FG moves to complete Brass LNG project, 17 years after
By Fredrick Wright
The Federal Government has assured that it would complete the multi-billion-dollar Brass Liquefied Natural Gas project that has been abandoned over 17 years ago.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, said the government was looking for investors to revive the stalled gas project.
He spoke during an inspection of the project site in Twon Brass, Bayelsa State, according to a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday by his media aide, Horatius Egua.
The minister, who inspected the Brass LNG site with the management of Greenville LNG, an interested investor in the Brass project, said the Federal Government was desirous of completing the project because of the manifold economic benefits it would bring to the nation.
The Brass LNG, which has trained 1-4 concept, with an annual projected capacity of 8.4 million metric tonnes.
The gas project was initiated in 2005 with the groundbreaking ceremony performed by former President Olusegun Obasanjo on May 14, 2007.
Sylva was joined on the tour of the project site by the Chairman and Managing Director of Greenville LNG, Eddy Van Den Broeke, and Ritu Sahajwalla, respectively.
The petroleum minister said the Federal Government would give the project top priority because of its present policy thrust in gas exploration across the country.
He was quoted as saying, “You know the direction of the government as far as gas is concerned. We want to use gas as a transition fuel and also to use it to diversify our economy.
“You know that with gas you can get so many things and I have said that we can truly diversify our economy through the gas.”
Sylva acknowledged the challenges faced in successfully executing the project in the past and noted that the government would do everything possible to encourage Greenville LNG to invest in the multi-billion dollar Brass LNG project.
“We want this project to pull through this time and we will do everything possible to ensure that the Final Investment Decision is taken as soon as possible,” he stated.
The minister added, “Greenville LNG is a major player in this sector and we know that they are committed to ensuring that the takeoff of this project is achieved.
“We will continue to discuss and offer the necessary incentives to get this project off the ground.”
Meanwhile, Sylva urged western nations to shore up their investments in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria, lamenting that the speed at which investments were pulled out of the country in the past hampered the growth of the oil sector.
“We are calling for more investments in the hydrocarbon sector of the economy, especially in gas. We are encouraging companies interested in gas to do so. We have enough gas reserves in the country and we are encouraging anyone with the capacity to bring in their investments,” he stated.
The statement stated that the current investors in the Brass LNG project include the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited, Eni, and Total.
