The Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, on Wednesday restated the Federal Government’s commitment to utilizing her huge gas resource to catalyze ongoing industrialisation agenda of the country.
The minister, who was quoted in a statement issued by his Senior Adviser, Media and Communication, Horatius Egua, as making this remark at a dinner with the diplomatic community in Abuja, stressed that gas remained the major energy source that could help Nigeria diversify the economy and bridge the energy gap.
Sylva said that currently Nigeria had a proven gas reserve of 206 TCF with a potential for up to 600 TCF.
He explained: “Energy is the basic resource for national socio-economic development and it must be secured at all times.
“As a result of its rising impact on national security and economy, the need to safeguard energy and ensure availability, reliability and affordability has made energy diplomacy an essential part of every country’s foreign cooperation.
“It is important to stress that Nigeria’s vehicle of choice on the energy transition journey is natural gas.
“Much has been done towards harnessing this huge potential to provide the energy needed for our growing population in terms of power generation, transport, feedstock for industries and clean cooking solutions.
“It is disheartening that Nigeria is still energy-poor despite our enormous energy resources, which include over 200 TCF of proven natural gas reserve with a potential upside of up to 600 TCF”, the minister rued.
While decrying the situation in which majority of people still lack access to reliable electricity and clean cooking fuels, Sylva noted that gas was to significantly reduce this menace, with the hope of ending energy poverty in Nigeria soonest.
According to him, in order to reap the benefit of its gas resources, the Federal Government had deepened natural gas utilization under the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP).
This is even as he maintained that the government also rolled out the Autogas scheme with the aim of displacing Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) with Compressed Natural Gas and Liquefied Petroleum Gas and also reducing CO2 emissions in the country.
He described the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 as desirable for the hydrocarbon resources industry growth, adding “it is a game changer for the oil and gas sector.
Sylva further pointed out that the industry had undergone positive reforms with the PIA’s passage which paved way for new investment, jobs, economic and energy diversification and placed Nigeria in a position of being able to support world’s rising energy demands.
The minister, therefore, appealed to the international community to support Nigeria’s efforts aimed at maximizing her huge gas resources in the face of global energy transition plans.
