President Muhammadu Buhari has flagged off the construction work for Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Train 7 project in Bonny Island, Rivers State.
The long-awaited $10 billion project is expected to add around 8 million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas to NLNG, taking the total to around 30 million tonnes per year. Speaking during the virtual groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, Buhari said the development is “yet another very important milestone in the history of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry”.
Buhari urged the Board of Directors, management and staff of NLNG, the host communities, the Rivers State Government and other agencies of the Federal Government to continue to collaborate to ensure completion and eventual commissioning of the Train 7 project “safely and on time”.
”As we flag off the Train 7 project today, I look forward to the development and execution of more gas projects by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) and indigenous operators, and more Trains from Nigeria LNG to harness the over 600 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves we are endowed with,” Buhari said.
Buhari, who served as minister of petroleum resources during the military regime, said he kicked off Nigeria’s first foray in LNG business in 1978.
On May 13, 2020, NLNG had awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts for the Train 7 project to SCD JV Consortium, comprising affiliates of Saipem, Chiyoda and Daewoo.
“Let me use this opportunity to commend the shareholders of NLNG, the Federal Ministry of Petroleum, NNPC and the NCDMB and other stakeholders for very exemplary collaboration which has culminated in this great opportunity for Train 7,” Buhari said.
The president said the NLNG has earned revenues of $114 billion over the years, paying $39 billion in taxes and $18 billion in dividends to the federal government.
NLNG, a consortium between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Shell, Eni, and Total, signed its final investment decision on the Train 7 processing unit late 2020.
He assured potential investors in the oil and gas sector that the federal government will continue to create an enabling environment in order to develop the sector and bring the full benefits of gas closer to the people.
“I want to thank the foreign investors for the confidence reposed in Nigeria, and assure all Nigerians and potential investors in the Oil and Gas sector that the Federal Government will continue to create the enabling environment in order to develop the sector and bring the full benefits of Gas closer to our people,” he said.
President Buhari recalled that the story of Nigeria LNG was one he had been “passionately associated with during the formative years of the project”.
In his address, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, described NLNG as a ”blessing to the nation”, noting that it has positively complemented crude oil exploration by monetising flared gas and yielding huge revenue to the nation and investors.
Sylva added that since NLNG became operational in 1999, the nation has recorded a drastic reduction in operational flare status from 65 per cent to 12 per cent.
”I boldly say that the groundbreaking of Train 7 is a guarantee to every stakeholder of more dividends in terms of further reduction in gas flaring, more revenue to the nation and shareholders, more job opportunities especially at the construction phase and more social investments for the society, ” he said.
