Abuja goes for gas, again
Nigeria has long tried to develop a domestic gas market. The Buhari administration is trying again
Nigeria's cabinet has approved a new National Gas Policy—news that, to many observers, might prompt a shrug. Successive governments have promise, and failed, to stimulate investment in the country's under-exploited gas resources for nearly as long as its hydrocarbons industry has been in existence. This time, it might just lead to more than empty rhetoric. Nigeria has gas reserves of around 187 trillion cubic feet—the world's ninth-largest endowment—but produces only around 1.7 trillion cf annually, most of which goes to the 22m-tonnes-a-year Nigeria LNG export plant. Failure to incentivise gas exploration, invest in infrastructure and botched efforts by previous administrations to privatise
Also in this section
24 January 2025
Domestic companies in Nigeria and other African jurisdictions are buying assets from existing majors they view as more likely to deliver production upside under their stewardship
23 January 2025
The end of transit, though widely anticipated, leaves Europe paying a third more for gas than a year ago and greatly exposed to supply shocks
23 January 2025
The country’s government and E&P companies are leaving no stone unturned in their quest to increase domestic crude output as BP–ONGC tie-up leads the way
22 January 2025
The return of Donald Trump gives further evidence of ‘big oil’ as an investable asset, with the only question being whether anyone is really surprised