The Federal Government has revealed that the estimated performance of Nigeria’s domestic gas supply obligation increased by 14.14 per cent to 64.8 per cent in 2021.
It pointed out that the country’s gas supply volumes are set to grow further in 2022 compared with the 50.66 per cent achieved in 2020.
The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed, disclosed this at the 2023 Domestic Gas Demand Requirements workshop in Abuja.
He explained that Nigeria’s gas demand requirement also rose marginally by 5.9 per cent to 250 million standard cubic feet per day in 2022.
Ahmed said, “As at end of September 2021, the estimated performance of the domestic gas supply obligation was 64.8 per cent compared to 50.66 per cent achieved in 2020, when comparing annual total domestic supply obligation allocation to the actual daily supply met.
“The increased performance of 14 per cent in the preceding domestic gas year can be majorly attributed to the concerted efforts implemented by the regulator and all our stakeholders towards enhancing the performance of the market.”
The NMDPRA boss, however, noted that despite the improved performance recorded in 2021, the domestic gas market had continued to experience significant challenges.
He outlined the challenges to include infrastructural capacity constraints, payment assurance and long outstanding legacy debts of gas supplied to the power sector, as well as poor performance of sanctity of contracts.
Others include constraints on the evacuation of generated power and low investment flows into the sector, among many challenges.
Ahmed, however, assured participants at the workshop that all necessary preparations had been made to ensure that this year’s Domestic Gas Demand Requirement was coordinated in a safe, productive and efficient manner.
He said the regulatory process of establishing a DGDR was a critical milestone in the implementation of the key provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which were defined for the supply of wholesale marketable natural gas for the domestic gas market.
The Manager, Gas Production and Flare Monitoring of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Jennis Anyanwu, expressed optimism that Nigeria would meet the 12.2 billion standard cubic feet of gas target as set in the Decade of Gas initiative of the Federal Government.
He added, “Certainly, Nigeria can meet the deadlines set for the Decade of Gas. There is a high-powered political commitment to ensure that this happens”.
