President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday unveiled Nigeria’s Gas Revolution, saying the full implementation of the entire master-plan would result in about $25billion investments.
The President also said the initiative would end gas flaring, with the gas being be utilised by the market that will be created.
Nigeria has proven gas reserves base estimated at 187 trillion cubic feet and an undiscovered potential of 600 trillion cubic feet.
Besides fetching about $10billion revenue over the next three years, the initiative, the President said, will create over 500,000 direct and indirect jobs in construction and other related fields.
Dr. Jonathan spoke at the launch of officially launched “Gas Revolution: Rebirth of Nigeria’s Industrialisation,” at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The highlight of the occasion was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with investors from Saudi Arabia, India, Italy and the United States for various investments.
The President said by 2014, the government would have positioned Nigeria firmly as the undisputed regional hub for gas-based industries, such as fertiliser, petrochemicals and methanol.
“The focus is to catalyse a major industrialisation of the
country by seeding in a few anchor investments that have the highest potential to have far reaching secondary multiplier effect on the economy, Jonathan said, adding: “The investments being launched today will result in foreign direct investment of about $10billion over the next three years. The full implementation of the entire gas master-plan agenda will result in about $25billion worth of investments in gas processing, transmission and downstream gas utilisation projects.
“Beyond the quantum of foreign investment, the economic impact of this agenda will be enormous. In terms of employment and wealth creation, we estimate that over 100,000 engineering design and construction-related jobs will be created from about 2012 and beyond to deliver all these plants.
“The strategy we have adopted for fertilizer project means we expect a significant increase in employment from the agricultural sector. In total, this initiative will result in over 500,000 direct and indirect jobs from construction, logistics, hotel and hospitality service, fabrication, banking and above all, agriculture.
“The petrochemical industry will provide us with the potential not only to manufacture low end plastic and packaging products, but also very high end products.”
The event also served as the occasion for the signing of binding Memoranda of Understanding between the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Xenel of Saudi Arabia for the construction of a petrochemical plant and Nagarjuna of India for the construction of two fertilizer plants.
Oil Minister Deziani Allison-Madueke said Italian oil and gas firm Agip and local energy firm Oando Plc will build a central gas processing plant under the plans. US energy firm Chevron will supply the gas.
India’s Nagarjuna Fertiliser plans to build two fertiliser plants, an investment of about $2.5 billion. Saudi Arabian firm Natpet, a subsidiary of petrochemicals firm Alujain, said it would invest $3.5 billion in a petrochemicals plant.
Allison-Madueke said the industrialization agenda was aimed at transforming Nigeria from a country that uses its gas resources only as fuel for industries to that which uses gas as raw material (feedstock) for producing secondary goods.
She said: “These industries have an amazing transformational impact on the GDP of any economy as they are capable of stimulating many secondary industries, which in turn enable wealth creation. Through these industries, we add value to natural gas, a step away from our historical approach of just exporting the raw gas”.
Besides the petrochemical plant ,which she said would be built around the Koko Free Trade Zone in Delta State and the two fertilizer plants billed to be located in Lagos and Delta States, the minister said a Gas Central Processing Facility for gathering and processing wet gas from the well and producing dry gas and natural gas liquids will be built at Obiafu, Rivers State, by the Agip/Oando Consortium.
The high point of the event was the signing of the binding Memorandum of Understanding by the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Engr. Austen Oniwon, and representatives of Xenel, Mr. Khalid Ibrahim Zagzoog and Mr. Kanumuri Satya Raju, who represented Nagarjuna Fertilizers and Chemical Ltd. Mr. Giro Antonio Pagano. Mr Wale Tinubu signed for the Agip/Oando Consortium.
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Gas initiative to attract $25b investments, says Jonathan