Nigeria is pursuing a $25 billion undersea gas pipeline project to supply gas to Europe, according to Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Shettima disclosed this duriing a meeting with Vitol Group at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Monday.
”The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) has been largely insulated from government interference.
”What we are getting from the NLNG is so predictable. This is why we are seriously exploring the option of taking our gas to Europe.
“It is an expensive venture requiring about $25 billion, and of course, the technical expertise, ” he said.
Shettima made a direct appeal to global investors to key into Nigeria’s energy drive, stating that President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms have positioned Nigeria as a prime investment destination, especially in the energy sector.
”We need you more for your technical expertise than for your money. Gas supply stability counts; that is why we are exploring the option of an undersea gas pipeline.
“We urge you to use your influence, contacts, and goodwill to mobilise resources for this project. It will be a completely transparent management structure. I will urge you to come on board with this project,” Shettima said.
The project, known as the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline, aimed to transport Nigerian gas to Morocco and onward to Europe through the West African coastline.
Shettima said, “In the past 25 years, we have not had a leader who has the courage to take far-reaching decisions as he has taken the removal of fuel subsidy, the unification of the multiple exchange rates, and the tax reforms.
He described Nigeria’s gas sector as a beacon of stability and transparency amid global uncertainty.
“I will urge you to key into our nation’s energy transition programme.
”I want you to utilise your dominance in the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Associated Petroleum Gas (APG) sub-sectors.”
“The world is changing, and ours is actually a gas and not an oil economy. We have the eighth-largest gas reserve in the world.”
“We need you more for your technical expertise than for your money. Gas supply stability counts; that is why we are exploring the option of an undersea gas pipeline.”
Earlier, the leader of the delegation, Chief Financial Officer of Vitol Group, Jeffrey Dellapina, said that Vitol has a long-term commitment to Nigeria.
“This has been an incredibly close and important country for Vitol for a very long time.
”We have participated in a lot of things from the downstream, financing, trading, and government support when needed, ” he said.
Vitol Group’s Head of Public Affairs, Murtala Baloni, noted that the company was currently enjoying a favourable business relationship with Nigerian companies and the government.
He stated that Vitol was one of the major funders of Project Gazelle, a crude oil-backed forward-sale finance facility by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited), where they put in $300 million during the COVID-19 period.
