Nigeria gas reserves don reach 215.19 trillion cubic feet, officials talk

Nigeria proven natural gas reserves don grow to 215.19 trillion cubic feet, up from 208.83 trillion cubic feet in 2023, according to federal government. Officials put the figure at 215.19 trillion cubic feet as of January this year, with average daily output of about 7.5 billion cubic feet.

Dem present the figures for Kano on Saturday for one media briefing wey Decade of Gas Secretariat and Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles (PI-CNG & EV) organize. About 27 journalists from radio, television, print and online outlets attend the session, na the first of im kind for Kano after earlier ones for Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.

Taofeek Balogun, wey lead infrastructure and demand for Decade of Gas Secretariat, talk say gas wey dem supply inside Nigeria now pass two billion cubic feet a day. He credit the gains to policies under President Bola Tinubu and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo.

Wetin the numbers mean for households

Balogun talk say about $3.5 billion don commit to four major gas projects. The OB3 pipeline don finish, he talk, while AKK pipeline roughly 95 per cent complete. He add say N671 billion of public money don draw in about N1.6 trillion of private investment.

On cooking fuel, he talk say one programme to reach five million households by 2030 don start for Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom, with 27,000 cooking gas cylinders don hand out so far. Government also dey work towards one market wey buyers and sellers go agree gas prices freely, with target date of September 24, 2028.

Tosin Coker, chief operating officer of PI-CNG & EV, talk say gas remain central to cutting transport costs and improving energy security. He talk say 670 CNG buses don roll out nationwide, including 285 wey dey run commercially for 13 states and 302 wey dem give transport unions, students and government agencies. More buses and tricycles dey on order, he talk.

According to Coker, fares on routes wey National Affordable CNG Transition Programme cover don drop by between 15 and 50 per cent. He talk say 127 more refuelling stations dey planned across 31 states and FCT.

Kano dey lead Northwest with seven working CNG stations, Coker talk, and 17 more dey different stages of completion. Another 25 buses don send to the state.

On safety, Coker urge drivers to use only certified conversion centres, approved equipment and properly maintained vehicles.

Wetin go happen next

Government dey watch the 2028 gas market target and the build-out of CNG stations. For now, the savings on fares apply only to routes wey the programme don already cover.