Gas
GAS:OBJ throws weight behind CNG,LPG utilization in Nigeria
Yemie ADEOYE
IN a bid to embraced utilization of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in the country, the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has urged the Federal Government to promote CNG and LPG in order to save money for the country.
Obasanjo gave the advise during a courtesy visit by the management of NIPCO Plc to Obasanjo Hiltop Estate in Abeokuta to show case some vehicles running on CNG and LPG and the needs for government to promote use of CNG as vehicular fuel.
NAN reports that CNG is natural gas under pressure which remains clear, odorless, and non-corrosive.
According to Obasanjo , In a bid to promote cleaner environment, the idea why use of CNG was signed during my tenure as the president in 2006 was to develop gas as vehicular source of fuel.
“If other government had promoted the use of LPG and CNG in Nigeria half of the country’s vehicles would have been converted to gas.
“The essence was to provide alternative to Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol at a reduced cost and to boost national socio-economic growth.
Obasanjo said that aside the economic gains, CNG targeted reduction of unfriendly automobile emissions and exposure of Nigerians to the innovation of powering vehicles on gas.
The Managing Director, NIPCO Plc, Mr Venkataraman Venkatapathy said that Nigeria would have saved government over two billion dollars yearly if the use of CNG was promoted in Nigeria.
Venkatapathy, said that globally, the natural gas industry was increasing its focus and effort to support natural gas transport.
He said that the CNG project was between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and NIPCO through a joint-venture scheme called Green Gas Limited.
He explained that the GGL initiative, which is the first of its kind in West Africa, is ushering in a new era of vehicles running on the CNG in Nigeria with its attendant benefits
He said that CNG is a superior auto fuel alternation to liquid fuels mainly petrol and Diesel specially for countries like Nigeria which is blessed with abundant availability of natural gas which remains untapped.
According to him, to replace 20 per cent of current petrol, consumption of Nigeria, Natural gas required is less than five per cent of the total domestic gas consumed currently and less that one of the current gas production.
“This will save the country over two billion dollar yearly on foreign exchange.
“In Benin City, Edo State over 4000 vehicles run on CNG which resulted in replacing 20 million litres of petrol from 2012 to 2015, which also saved over nine million dollars to the country,’’ he said.
The MD said that CNG has more benefits than petrol, adding some of the benefit includes, low operating cost, lower maintenance cost and it reduced harmful vehicle emissions that cause local air pollution.
He said that on mile to mile basis, CNG will be cheaper than petrol by pover 50 per cent and as compaerted to Diesel (on dual fuel mode) it will be over 45 per cent.
Meanwhile, some motorists plying Lagos/Ibadan expressway described CNG powered vehicles as economical, safer, flexible and eco-friendly.
Mr Kazeem Odunayo, a commercial motor driver, said that the conversion of his vehicle to CNG early 2015 had saved him money.
“I converted my bus to gas early this year and I am happy to tell you that I saved up to N 3, 500 daily on my fuel consumption.
“Before now I spent N6, 000 to travel to Ibadan from Lagos but now with just N2, 500, I will travel to Ibadan and come back with ease.”
Mr Sunday Adeyemi, another commercial vehicle driver, said that most of the commercial vehicles operating between Lagos and Ibadan had converted to CNG because of its availability and the economy of scale.
“Most of us here have converted our motors to CNG because of the installment payment created by the company.
“They are aware that we cannot run away once you got converted.
“What we would have used on petroleum is being used to balance our debt; by next month, I would have completed my debt.”
Adeyemi said that he used the availability of CNG in his vehicles during the petrol scarcity to make more money.
“When others did not get petroleum for transportation during the fuel scarcity, I was busy making money because gas was available and cheap,’’ he said.
Announces ambitious expansion plans
Platform Petroleum says the company is targeting a billion-dollar investment as it announces an ambitious strategic plan to bring 3 marginal fields into production by 2025, with a target of 10,000 barrels of oil and at least 50 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 2024 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, USA, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, Chairman of Platform Petroleum said that the company has scheduled a roadshow in London this June 2024 to raise extra funding to finance their ambitious expansion plans.
“The upcoming roadshow aims to attract equity partners and prepare for future opportunities, targeting a billion-dollar investment. We are seeking partners ready to invest in Nigeria’s oil and gas potential.
Our goal is to showcase the country’s vast opportunities and its potential to international investors” Lulu-Briggs said.
Platform Petroleum’s roadshow in London will highlight the company’s efficient production, upgraded flow stations, increased capacity, and achievements in nearly zero emissions.
With about one percent gas flare currently, Platform aims for zero gas flares by the last quarter.
“Nigeria is a vast market, and Platform Petroleum is thinking big. With the government’s ambitious plans, such as the Lagos-Calabar coastal line, Platform is poised for growth; pushing itself to the next level, building on a strong foundation and following Seplat’s successful precedent”, Lulu-Briggs said.
Despite being a small company, he emphasized that Platform Petroleum has demonstrated significant success and efficiency, showcasing that smaller oil and gas entities can indeed achieve remarkable feats adding that he believes that the company deserves recognition and more assets.
“Platform Petroleum is ambitious, aspiring to become a tier-1 company akin to international oil companies (IOCs) or a tier-2 company like Seplat. Interestingly, Seplat originated from Maurel & Prom, Shebah Petroleum, and Platform Petroleum, and today stands as a major player in the industry.
This history underlines Platform’s potential for substantial growth”, Lulu-Briggs said.
Furthermore, the Platform Petroleum Chairman said that the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is a crucial event for promoting Nigeria’s significant market potential.
“Partnering with the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) at OTC is key to attracting investment. The current proactive government understands the necessity for economic growth, and Platform is prepared to leverage every opportunity in the oil and gas industry to contribute to this expansion”, he concluded.
Precious ADELOLA
The NNPC/Aiteo Joint venture has announced the introduction of Nembe Crude Oil Grade, a new crude oil grade into the international crude oil market.
The announcement of the Nembe Crude Oil Blend, produced by Aiteo, the Operator of the NNPC/Aiteo Oil Mining Lease (OML) 29 Joint Venture (JV), was made at the ongoing Argus European Crude Conference in London, on Tuesday.
OML 29, an asset located onshore Nigeria, is operated by Aiteo Eastern Exploration & Production Ltd, Africa’s leading indigenous hydrocarbon producer, following a historic acquisition from Shell in 2014.
NNPCL Boss, Engr. Mele Kyari
The Nembe Crude was previously blended with the popular Bonny Light grade and exported via the Bonny Oil & Gas Terminal.
The unique selling point of the Nembe Crude Oil grade with an API gravity was highlighted by both the Aiteo E & P and NNPC Limited Leadership at the Argus Conference in London.
The Nembe Crude Oil grade also has a low sulphur content and low carbon footprint due to flare gas elimination, fitting perfectly into the required spec of major buyers in Europe.
Two cargoes of 950,000 barrels each of the Nembe Crude Oil grade have since been exported to France and the Netherlands. With its attractive Assay of API 29 and low sulphur content, the Nembe Crude Oil grade commands a premium to the global Brent benchmark.
With the NNPC-Aiteo OML 29 JV back on-stream, Nigeria now boasts of an additional crude oil export of 2 Cargoes at 950,000 barrels each per month and 1.2 Bcf of export gas monthly.
This remarkable achievement signals the commencement of activities at Nigeria’s newest crude oil terminal, the Nembe Crude Oil Export Terminal (NCOET), which was licensed in line with the extant laws and Crude Oil Terminal establishment regulations.
The terminal was conceived as a Floating Storage and Offloading Vessel (FSO) with a storage capacity of two (2) Million Barrels and the ability to offload crude oil to any export tanker from AFRAMAX to Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC).
It has a loading capacity of 25,000 barrels per hour and will be exporting over 3.6 million barrels of Crude oil monthly at full scale of operation.
Currently, hydrocarbon production from OML 29, which was hitherto constrained due to evacuation challenges owing to the security issues around the Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL) corridor, has now been resolved through a collaborative and creative approach that led to the innovation of the Alternative Crude Oil Evacuation Solution.
The Argus European Crude Conference 2023 in London is a gathering of energy majors, refiners, NOCs, traders, financial institutions, and other representatives from across the global oil markets. The event also provides a critical opportunity for business leaders to connect, discuss, share and learn from one another.
Modupe Asudo
Major players in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria led by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) have covenanted to optimise operations by reducing contracting cycle to not more than 180 days.
A statement issued by the company disclosed that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was endorced on Monday in Abuja at the company’s head office.
Other parties to the the contract include, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, (NCDMB) and international oil companies.
Biztellers reports that an optimised contracting cycle was expected to improve the ease of doing business, reduce cost and drive efficiency, which would eventually translate to production growth, increased revenues, and ultimately improved profitability.
In addition, the MoU was expected to contribute significantly to the double-digit economic growth rate agenda of the Federal Government and generate value for all stakeholders, including investors, companies, host communities and Nigeria.
Notable elements in the framework of the MoU, going by the statement, included a reduction of the contracting cycle for open competitive tender, selective tender, and single sourcing tender to 180, 178, and 128 working days respectively.
This was in contrast with the current best effort performance of 327, 333, and 185 working days respectively.
According to Group Chief Executive Officer, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, signing the agreement portends exciting times for Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, in addition to standing as a bold testimony that the company was plunging into the future of hope, productivity and success.
Kyari, represented at the occasion by Executive Vice President, Upstream, NNPCL, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, pointed out that with oil and gas as the bedrock of Nigeria’s economy, there was need to get the contracting process in the Industry right so as to get the economy back on track.
In his remarks, Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Simbi Wabote, described the MoU as a way forward and a critical step towards enhancing the nation’s crude oil production.
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