Mohammed Shosanya
14 November 2007
Lagos — The Federal Government has stepped up effort to end gas flaring in the country next year by threatening to penalise erring companies.
Besides, the government also targets onshore gas for domestic market, while offshore would be for export market.
The Director of Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Mr. Tony Chukwueke, who disclosed this at the 25th Annual International Conference of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) in Abuja said that the 2008 terminal date for gas flare-out would not be negotiated by the Federal government.
Nigeria gas flaring accounts for 20 per cent of the world total, which could be ended by 2008 by collecting associated natural gas and processing it into Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), he said.
This development has caused the Federal Government to jerk up earnings from natural gas exports to 50 per cent of oil revenues by 2010.
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) estimated that $15 billion in private sector investments was necessary to meet the country's natural gas development goals by 2010.
According to him, the $7 billion Nigeria-Algeria (NIGAL) project has been set aside for the execution of 4,000 kilometers pipeline from Nigeria to Algeria's export terminals on the Mediterranean, which might be completed by 2009.
He further said the penalty, which might be imposed on oil producers in the country for gas flaring beyond a 2008 deadline would target only the operators and not their partners, adding that the multinational oil companies might face fines or other penalties for flaring, while the NNPC, which owns majority shares in the joint ventures operated by the foreign firms would be exempted.
The Federal Government and the oil companies agreed on the zero gas flaring date,he said, adding that it was the oil companies that chose the date.
"So, they do not have any reason for not meeting with the deadline. There should a penalty for not flaring gas after the 2008 target for gas flare-out," he said.
The zero gas flaring was supposed to be January 1, 2008, but some in the industry argued that it should be December 31, 2008 which is still subject of negotiations between the Federal Government and the oil companies".
He further assured that the Federal government was committed and would vigorously pursue any drive that would ensure zero gas flaring in the country in 2008.
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