… as Train 7 project gets underway, NCDMB, NLNG hold EPC contract kick-off meeting
The need to harness Nigeria’s gas by tackling some of the barriers, including passing a regulatory framework for the upstream sector and the launch of the Nigerian gas transportation code to further drive gas-based have been stressed.
The Managing Director and Chief Executing Officer, Nigeria LNG Limited, Tony Attah, said increasing Nigeria’s presence in the global LNG market, which serves as an opportunity to harness the gas for domestic consumption, has long been discussed by industry stakeholders.
This call is coming as the Train 7 project is set to commence in earnest as the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Nigerian LNG Limited held the kick-off meeting of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) components of the project.
Attah noted that Nigeria is currently faced with challenges such as gas pricing for the domestic market, limited infrastructure for distribution and a commercially-viable market.
He said: “The FID for Train 7 and award of its EPC contract is very reassuring, as it renews our hope that Nigeria LNG will maintain a significant market share in the global gas market and will continue to reap the potential benefits in the market.
“Whilst a quick switch to renewables and other cleaner energy sources is desirable, current data indicates that the practical reality is that it cannot be achieved on a global scale as quickly as many parties are pushing for.
“We must, therefore, find a way to bridge the gap between where we are today, and where we desire to be. This is the role that gas is expected to play in the medium and long-term.”
Attah said there are vast opportunities available in Nigeria’s huge gas reserves in comparison to crude, and other prospects the Train 7 project will offer the country.
“We have proven 200 tcf of gas, and we have another 600 tcf that we know about but need to prove under the SEC rules. Today, as number 9 in the world in terms of gas reserves, if you prove the 600, you go straight away to number 4, ahead of Turkmenistan.”
“For me, that is a major, major opportunity to really jumpstart the sector. A lot depends on the fiscals and how the government is able to incentivise gas development, which must happen.”
Attah said in addition to increasing the country’s footprints in the Global LNG market through the execution of Train 7, Nigeria LNG has also concluded plans to take advantage of opportunities to develop a domestic gas market and spur gas-based industrialisation.
“We are currently looking at bringing LNG in-country. With the global market dwindling, we see very high demand for gas and other forms of energy in Nigeria, and indeed in Africa. As you know, more than 50 per cent of the population that does not have access to energy in the world is in Africa.
“So, the domestic LNG project that we are looking at is to be piloted in Nigeria and then we will go regional and then look at Africa as a whole. It’s a project that’s already on. As we speak, there are a few people that have already indicated interest, and we are working with them to see how much capacity they are able to develop to make this real.
“We have just established that the price is no longer within anybody’s forecasts, view or control, we perhaps have a future where we have to be a market maker for this to be able to have the essence of the full value chain coming to fruition in-country.
In a related development, The Executive Secretary NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote in his goodwill message described the NLNG Train-7 project as record-breaking, noting that the journey had been marked with many firsts, particularly in methodology, stakeholder awareness and participation and speed of completion of the regulatory approvals by the Board.
He further described the signing of the Train-7 contract in the middle of COVID-19 as a global record, adding that it gave Nigerians the must-needed boost in the midst of the current challenging times.
He challenged the lead contractors – Saipem, Chiyoda and Daewoo (SCD) joint venture and subcontractors to set Nigerian Content records during the project implementation phase.
He insisted that “we must not just limit ourselves to the Nigerian Content levels contained the Nigerian Content Plan (NCP) and the Nigerian Content Compliance Certificate (NCCC).
