NNPC To Supply Gas To Cote D’Ivoire

In a bid to broaden her gas
suppliers to neighbouring West African countries, the federal government has signed a pact to extend gas supply through the nation’s Liquefied Natural Gas to the Republic of Cote D’Ivoire.
Receiving the delegations from Cote D’Ivoire, Wednesday  the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC), Dr Joseph Dawha, said NNPC would cash in on the opportunity in line with its overall strategic expansion drive for Nigeria’s LNG market.
The package which is the first of its kind in the West African sub-region, according to energy experts would see Nigeria commit a small chunk of its daily LNG output which stands at over three billion cubic feet of gas per day, to its sub-regional neighbours before the eventual extension of the West Africa Gas Pipeline to Cote D’Ivoire and Senegal.
The Group Executive Director, Gas and Power of the NNPC, Dr David Ige, expressed hope that the pact would help broaden the supply base for economic advantage of Nigeria.
He said,” at the moment, the entire West African sub-region starting from Nigeria is undergoing phenomenal economic growth and that practically translates into a higher demand for energy. As you know the West African Gas Pipeline terminates in Ghana, so Cote D’Ivoire has come to request that we bring gas to them in the first instance by LNG and ultimately in the future by extension of the pipeline,” Ige said.
He noted that apart from offering a strategic opportunity for NNPC and Nigeria, the project is in line with the NEPAD spirit and would also serve the mutual growth of ECOWAS member countries by fostering the economic integration of the West African corridor.
“What this means is that in future, we don’t have to go as far as Europe and Asia to supply LNG when we can do so next door,” he said.
Leading the delegation from the Ivorien Ministry of Energy, to the NNPC Towers Abuja, a Director from the Ministry, Kone Moussa, said his country would be relying on structural diversion of LNG cargoes from Nigeria as a starter within the next few months to tackle growing energy needs, remarking that his country has already entered into a working relationship with Sahara Energy to drive the process.