BEN EGUZOZIE hits 3,200 LNG cargo exports by Q2 2015

The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas company (NLNG), Bonny Island, Rivers State, has shipped 3,200 liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes by Q2 of 2015, since it began international gas exports in 1989, the managing director, Babs Omotowa said in Port Harcourt weekend.

Omotowa, who spoke at the 4th Port Harcourt international petroleum downstream conference/ exhibition on gas, petroleum refining, petrochemicals and fertilizers, organized by the University of Port Harcourt’s Centre for Gas, Refining and Petrochemicals, Institute of Petroleum Studies (CGRP/IPS), said, the gas company during the period under review (1989 to Q2 2015) has converted about 133 billion cubic metres (bcm) or 4.68 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of associated gas (AG) to exports as LNG and natural gas liquids (NGLs), thus helping to reduce gas flaring by upstream companies.

He informed that the company, has paid almost $21 billion to joint venture (JV) feedgas suppliers from inception till date, out of which 55 to 60 percent of the amount went to the Federal Government via its shareholding in Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The NLNG managing director, who was represented by his deputy, Isa Mohammed Inuwa, informed that the company, currently with 24 ships, manages the largest fleet of ships by any Nigerian company; adding that the company would acquire six additional ships by end of 2015, to raise its fleet to 30.

Meanwhile, he said over the years, NLNG has paid dividends of almost $30 billion, out of which 49 percent went to the Federal Government through the NNPC.

Also, the gas company, in 2014 paid N220 billion as corporate income tax, thus making it by far, the highest taxpayer in Nigeria and sub-Sahara Africa.

On attraction of foreign direct investment (FDI), Omotowa said, NLNG, with its current asset base at over $14 billion, since its construction, has generated considerable FDI.

Meanwhile, despite these positives, the major gas company only contributes about one percent to Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP), especially since the country’s 2013 economic rebasing.

But the NLNG MD, Omotowa said they created more than 2,000 jobs each year; adding that overall, the major sub-contractors employed about 18,000 Nigerians in technical jobs in the base project.

On Nigeria Local Content, he said the gas company has promoted development and employment of Nigerians; saying that 600 persons would be trained at the Hyundai and Samsung shipyards in Korea as part of Local Content deliverables tied to the construction of six new LNG vessels by Bonny Gas Transport (BGT), a wholly owned subsidiary of NLNG. The 600 Nigerians, with enhanced skills in welding, hull assembly, pipe fitting, electrical, mechanical, painting and ship design.

Also, he said many Nigerian companies such as; Berger Paints, Coating MN, Metec West Africa through NLNG’s Nigeria Local Content initiative have produced and exported their products. For instance, Berger Paints exported over 35,000 litres of paints; Nexans Kablemetal shipped over 130,000 metres of low voltage cables; Metec exported 9,000 pieces of aluminium and zinc sacrificial anodes.

BEN EGUZOZIE