President Bola Tinubu has commissioned a new gas infrastructure aimed at accelerating the country’s transition to cleaner and more affordable energy transportation.
The commissioning of the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), in Abuja on Friday, featured the rollout of the Rolling Energy High-Capacity Daughter Booster Station in Jahi, alongside similar projects delivered by Ibile Oil and Gas and Portland Energy in Lagos, and Femadec in Owerri.
The projects form part of a broader national effort to scale up gas utilisation and support the Federal Government’s target of running about one million vehicles on alternative fuel.
Nigeria has so far converted only about 100,000 vehicles to run on gas amid challenges of consistent gas availability.
The President represented by Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the newly commissioned facilities reflect growing private sector participation in gas infrastructure development.
He noted that the projects, supported by the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF), demonstrate increasing investor confidence in Nigeria’s gas sector and align with the government’s Decade of Gas Initiative.
“These investments are directly aligned with the Federal Government’s commitment to position natural gas as a catalyst for industrialisation, energy security, transportation transformation and economic diversification,” Ekpo said.
Nigeria holds approximately 215 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves, one of the largest in the world. The government has repeatedly emphasised the need to harness this resource for domestic use rather than focusing primarily on exports.
The Jahi facility, developed by Rolling Energy in partnership with MDGIF, is designed to play a central role in expanding access to CNG within the Federal Capital Territory.
It has a sales capacity of 1,000 standard cubic metres per hour and is supported by two CNG tube skids with a combined capacity of 17,000 standard cubic metres.
He said the development contributes to the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas (Pi-CNG), which aims to reduce dependence on petrol and diesel following the removal of fuel subsidies.
Chief Executive Officer of Rolling Energy Limited, Mubarak Umar Danbatta, described the project as a milestone in Nigeria’s transition to cleaner energy, noting that the facility had already begun serving between 350 and 400 vehicles daily since initial operations commenced.
He said the project reflects the growing acceptance of gas-powered transportation among Nigerians, driven largely by rising fuel costs and the search for more affordable alternatives
Dangote Considers Heavier Crude Options, New Era Of Trade Maturity
The Dangote refinery in a sustainable growth movement has hit full capacity at a critical moment. Within weeks of reaching 650,000 barrels/day in February, the African producer was shipping record quantities of diesel and jet fuel to countries cut off from Middle Eastern supply.
Sustaining current run rates demands another order of trading sophistication, testing the limits of Dangote’s logistics, said David Bird, who left OQ8, owner of Oman’s Duqm refinery, in 2025 to become the company’s first CEO.
Bird has a three-year deadline to expand the Nigerian refineryto become the largest in the world. But first, cementing its role as a global heavyweight depends on feedstock diversification, securing offtake commitments and fixing supply chain bottlenecks, he told Platts in an interview at the refinery. Platts is part of S&P Global Energy.
“This is not a traditional refinery in an oil-producing country that just sits on the end of a crude pipeline and processes one crude,” Bird said. “This is a fully merchant refining model that you could see in Europe or Asia.”
Dangote transformed Nigeria’s fuel sector when it launched in 2024, but its output was capped at around 450,000 b/d during a gradual ramp-up punctuated by repeated outages on its main gasoline-producing unit. Since reaching 650,000 b/d in February, the refinery has remained at close to full capacity.
After the Middle East war began, Dangote shifted to “max jet mode,” and in April it became the world’s single largest exporter of aviation fuel, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea data.
The refinery is also producing 200% of its gasoline potential by importing blending components like GTL naphtha and Bonny condensate, Bird said. As such, it can “comfortably” make 75 million liters/day (about 650,000 b/d), and could do 100 million l/d with better storage infrastructure, he added.
Other projects will further diversify the feedstock coming into Dangote. In addition to a new linear alkylbenzene plant and diesel hydrotreater, the company is planning to build a new 750,000 metric ton/year propane dehydrogenation plant, which will process imported LPG and convert it into polypropylene.
The Dangote model was designed to process the light sweet crude native to OPEC member Nigeria, but has been challenged by what the refinery says is a lack of local supply and poor terminal reliability.
Dangote can now refine 40 different types of crude, but Bird would like to see the number get closer to the 130 used at Singapore’s Pulau Bukom refinery, which he ran between 2012 and 2015, he said.
Dangote’s $10 billion expansion project will make the refinery capable of processing 1.4 million b/d, equivalent to 90% of Nigeria’s oil output forcing it to seek new crude streams. It has so far relied on US WTI Midland crude to supplement local supply, but as it scales up, it can incorporate heavier grades and residues, Bird said.
“We will be in the crude blending game,” he said. “So you can easily imagine at 1.4 million b/d we could process 30% Middle Eastern grades on each train.”
In an interview before the Middle East war began, founder Aliko Dangote said his business was eyeing crudes from countries like the UAE, and would consider Russian oil should sanctions be lifted. The refinery already has competitive operating costs of under $2.50/b, but the number could drop to $1.50/b post-expansion, he said. South American residues are also being considered, according to Bird.
In time, the company hopes to stimulate regional demand with low-cost fuel. It is finalizing approvals for a Namibian tank farm, which it plans to connect to Zambia by pipeline, and is also discussing a Djibouti oil link and storage in Cameroon, according to Bird and Devakumar Edwin, Dangote’s vice president for oil and gas.
The refinery currently ships half of its production overseas and plans to export all additional product from its expansion to international markets, Edwin said in a separate interview at the site.
By design, the refinery lacks storage capacity.
“We normally try to avoid stocks in all of the businesses,” Edwin said, explaining a wider Dangote Group ethos of forcing salespersons to move product.
However, limited tankage space leaves little margin for error for operators facing “a tsunami of product coming down the pipe every day” and unpredictable truck demand, Bird said.
Consequently, the business is deviating from its existing spot model, managed mostly by international trading companies, to pursue more long-term purchasing commitments from governments, distributors and national oil companies.
“We’ll be making sure that we’re not the supplier of last resort,” Bird said. “We want to start building some of those direct offtake relationships.”
Dangote has had an influx of requests from African countries and a recent deal with Ethiopian Airlines, Bird said. In contrast to its first years, the refinery is better positioned to offer competitive credit and payment terms, he added.
The company is also tailoring its port infrastructure to support smaller cargoes and reduce dependence on truck-outs. After hitting constraints with its single-point mooring system, it is developing a four-berth marine jetty to accommodate LR2-size ships and below, Bird said.
The refinery expansion will involve “ruthless replication of the existing plant,” Bird said, partly to cut engineering time. Nevertheless, the second train will likely involve different catalyst choices to meet winter fuel-grade specifications in the Northern Hemisphere, which incur a heavy yield penalty with the current configuration, he said.
The project is being supported by an IPO later this year, which Dangote hopes will value the business at $50 billion. The company will list 5%-10% of its shares on the Nigerian stock exchange and is considering others, including London and Dubai.
According to Bird, the refinery is on the cusp of transforming the Lekki free zone, where it is located, into an industrial hub that could resemble some of the largest in the Middle East. “It will be a very brave person that underestimates Alhaji Aliko Dangote,” Bird said. “You come here in 10, 15 years, and this will look like Jebel Ali.”
Indigenous Gas Producers Consolidates Upstream Sector Transformation
A new generation of Nigerian oil and gas operators is consolidating their position at the forefront of the country’s upstream sector?
Key gas producers from Nigeria are preparing to build global partnerships at the upcoming African Energy Week (AEW) 2026, with senior executives including Roger Brown, CEO, Seplat Energy; George Toriola, CEO, First E&P; Osayande Igiehon, CEO, Heirs Energy; and Bolaji Ogundare, Group Executive Director, Pan Ocean & Newcross confirmed to speak at the event.
Their participation comes as indigenous firms are playing an increasingly central role in Nigeria’s energy landscape. As international operators continue to exit onshore and shallow-water positions, local companies have stepped in to consolidate ownership and accelerate development, reshaping the structure of Africa’s largest oil-producing industry.
“These companies illustrate the evolution of Nigeria’s upstream sector from asset transfers to sustained, operator-led growth. Despite ongoing challenges around financing, infrastructure and regulatory clarity, indigenous firms are increasingly driving production growth and gas commercialization, demonstrating their capacity to scale complex assets and strengthen Africa’s energy security,” said NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber.
Seplat Energy exemplifies this transition, having significantly expanded its portfolio through the acquisition of ExxonMobil’s shallow-water assets. The company is advancing an ambitious drilling campaign while scaling gas production through projects such as ANOH, which achieved first gas in 2026. This dual focus on oil and domestic gas supply positions the company as a key contributor to both export revenues and Nigeria’s industrialization agenda, particularly as demand for reliable gas-to-power solutions intensifies.
Offshore, First E&P has demonstrated the technical and operational capabilities of indigenous firms in complex environments through the development of the Anyala and Madu fields. Its approach – anchored in strategic partnerships and disciplined project execution – has helped sustain production while reinforcing confidence in the ability of Nigerian operators to manage offshore assets.
Onshore, Heirs Energy has focused on optimizing mature infrastructure to unlock incremental production. Since taking over OML 17, the company has prioritized operational efficiency and digital integration, deploying real-time monitoring systems to improve output and reduce downtime. The model reflects a broader industry shift toward maximizing existing assets alongside new development.
Pan Ocean & Newcross adds further depth through its longstanding involvement in marginal field development and domestic gas supply. Its investments highlight the growing role of indigenous operators in supporting local industry, particularly as Nigeria seeks to expand gas utilization to address persistent power shortages and drive industrial growth.
At AEW 2026, their participation is expected to provide a clearer picture of how Nigerian independents are navigating this next phase – one defined not just by ownership, but by execution, scale and sustained production growth. As the country’s upstream landscape continues to evolve, the ability of local operators to convert control of assets into long-term output gains will be closely watched across the continent.
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The Global LPG Shortage: Why the World is Desperate for Nigerian Gas
Source:
https://orientalnewsng.com/indigenous-gas-producers-consolidates-upstream-sector-transformation/
https://orientalnewsng.com/tinubu-commissions-new-cng-facilities/
https://orientalnewsng.com/dangote-considers-heavier-crude-options-new-era-of-trade-maturity/
