplying about 20 per cent of Nigeria’s LPG demand, the Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility was carefully situated at a corridor proximate to more than 80 per cent of Nigeria’s LPG demand source,” he added.
The president said that the project was a follow-up to the commitment of the administration toward making 2020 as “Nigeria’s Year of the Gas’’.
“At the turn of the year 2020, this administration made solemn declarations to the Nigerian public over its plans to expand the gas sector footprints by scaling-up the development and utilisation of Nigeria’s abundant natural gas resources.
“To help spur industrialisation, provide clean and efficient energy for transportation and household use while increasing our exports into the international market.
“It is on the backdrop of this commitment that the Year 2020 was dedicated and embodied as Nigeria’s Year of Gas.
“Since then, we have followed through with actions that have translated those plans into tangible projects with monumental value additions to the Nigerian Economy.
“We accomplished key gas infrastructure projects like the OB3 and ELPS 2 and flagged-off the Construction Phase of the 614 km AKK Pipeline Project,” he added.
The president noted that it was not a coincidence that the completion and inauguration of the aforementioned gas infrastructure projects this year followed the wrap-up of Year 2019 with the Final Investment Decision (FID) for NLNG Train 7.
“We are exiting Year 2020 with yet another milestone of commissioning the Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility LPG Processing and Dispensing Plants which will also support the on-going drive toward providing alternative auto fuel under the National Gas Expansion Program initiative.”
Earlier, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, noted that the project highlighted the commitment of NNPC in eliminating gas flares while increasing Nigeria’s value realisation from gas.
According to Sylva, the entire LPG and propane production is targeted at the Nigerian market.
He said this further affirmed the conscious efforts of NNPC and the Nigerian government in growing its participation in the LPG value chain to boost domestic supply, lower prices and deepen LPG penetration to safeguard the nation’s environment.
The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mele Kyari, said the president’s clear directive to the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the NNPC was “we must deepen domestic gas utilisation and monetisation.
“We must also provide a platform where Nigerians can benefit from the enormous gas supplies that we have so that job and prosperity can be created and by implication, bring peace to the country.”
He added that the facility was designed, constructed and delivered with the highest application of Nigerian content. (NAN)
