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December 18, 2017: With the award of $2.8bn gas pipeline contract, Nigeria energy landscape set for CHANGE – Presidency<\/p>\n
* contract involves construction of 614km Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano pipeline
\n* FG adopts contractor financing option
\n* contractors to be repaid over 15 years<\/p>\n
The Presidency on Sunday said the nation\u2019s energy landscape was set for a major change with the award of a $2,809,522,548.36 gas pipeline contract approved by the Federal Executive Council as proposed by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.<\/p>\n
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja.<\/p>\n
Shehu quoted the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, as informing the FEC that the project is for the construction of a 40 inches pipeline across 614 kilometres from Ajaokuta to Abuja-Kaduna-Kano.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis should mark an important landmark in the implementation of the first phase of the Nigerian Gas Master Plan approved in2018,\u201d Shehu said.<\/p>\n
The presidential spokesman added that the second contract approved under what he called \u201cmassive, blockbuster investment\u201d is for the engineering, verification, procurement and construction of a 40 inches 30 kilometres Odidi to Warri gas pipeline expansion project.<\/p>\n
This, he explained, was meant to transport additional gas supply from upstream producers to various demand points at the cost of N7.7bn and $56m.<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cThe projects, which can rightly be termed as being among of the President\u2019s pet projects is owed, in part to his vision and momentum back in his days as the federal commissioner for Petroleum Resources.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat time, Colonel Buhari led think-tanks to plan the country\u2019s gas future and initiated the contracts for the laying of a massive network of petroleum pipelines, linking the length and breadth of the country and laid the foundation for the construction of three refineries, Warri, the second Port Harcourt refinery and the one in Kaduna in a bold move to augment the the supply and distribution of petroleum products in the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was the golden period of the country\u2019s petroleum industry when domestic refining not only met the requirements of home consumption but also produced excess 150,000 barrels of refined products for export.<\/p>\n
The bold step taken by the President on Wednesday seeks the integration of the Eastern and Northern parts of Nigeria, which had suffered past neglect into the gas economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cGas pipeline infrastructure had been concentrated in the coastal areas and the North and the East had been left largely untouched by the industrial revolution that has come with the gas pipeline network.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is therefore not surprising that the western part of the country is having more economic activity.\u201d
\nShehu said the ruling All Progressives Congress which campaigned on the issue of inclusive growth was of the view that the achievement of a balanced and equitable national development could only come with a balanced growth of the states and the regions.<\/p>\n
The party manifesto, he added, had identified the development of natural gas transportation infrastructure as a key project in that regard.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese contracts for pipelines and LNG terminals to be set up at various points will, therefore, expand opportunities for balanced national development to counter the backwardness and geographical disadvantages of the North and the East.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn line with the country\u2019s rapid growth in energy demand, the connection of the south and the north should serve as a boost to the nation\u2019s energy security.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe increased energy transportation networks will be a shot in the arm for the struggling manufacturing industry which suffers arising from the acute crisis in the energy sector. It will cater to the needs of cement and fertilizer plants; power plants, transportation systems and even household consumers thereby increasing gas share in the country\u2019s energy consumption mix.<\/p>\n
\u201cGas which is classified as clean energy will, in addition to the promise of energy security, provide efficient fuel for power generation and reduce air pollution leading to improved quality of life,\u201d he added.
\nThe Trans-Nigeria Gas Pipeline, the East-North network starts from Qua Ibeo Terminal to Cawthorne Channel in Rivers traversing Obigbo-Umuahia-Enugu-Ajaokuta and now Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano is likely to be completed in 2019.<\/p>\n
Shehu said the extension of the network to the East and the North was potentially the precursor of the Trans-African pipeline that will cross the Sahara en route Europe.<\/p>\n
He said the contractor financing arrangement has been adopted and the project sponsor, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the Federal Government are expected to reach common terms with the contractors on how they will be repaid over a 15-year period.<\/p>\n
Although the loan repayment is expected from revenue accruing to from both existing and the expanding pipeline network, he said the NNPC and the Federal Government are expected to meet financial gaps and guarantee return on net investment.<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cThe Buhari administration came into office at a time when Nigeria faced a crisis of inadequate and crumbling Infrastructure and has, as a matter of priority embarked on a number of positive interventions to ease the infrastructure crunch.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe administration has been raising short-term and long-term funding for road projects, railway and power projects.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe President is strongly optimistic that all these infrastructure projects will increase the scope of economic activities and contribute to the overall economic growth and development of the country. This is the change.\u201d \u00a0– The Punch<\/p>\n
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December 18, 2017: With the award of $2.8bn gas pipeline contract, Nigeria energy landscape set for CHANGE – Presidency * contract involves construction of 614km Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano pipeline * FG adopts contractor financing option * contractors to be repaid over 15 years The Presidency on Sunday said the nation\u2019s energy landscape was set for a major […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-top-news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n