12yrs After, NNPC, Shell, Other Multinationals Reach NLNG Train 7 FID

Finally,  the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and shareholders of the Nigeria LNG Limited which include Shell, Total and Eni on Friday in Abuja, announced the Final Investment Decision (FID)  for the take-off of Train 7 Project of the NLNG, after 12 years.

Train 7 will complement the existing six-trains and raise Nigeria’s total production capacity from the current 22 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG to 30 million tonnes per annum, an increase of 35 percent.

The Train 7 project, which would deliver a significant local content in construction, production of cables, welding, valves, scaffolding, furniture, painting and medical, is expected to generate about 12,000 jobs direct jobs and 40,000 indirect jobs.

The project follows a string of value adding decisions made under the current Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mr Mele Kyari, whose leadership has focused on repositioning the oil and gas industry articulated in the TAPE Agenda.

NLNG currently has six trains capable of producing 22 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG, and five MTPA of Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs), that is Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) or cooking gas, and condensate – from 3.5 billion standard cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas intake.

The NLNG Train 7 FID which was signed in the presence of the shareholders is expected to re-awaken activities in  the nation’s oil and gas sector after years of inactivity due to project dryness.

Shareholders of the Nigeria LNG Limited include the NNPC with 49 percent shares on behalf of the federal government; Shell Gas B.V (SGBV), 25.6 percent; Total Gaz Electricite Holdings France, 15 percent, and Eni International (N.A) N.V.S.a.r.l, with 10.4 percent stake.

Following the FID,  companies and workers will now be deployed to site to deliver the project, adjudged highly significant to the country’s status as a major player in the global gas market as well as to the economic development of the nation.

Describing the FID ceremony is a monumental accomplishment, the NNPC GMD said, it signifies a further demonstration of the restored and growing confidence of international oil companies of global repute in the Nigeria’s petroleum Space.

He said,  “This is the result of the strong and focused leadership of His Excellency President Muhammadu  Buhari toward the deepening and expansion of oil and gas revenues needed for national development and Growth. For us in NNPC, today’s FID is the modest result of our focus and consistent commitment toward ensuring that we deliver on our promise to Nigerians as articulated in our TAPE Agenda.”

While assuring Nigerians of more value additions from the NNPC, Kyari said, just last week an agreement was signed with Chevron on long dispute on EGTL in order to pave ways for further investment which we lead to increase in country gas monetization, adding that a week earlier the FEED contract was also signed with Seplat on condensate refineries aimed at making Nigeria self-sufficient in gasoline and other white petroleum products productions.

He said Nigerians must appreciate the prosperity lift this would create, including the employment of over 10,000 direct and over 40,000 indirect jobs as well as the projected revenue of over $20 billion.

Also speaking at the event, Managing Director of NLNG Limited, Mr. Tony Attah, who described Train 7 as the next big deal for Nigeria, disclosed that early site work has commenced in Bonny Island. “We are 97 percent prepared, just waiting to take that FID,” Attah said.

He added: “We co-created the Nigerian Content Plan, working in harmony with the agency just to understand the interpretation of the law and then co-creating how we comply. Overall, it’s all about consolidation and co-creating the future.”

Attah noted that the project will generate over 12, 000 direct jobs during construction phase and in the upstream industry, with multiple spin-off effects in other sectors of the economy, increasing the number of jobs that will be generated over a six-year project window.

He stated further that the project will help reduce restiveness in the Niger-Delta region by providing jobs, while calling for more projects in Nigeria to change the socio-economic narrative in the country.

While making a case for gas development in Nigeria, Attah said: “We believe the future is gas; we believe the future is bright for Nigeria. We are a gas country with some oil because in reality, we have more gas. With the energy transition, gas will play more actively and that is why we say let’s focus on gas.”

On his part, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote, said the train 7 project will generate more revenue to the federal government while also creating about 10, 000 direct and almost 40,000 indirect jobs in the country.

Wabote added that the Train 7 will rejuvenate the economy, result in more taxes being paid and a lot of upstream projects springing up.

Earlier in March, the federal government and the shareholders signed the Nigerian Content Plan (NCP) worth $1 billion to facilitate the actualisation of the Train 7 project. Stakeholders and industry operators have been longing for the commencement of activities in the train 7 to enable Nigeria begin reaping its short and long term benefits.