Nigeria has constituted an inter-ministerial committee to look at the ways and means of achieving a steady and sustainable gas supply to power generationing plants to meet both the domestic and the industrial need of Nigeria.
The inter-ministerial committee was formed by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ekperikpe Ekpo, and the Minister for Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, after a meeting between the two ministries in Abuja, capital of Nigeria.
“At the meeting, Ekpo outlined the challenges causing the low supply of gas to the thermal power plants to include decade of gas legacy debts and vandalism of gas resources infrastructures in the Niger Delta Region.
“He also listed domestic pricing of gas in dollars, among others.
He expressed his willingness to work harmoniously with any individual, organisation and agency to solve these challenges,” a statement issued by the Petroleum Resources Ministry said, quoting the Minister.
In his remarks, Chief Adelabu stated the need for the two ministries to work collaboratively and solve the problem of low gas supply to the thermal power plants.
According to him, this was in order to achieve an uninterrupted power supply in the country.
“There is absolutely nothing that can be done in Nigeria without stable power,” he noted.
Members of the committee were drawn from the ministries of petroleum resources and power, regulatory agencies, operators and critical stakeholders in the gas and power sectors.
The meeting was witnessed by some directors in the ministries of petroleum resources and power.
Nigeria has over 206 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of natural gas but has been unable to tap the resource due mainly to lack of investment in the sector, leading to inadequate gas transportation infrastructure.
Even the inadequate infrastructure is routinely vandalised.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com