The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG), Tony Attah, over the weekend said NLNG’s planned Train 7 Project, which would increase production output of its plant from 22 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) to 30 MTPA, would lift Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the country.
He said this during the visit of the Honourable Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, to the NLNG’s plant complex on Bonny Island, Rivers State.
The Minister was received by the Chairman, NLNG’s board of Directors, Chief O.R. LongJohn; Attah; Deputy Managing Director, Sadeeq Mai-Bornu; member, NLNG Board of Directors, Chief (Mrs.) Cordelia Agboti; and the General Manager, Production, Tayo Oginni.
Briefing the Minister on NLNG’s operations and business, the MD said NLNG will be seeking an estimation of $7 billion from the global international markets to cover the construction of Train 7) (and investment in the upstream gas sector in Nigeria that will ensure the sustainability of feedgas supply to its existing trains (Trains 1 to 6) and the new Train 7.
“We are committed to our expansion goals of building an additional production train to our plant. We believe this will ensure our country becomes a country that has been able to unleash its gas potentials and one that is in a transitional state from an oil-based economy to a gas-based economy. We also hope that Train 7 will change the country’s revenue and foreign investment profile.”
He remarked that only recently, NLNG commemorated the repayment of a US$5.45 billion Shareholder loan.
The consolidated loan contributed towards funding the Base Project, Expansion Project, NLNG Plus Project and Train 6. The final repayment, which is a milestone for NLNG and Nigeria, sends a strong message to the world that Nigeria is ready for more foreign investments.
He added that the economic impact of increased LNG production output will be significant, stating that since the start of our operations 19 years ago, NLNG has generated more than $90 billion in revenue and has paid over $16 billion dividends to the Federal Government, with respect to its 49 per cent shareholding in the company, held by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) owns. In addition, NLNG has paid some $13 Billion to the Federal Government for feedgas purchases and $6.5 billion in taxes as well.
NLNG has also spent over $200 million on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects in the Niger Delta and the country as a whole.
“We take up about 50% of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) supply in the country and we have committed about 350, 000 tonnes to the domestic market. We believe that with an increase in our production, these numbers will be impacted on positively and this will help with the country’s revenue generation profile,” he remarked.
Attah said that NLNG has received Federal Government support for its expansion project.
With that, NLNG has the full backing of all critical stakeholders, and that the stars have lined up in support of Train 7 therefore there is no going back on the taking of the Final Investment Decision (FID) soon which will signal commencement of construction.
Responding to the briefing, Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun, said “Nigeria LNG Limited is a high performing company which the Nigerian Government has a stake.
“We are very proud of NLNG’s achievements over the years and we believe the company is an ideal model for the sector,” she added.
The Chairman, NLNG Board of Directors, Chief O.R. LongJohn, in his remarks, said the NLNG Board strongly believed in the company’s vision of a global company helping to build a better Nigeria which has guided company’s business decisions.
He said NLNG has achieved full Nigerianisation of its management team who have proven over time their capacity to lead a world-class company.
In his closing remarks, NLNG Deputy MD, Mai-Bornu, said the Minister’s visit to Bonny was an indication of the Federal Government’s commitment to increasing the country’s LNG market share, securing the country’s revenue in a fast changing energy industry and deepening Domestic LPG utilization locally. He urged the Federal Government to support as NLNG seeks funding for the project.
The Minister’s visit is coming on the heels of the milestone events in preparation for Train 7 construction, which also include the award of contracts for the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) by NLNG.
NLNG is owned by four Shareholders, namely, the Federal Government of Nigeria, represented by NNPC (49%), Shell Gas B.V. (25.6%), Total Gaz Electricite Holdings France (15%), and Eni International N.A. N. V. S.àr. l (10.4%).
