Expectations are high that the $10 billion Train 7 project of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) would go into operation by the end of 2027.

Managing Director of NLNG, Adeleye Falade, made the disclosure on the side-lines of the Gastech conference, yesterday, in Bangkok, Reuters reported.

This is part of a grand strategy by the company to raise production and address persistent gas supply constraints.

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Train 7 project, located on Bonny Island, Rivers State, is expected to increase NLNG’s production capacity to 30 million metric tonnes per annum (mtpa), from the current 22 mtpa.

The project has suffered repeated delays, including disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.

Falade also disclosed that NLNG remained under a force majeure declared in 2022 following widespread flooding that disrupted gas supplies to the company.

According to him, the company would lift the force majeure when it reaches a 90 per cent utilisation rate, with the plant currently operating at between 82 per cent and 83 per cent.

“We still have a delta of about 15 per cent that we need to close,” Falade said. “Operationally, we are able to do that, but our biggest constraint is gas supply, and we’re working with all the relevant people, including the government, to be able to get more gas to flow into the plant,” he added.

He said NLNG was focused on meeting its existing contractual obligations to buyers while the company worked to increase production.

Falade added that interest in additional LNG volumes and spot cargoes had increased after exports through the Strait of Hormuz were curtailed by the Iran war.

“People are looking at more diversified, reliable sources of supply,” he said.

“Our priority currently is to continue to make sure that we fulfil our obligations to our existing customers and maximize as much production opportunity as possible that we have,” he added.

The NLNG is majority-owned by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), while Shell, TotalEnergies and Eni are its international partners.

Public concerns that the introduction of smart and self-service filling stations would lead to job losses in the downstream petroleum sector have been dismissed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd).

According to the state oil major, the deployment of automated stations was part of efforts to improve efficiency and customer experience. It added that the technology would create new opportunities rather than simply eliminate existing jobs.

The NNPC Ltd also disclosed plans to transform about 900 of its existing retail outlets across the country into modern energy hubs, as it adapts its retail business to changing consumer needs and developments in the downstream sector.

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The disclosures were made in Abuja, during the commissioning of a 24-hour smart, self-service filling station at the headquarters of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).

The Executive Director, Retail Operations and Mobility, NNPC Retail Limited, Shettima Kukawa, said the new model was designed to provide customers with faster, more convenient and technology-driven services.

Kukawa added that the transformation of the company’s retail outlets was not about simply replacing workers with machines, but about creating a modern retail environment capable of providing more services to customers.

He explained that the smart station allows motorists to purchase fuel through the NNPC fuel app, fund their digital wallets and dispense the exact quantity of fuel they have paid for using a self-service code.

The station has a storage capacity of 180,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and 45,000 litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), with 16 PMS pumps and two AGO pumps.

It also has a six-point electric vehicle (EV) charging facility and is primarily powered by a solar system with more than 200kWh capacity.

Managing Director, NNPC Retail Limited, Hubb Stokman, said the downstream industry was undergoing significant changes following fuel deregulation and the commencement of operations at the Dangote Refinery.

Stokman said consumers were also demanding more services at filling stations, pointing out that the traditional fuel-only model was no longer sufficient to meet their expectations.

“Today shows that the downstream industry is changing after the fuel deregulation and also the start-up of the Dangote Refinery. Our industry is rapidly changing, and I think that more than ever, we need to meet the needs of the Nigerian consumer and their wishes.

“They want to see more services, like a fast food restaurant, convenience shop, maybe a coffee shop, banks. They would like to have a lounge or car wash. All these things that you will see here,” he said.

Also speaking, the Executive Vice President, Downstream, NNPC Limited, Dr Mumuni Dagazau, said the company was moving beyond the traditional concept of a filling station by integrating technology and alternative energy solutions into its retail network.

He said the development represented the type of modern retail infrastructure that should be replicated across the country, stressing that Nigerians deserved improved quality and service.

“Our objective at NNPC is not simply to provide fuel, it is to provide reliable energy solutions and a better retail experience supported by technology and innovation.

“We deserve these sort of stations throughout this country. We need to move away from where we have been and deliver this sort of quality and the service to our people in the community,” Dagazau said.

On his part, the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap, commended NNPC Limited for integrating EV charging with conventional fuelling.

Represented by Saidu Daura, the Deputy Comptroller-General, Nandap said the development aligned with global trends in energy transition, climate action and smart mobility, describing it as a practical step towards a cleaner, more sustainable and technology-driven economy.

She said the shift to technologies such as electric mobility could create opportunities for investment, employment, skills transfer and industrial growth.

“Today’s commissioning goes beyond the opening of a service station. It is a statement of confidence in Nigeria’s future and a contribution to building a resilient, green, and technologically advanced nation,” she said.

Nandap called for stronger collaboration between government institutions, the private sector and other stakeholders to promote sustainable development and national progress.

The station operates round-the-clock and includes automated services designed to reduce waiting time and give motorists greater control over their transactions.

Abdulrazaq Isa, co-founder of Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited, has emerged as the chairman of the governing board of the Nigerian Member Committee of the World Energy Council (WEC).

The Board, inaugurated in Abuja on 7 August, is made up of nine members with a diversity of backgrounds, drawn from policy, academia, energy institutions and private enterprise.

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The Board membership consists, Dr Ainojie Alex Irune, 45-year-old, Managing Director of Oando Energy Resources and an Executive Director of Oando PLC. Bala Wunti, formerly Chief HSE Officer at NNPC Limited, serves as the committee’s chief executive, alongside Professor Wumi Iledare, Dr Mustapha Abdullahi, Mrs Aisha Farida Katagum, Dr Emmanuel Okon, Dr Victor Ekpenyong and Dr Imamuddeen Talba.

Irune’s inclusion is notable not primarily as an indication of generational change, but rather as a reflection of the extensive industry transformation evident within his comparatively early career. In many respects, his professional trajectory exemplifies the broader developments that have characterised the Nigerian energy industry over the past decade.