Guardian Fresh vista for industrial revolution through gas WEDNESDAY, 21 AUGUST 2013 00:00 FROM COLLINS OLAYINKA, ABUJAFEATURES - FOCUS DESPITE the hues and cries over gas flaring by multinational oil firms in the Niger Delta, it appears much has not been achieved in reducing the menace. Specifically, it appears the allure of converting this commodity to usable item does not appeal to these firms. While countries in the developed economies make good use of gas, Nigeria, perhaps remains the only oil producing country, which has failed to utilize the commodity for its industrial revolution. Indeed, time was in Nigeria when gas flaring was as high as 35 per cent. Indeed, various governments did set time lines for gas flaring reduction but those time lines were never adhere to. In most developed economies, gas has assumed the driver of industrial growth, a source of boosting employment generation and serve as a base for the promotion of clean and green environment. Gas has indeed proven to be a one-swipe tool that can revolutionise a country as the product can also be used to generate electricity to power fast trains, source of power for the industrial sector and also power cars. However, recent events suggest a silver lining in the horizong as for the first time ever, Nigeria hit 1.5trillion cubic feet per day of gas production. The Group Executive Director of Gas and Power of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. David Ige, who told The Guardian, recently added that another 300 million cubic feet per day stranded in the East is yet to be evacuated. This disclosure may not sit well with most Nigerians who belief that the reported increase in gas production that should impact positively on power generation has not had the desired effect as electricity production has remained erratic. Ige attempted an explanation to this paradox: “The generation of power is not a standalone thing. It involves generation, transmission and distribution. I can talk clearly on the gas supply side. If you look at the progression over the last two years, we have significantly increased gas production. In fact, at the moment domestic gas production in Nigeria is at all-time high. We are now producing about 1.5bilion cubic feet per day of gas, which is the highest the country has ever produced. Apart from this, we have another 300 million that is available in the East that is not utilized now. So, our gas development is actually on the increase and it is the most aggressive rate. We have grown about 200 percent year-on-year.” Ige, however, blamed the epileptic power supply in the country on failure to evacuate gas that has been produced. He added that even as supply continually chase demand, stakeholders are also taking steps to increase gas generation to meet the anticipated increase in transmission and distribution of power. “The generation capacity is growing everyday because stakeholders are bringing in new turbines. However, I can say for sure that our current gas availability is not enough for all the generating capacity that is being built and we recognize that. At any point in time, demand is going to be ahead of supply because demand is puling supply. Right now, the inability of Nigeria to have stable power supply is not as a result of unavailability of gas but the distribution challenges we are still grappling with. Generation is far ahead of distribution and transmission,” he explained. Ige revealed that plan is also underway to bring additional 130million cubic feet per day aimed at achieving two billion cubic feet per day over the next two years. He hinted that Nigeria is on strong footing to generate, transmit and distribute 4.5 gigawatts of electricity if all the supply chains are in order. Apart from achieving the enviable 1.5 trillion cubic feet per day of gas, efforts are also in top gear to further diversify the use of gas to include the introduction of compressed natural gas for vehicular needs. Speaking in Abuja recently, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, said the plan is part of the aggressive steps to grow gas production and make it the epicentre of the national economy. Her words: “Through the NNPC Joint Venture with NIPCO, Compressed Natural Gas for vehicular use has grown with the pilot initiative in Benin City, Edo State. Over 2000 cars now run on natural gas in Benin and many more get converted daily. There are six gas filling stations in the city and the most dominant users are commercial taxi drivers. The impact on their daily economics has been significant and the expansion in subscription of new conversions has been by word of mouth to fellow taxi drivers. It is intended to now expand this initiative across the country, reducing the cost of transportation whilst at the same time enhancing the quality of the environment,” she said. She explained that in order to achieve the aggressive drive, government is taking steps to drastically reduce gas flaring. The Minister hinted that efforts at reducing gas flaring is beginning to yield fruits as gas flaring as a percentage of gas produced has reduced progressively from about 28 per cent in 2009 to 15 per cent in 2012. According to her, gas to non-power sector almost doubled from 185mmcf/d to 357mmcf/d, providing feedstock that has supported the recent aggressive growth in the nation’s cement sector as well as other manufacturing companies. And as the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) continued to build more gas pipeline infrastructure, indigenous companies that run on natural gas are expected to join the 200 that are powered by natural gas. Alison-Madueke also hinted that the contract for the vital 120km East-West gas pipeline crossing the River Niger has been awarded and is progressing with a target completion time of 2015. “Engineering work is almost complete and the contractors have mobilized significant construction equipment to site ahead of commencement of construction works by October. This pipeline creates a major linkage between the huge gas reserves in the Eastern Niger Delta and other parts of the country. When completed, evolving shortfalls in gas supply to power in the Western area will be adequately and permanently mitigated with excess flows from the East via this critical pipeline,” she stressed. While describing the Calabar-Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kano pipeline as a final element of government infrastructure expansion, she revealed that major engineering review of the 1000km pipeline has now been concluded and plans under way to jumpstart this pipeline by the end of the year or early 2014, which is intended to open up gas access to the East and Northern part of Nigeria. She added: “Over $600m is expected to be deployed from Eurobonds being issued by the Ministry of Finance to jumpstart this pipeline by year end. By end 2015, gas access to Abuja should have been established and Kaduna/Kano thereafter, opening up the Northern half of the nation for industrial revitalization.” According to her, the gas supplies emergency initiative fast tracked gas supply additions. She named some of the key achievements to include major upgrade and repair works at the Utorogu/Ughelli gas plants resulting in addition of over 100mmcf/d, Oredo gas plant was completed, commissioned and added 100mmcf/d of gas, whilst upgrade works at Escravos also resulted in additional 190mmcf/d. She hinted that the Emergency Initiative is still on going and additional 150mmcf/d is expected by the end of the year. The former President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Olumuyiwa Ajibola, decried lack of attention successive governments have given to gas utilization. He ascribe the non-development of gas to policy somersaults of government as well as choosing the easy way out of simply relying on petrol-dollar the country generate from oil exploration to sustain the national economy. To him, the blame goes well beyond government neglect of gas development but also include the non-involvement of Nigerian professionals in the gas revolution of the present government. He argued that for gas to be developed to a sustain manner, ‘charity must begin at home’. His argument: “We must believe in the people that are here. It is the efforts of Nigerians that are would develop Nigeria. If we have to bring in foreigners, which we indeed have to because we do not have the necessary manpower here. We need to have a programme, which will enable us to be in control within a certain time frame. We cannot afford to open our doors to foreigners without control and that is why we have the Nigerian content in the oil and gas sector. But we need to practice the local content properly that will enable us get maximum benefits from our resources. Engineers are bound everywhere in Nigeria with many of them not doing anything. Not because they are ill qualified or inexperience but because there is no recognition for Nigerian engineers to show their capabilities. We have to challenge ourselves as a nation. We have to find some mutually beneficial relationships with other countries that will enable us rediscover ourselves and in the process take ownership of our industries.” Ajibola hinted that indeed government has deployed gas to some industries in Lagos state, but expressed worry about the capacity to sustain the initiative. He said the NSE, which is an umbrella body for all Nigerian engineers was not consulted nor involved in the President Goodluck Jonathan’s Gas Revolution Initiative. He added: “When I was President of NSE, we wrote to the presidency requesting a meeting with government on how we can advice on where and how we can contribute to the Transformation Agenda of the President but never got an invitation until I left. We have not been involved because we have not been invited. There is too much emphasis on Nigerians in the Diaspora and foreigners. There are so many of us who are experts in gas development and technology but we are not involved in all of these efforts in our country.”
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 07:28:26 +0000
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