The government of Nigeria has kicked off plans for implementation of efforts to prepare its economy for a post-oil world.
Minister of Science and Technology Ogbonnaya Onu confirmed the report and said the country Nigeria looks to introduce methanol into the economy, a move that will gas flaring by using the natural gas as a feedstock for methanol production.
However, the country does not has no plans to drop oil and gas exploration or to stop trying to attract investments in its most important revenue stream. The oil and gas sector in Nigeria accounts for about 10% of gross domestic product (GDP), while revenue from petroleum exports represents around 86% of the country’s total exports revenue according to OPEC estimates.
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End of long-running disputes
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) recently signed a deal with international oil majors Shell, Exxon, Total, and Eni to develop an offshore oil block that includes the deepwater Bonga field. The deal marks a historic moment as it settles long-running disputes between the Nigerian government and international oil companies, the NNPC noted.
More than 100 oil and gas projects are set to launch over the next five years in Africa’s biggest oil producer. The Bonga field is among the 25 upstream projects, and is expected to start commercial production in 2025. According to data from analytics company, GlobalData, this will account for 23% of total oil and gas projects starting in Africa within the next five years.
Nigeria as an exporter
Of these 100 projects, petrochemicals will account for the largest individual share with 28 projects, followed by upstream with 25 projects, refining with 24 projects and midstream with 23 projects. Advancing Nigeria’s refining sector is a high priority on the national agenda, as the country is eager to reduce its reliance on imports.
The 650,000-barrel per day Lagos 1 project expected to commence operations in 2022 could become the largest oil refinery in Africa upon completion. The projects also have the potential to transform Nigeria into an exporter of refined products to neighboring countries.