Nigeria LNG, the operator of the 22 mtpa Bonny Island plant, has held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the construction start on the seventh production unit.
To remind, Nigeria LNG awarded the engineering, procurement and construction deal in May last year to a joint venture led by Italy’s Saipem, South Korea’s Daewoo E&C and Chiyoda of Japan.
The new unit will add around 8 mtpa of production capacity to the Bonny Island facility, boosting the plant’s output by 35 percent.
Speaking during the groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, Nigeria LNG’s managing director Tony Attah said the $10 billion expansion project would create 12,000 direct jobs.
Moreover, he said the project would also further the development of local capacity and businesses through the 100 percent in-country execution of construction works, fabrications and major procurement.
In addition, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari said via a video call that Nigeria LNG has generated $114 billion in revenues over the years, paid $9 billion in taxes but also $18 billion in dividends to the government.
“As we flag off the Train 7 project today, I look forward to the development and execution of more gas projects by the IOCs and indigenous operators, and more trains from Nigeria LNG,” he said.
Nigeria LNG is a venture compromising of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (49%), Shell (25.6%), Total (15%) and Eni (10.4%).