NLNG to increase cooking gas supply, crash price
Determined to tackle gas shortages in the country, the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) has unveiled plans to reduce its Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), otherwise known as cooking gas, exports in order to increase supply to the domestic market and crash the soaring price.
Managing Director, NLNG, Philip Mshelbila, who disclosed this at the yearly conference of the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) in Lagos, said NLNG is now increasing supply to the domestic market to 450,000 mt per annum, from 250,000mt per year earlier supplied.
He said: “As part of the measures to support the Federal Government’s efforts to deepen domestic gas supply and economic growth, Nigeria LNG is reducing LPG exports and increasing supplies to the domestic market. NLNG is now increasing supply to the domestic market to 450,000 mt per annum.”
NLNG, a venture involving the state-owned NNPC and Shell, Eni and TotalEnergies, produces around 7 million mt/year of LPG (propane and butane) from the six trains.
To meet the rise in supply volume, NLNG said it had increased the number of off-takers to 43 from the initial six contracted in 2007.
Managing Director, Shell Nigeria Gas, Ed Ubong, said while much of the gas from the Shell-operated Gbaran-Ubie field, which produces about 864 MMcf/d of gas, is for export, the company is building infrastructure to deliver the gas to local industries.
“Shell is investing in a gas portfolio that will increase supply for Nigerian and international customers via an expanding network of plants, pipelines and export terminals,” Ubong said.
Managing Director, Seplat Petroleum, Roger Brown, said the company supplies a third of the gas that goes into power generation in the country, assuring that the company is vigorously working in line with the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas agenda.
