DPR: Nigeria Flared 324bscf of Gas in 2017

• DPR: Nigeria Flared 324bscf of Gas in 2017

Although Nigeria’s gas flaring level is dropping, the quantity of gas flared last year was as high as 324 billion standard cubic feet (bscf), the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has said.

In a document sighted in Lagos, about 888 million standard cubic feet of gas was flared daily last year. This is despite Nigeria’s efforts at increasing utilisation and commercialisation of flared over the years, which has brought Nigeria’s ranking as the world’s fifth highest gas flaring country to the current seventh position.

The document further showed that the country has about 139 gas flare locations spread across the Niger Delta both in onshore and offshore oil fields. It further noted that flared gas constitutes about 11 per cent of the total gas produced.

The flared gas, it stated, is enough to generate 2.5 gigawatts (Gw) of power or produce 50 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) or produce 600,000 metric tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) per year, produce 22 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), feed two-three liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains, generate 300,000 jobs, able to attract $3.5 billion investment into Nigeria and has $350 million carbon credit value.

It is in view of these losses and environmental damage associated with flared gas that the Federal Government came up with the National Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP) to harness the flared gas and put it into productive use. Under the NGFCP, the Federal Government will seek for qualified investors with financial, technical and technological expertise to harness the flared gas.

The report said: “National Gas Flare Commercialisation Program (NGFCP) is key to Nigeria’s flares-out agenda with a target for zero routine gas flaring in Nigeria by 2020 as well as ensure positive impact to communities in the Niger Delta.

“Federal Government exercises powers under Paragraph 35b of the First Schedule of the Petroleum Act 1969 to take gas at flare. Elimination of flared gas is a win for all parties across Nigeria. Therefore, NGFCP will promote collaboration between private, public, and social sectors. It is commercially viable investments with positive returns and will minimise government action to streamline implementation.”