By EMMANUELLA ANOKAM

The Federal Government says the National Economic Council (NEC) has approved N185 billion to settle validated legacy debts owed to upstream gas producers.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Dr Ekperikpe Ekpo, disclosed this at a news conference on Friday in Abuja.

Ekpo said settling the debts would improve gas supply to power plants and strengthen investor confidence in Nigeria’s gas sector.

“This is not merely about settling debt. It is about restoring commercial discipline, improving supply reliability and rebuilding investor confidence,” he said.

The minister said the approval was aimed at restoring commercial discipline and improving reliability across the gas-to-power value chain.

On infrastructure, Ekpo said the OB3 Gas Pipeline was 100 per cent complete, with pre-commissioning concluded ahead of first gas.

He said the pipeline had capacity to transport two billion cubic feet of gas daily (BCF/D).

According to him, the project is expected to unlock more than 500 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscf/D) of additional domestic gas supply.

Ekpo said the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline was about 95 per cent complete.

He added that the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF), with N671 billion in public funding, had attracted N1.6 trillion in private investment.

The Minister said the funding covered 31 projects and 205 infrastructure assets, capable of delivering about 475 MMscf/D to the domestic market.

Ekpo said the Federal Government was targeting about 30 billion dollars in gas investment by 2030.

He said Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) conversions had risen from about 11,000 vehicles in 2023 to more than 120,000.

The government, he added, was targeting at least one million CNG-powered vehicles and up to 1,000 refuelling stations nationwide.

Ekpo said the government was also targeting five million households for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) access by 2030.

He said distribution of 27,000 free LPG cylinders per state was already underway as part of efforts to expand cleaner cooking energy access.

The Minister said President Bola Tinubu had approved extending the National Grassroots LPG Penetration Programme to 2060.

He said the extension would provide a long-term pathway for wider adoption of cleaner cooking energy across the country.

On gas flaring, Ekpo said 42 companies had been awarded contracts to convert flare gas into energy, feedstock, LPG, CNG and power.

He said the government would sustain regulatory and commercial measures to end routine gas flaring by 2030.

Ekpo said Nigeria’s gas agenda was anchored on raising production, expanding infrastructure and attracting investment.

He added that the agenda included improving gas supply to the power sector and ensuring producing communities benefited from the sector.

The Minister said Nigeria would also use its growing role in international energy organisations to advocate increased gas investment.

He said the country would promote transparent markets, affordable energy access and a just energy transition. (NAN)

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