Oti, Wabote, Others Ask FG To Maximise Gas Reserves’ Potentials

Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote and Founder & Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Proton Energy Ltd., Mr. Oti Ikomi, alongside other stakeholders have jointly appealed to the Federal Government to derive maximum benefit from the enormous gas reserves in the country.

The energy stakeholders who spoke during the ninth anniversary lecture and investiture into Realnews Hall of Fame, which held at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos on Thursday said it is high time Nigeria move from depending on oil alone and capitalize on the gas reserves in a bid to boost the nation’s struggling economy.

Wabote, who noted that Nigeria and other African countries were evidently sitting on oil and gas reserves added that the country is blessed with natural gas reserves estimated at about 600 trillion cubic feet, hence the need to shift focus from dirty energy sources to cleaner fuels cannot be over emphasised.

The NCDMB boss said Nigeria is more of a gas-endowed nation than oil-endowed, urgung government to implement policies that will help the country tap significant fortune from the gas economy.

He said: “Now, there is also a discussion as to 206 DCF as being the full gas reserves. And in some circles, the unproven gas reserves totaling 600 trillion cubic feet of gas.

“Between 2005 and 2015 alone, we had Ghana, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Liberia, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania as new additions to the League of countries with hydrocarbon resources.

“Evidently, Africa is particularly sitting in oil and gas reserves. In this year alone, Namibia announced discovery of 120 billion barrels of oil comparable to the Permian Basin in Texas, United States of America.

“Other discoveries include the two billion barrels, discovered in Cote d’Ivoire, 700 million barrels in Ghana and 250 million barrels of oil in Angola as new discoveries.

“With proven oil reserves of 37 billion barrels of oil, which is the largest in the world, and proven gas reserves of 206 trillion cubic feet, which is the ninth largest in the world, Nigeria is also well known as a strategic player in the global oil and gas industry.”

Ms. Samata Bukari, Consul General, Ghana Consulate General, in her address, urged African leaders to have the political will to leapfrog the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA).

“First of all, there is the need to bring all Africans, particularly member states together so as to properly harness AFCFTA since it is the second largest of the world trade organizations that is yet to be implemented.

“It is going to benefit Africa and reduce poverty, it will increase our trade, revive our industries, and a whole lot of technology is now going to be built and learnt in our universities, particularly now that we are moving to the green economy.

“Fortunately again, Africa is lucky to have abundance of sunlight; we have all it takes to go green economy.

“So moving from fossil oils is not going to deter us to develop in any way but the most important thing for us is to have the political will,’’ Bukari said.