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NNPC CFO Umar Ajiya revealed this during the Gastech conference in Houston on Thursday.
According to NNPC, Brass LNG and OK LNG are two LNG projects with the potential to provide Nigeria with “manifold” economic benefits.
The multi-billion dollar projects were, however, stalled due to “unfavourable market dynamics and slow decision-making by the political class in the past.”
“In the past, gas prices went down, the economics of the projects meant a high capital expenditure (CAPEX) and this was a disincentive for investors and partners,” Ajiya said.
“Also, there was slow decision-making by the political class,” he said.
The CFO said there are abundant gas resources in many parts of the world and therefore, the earlier Nigeria makes smart decisions to bring partners to the table, the better.
Ajiya commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his support in driving new projects in the industry through the executive orders on oil and gas reforms.
“We are also happy to have the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has provided fiscal incentives for investors and is creating the enabling environment that has rekindled hope in the energy sector,” he said.
Brass and Olokola LNG projects
The two LNG projects, which were announced about 20 years ago, are reportedly worth about $30 billion.
According to Eni’s website, the Brass LNG JV was incorporated in 2003 by NNPC, ConocoPhilips, TotalEnergies, and Eni.
ConocoPhillips divested from Nigeria in 2014.
The plans included building two LNG trains each with a capacity of 5 mtpa .
Also, the Brass LNG project in Nigeria’s Bayelsa State included two LNG storage tanks and LPG and condensate storage facilities.
The Olokola LNG project in Ogun State originally started in 2005.
BG, now part of Shell, and Chevron withdrew from the project, leaving only NNPC.
The plans for this project included a facility with about 12.5 mtpa capacity.
NNPC’s LNG business
NNPC has a 49 percent stake in Nigeria LNG, the operator of the six-train 22 mtpa facility on Bonny Island.
Besides NNPC, other partners are Shell (25.6 percent), TotalEnergies (15 percent), and Eni (10.4 percent).
Nigeria LNG is also adding the seventh production unit at the Bonny Island plant.
The NLNG Train 7 project consists of the construction of one complete LNG train and one additional liquefaction unit. The project also includes other associated utilities and infrastructures.
The new unit will add around 8 mtpa of capacity to the Bonny Island facility for a total of about 30 mtpa.
In addition to onshore projects, NNPC is also working on FLNG projects.
NNPC and Golar LNG are working on a floating LNG project offshore Nigeria’s Niger Delta, while NNPC also has a 20 percent stake in UTM Offshore, which is developing Nigeria’s first FLNG project.
In addition, NNPC recently started delivering LNG cargoes to Japan and China on a delivered ex-ship basis.
The company’s unit, NNPC Shipping, intends to build a shipping portfolio, including owned vessels.
NNPC is also working on LNG fueling stations for vehicles in Nigeria.
