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DMEA FUELS DMEA

NLNG’s LPG output to rise to 350,000t in 2020

NIGERIA NIGERIA LNG (NLNG), the four-member promoting LPG in line with a wider campaign
consortium that operates a natural gas liquefac- to expand Nigeria’s gas industry, he added. The
NLNG primarily tion plant on Bonny Island, is aiming to produce West African country has 200 trillion cubic feet
produces LNG some 350,000 tonnes of LPG in 2020, up from (5.7 trillion cubic metres) of natural and asso-
275,000 tonnes last year. ciated gas in proven reserves, and its fields may
According to Adeleye Falade, NLNG’s gen- hold another 600 tcf (16.99 tcm), he said. If Nige-
eral manager for production, LPG output has ria can commercialise these resources, it will be
risen steadily since the consortium first began able to generate more electricity for delivery to
commercial operations in 1999. Initial produc- domestic business and residential consumers,
tion levels amounted to just 75,000 tonnes per he stated. This will help reduce pollution whilst
year, but NLNG is now in a position to turn out also speeding up the pace of industrialisation, he
much larger amounts of LPG, he said at a recent commented.
webinar organised by ADIPEC Energy Dialogue. NLNG was formed more than 20 years ago
Falade attributed the rise in production to and has been producing LNG since 1999. Equity
the success of efforts to promote domestic con- in the consortium is split between NNPC (49%),
sumption of LPG as a safe and environmentally Royal Dutch Shell (UK/Netherlands, 25.6%),
friendly fuel. “When we first started pushing liq- Total (France, 15%) and Eni (Italy, 10.4%).
uid petroleum gas (LPG), which is cooking gas, The group has already built six production
into the Nigerian market, we were only doing trains with a combined capacity of 22.5mn
75,000 tonnes per annum. Today, as at last year, tonnes per year (tpy) at its gas liquefaction plant.
we did 275,000 tonnes that we pushed into the Earlier this year, it took a final investment deci-
market,” he said. “This year our target is 350,000 sion (FID) on the construction of another pro-
tonnes, and we are very much on our way to duction train that will push total output up to
achieving it. The more we push cooking gas, the 30mn tpy. The new unit, which will be known
more we fight deforestation and deal with emis- as Train 7, will add 4.2mn tpy of new capacity,
sions, especially harmful ones.” while the debottlenecking of existing trains will
NLNG is joining the government in contribute another 3.4mn tpy.™

Shell affiliate hires Nigerian firm to

build gas distribution pipelines

NIGERIA SHELL affiliate hires Nigerian company to build operations. “The project will increase the [more
gas distribution pipelines than] 150 industrial and commercial customers
Meanwhile Chevron’s Shell Nigeria Gas (SNG), an affiliate of Royal in Nigeria [that] currently receive SNG’s supply
Nigerian affiliate is Dutch Shell (UK/Netherlands), has contracted of natural gas through gas infrastructure that we
looking to make a 25% a Nigerian company to build distribution pipe- have built with our partners and local stakehold-
cut to staff levels. lines that will serve a facility established by the ers,” he was quoted as saying by Vanguard.
Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring
Board (NCDMB). Chevron slashes jobs
Ed Ubong, the managing director of SNG, In related news, the US major Chevron’s Nigerian
said earlier this week that Gredor Nigeria had affiliate, Chevron Nigeria Ltd (CNL), is gearing
agreed to build the pipelines at NCDMB’s indus- up to make a 25% reduction in staff levels.
trial park in Polaku, a town in Bayelsa State. The CNL confirmed its plans in a statement ear-
links will be used to deliver natural gas to the ten- lier this week, saying it had made the decision
ants of the industrial park, he said. to cut jobs after reviewing its personnel require-
Ubong did not reveal the cost of the project or ments in light of current market conditions. Esi-
the projected capacity of the distribution pipe- maje Brikinn, the company’s general manager
lines. But he did state that Gredor was expected for policy and government affairs, said that mak-
to complete its work within a period of six ing some workers redundant would help reduce
months. He also said that the scheme would help costs and increase competitiveness.
create new jobs and support domestic industrial- Brikinn also said that the staff cuts would
isation initiatives. affect all levels of CNL’s organisation. “It is
Additionally, he said, the pipelines will ben- important to note that all our employees will
efit SNG by generating additional revenue and retain their employment until the reorganisation
supporting the expansion of the company’s process is completed,” he added. ™

Week 40 08•October•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P19