The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has identified natural gas as the centrepiece of its energy transition strategy, declaring that the fuel will remain a major component of its long-term energy future.
The national oil company said it was prioritising gas development, flare recovery and operational emission reduction as part of efforts to decarbonise its operations without compromising Nigeria’s energy security, economic development and commercial interests.
The Manager, Sustainability Strategy, Standards and Policy at NNPCL, Philemon Yilleng, disclosed this during a high-level panel session on decarbonising Africa’s energy value chain at the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP31, in Antalya, Türkiye, on Tuesday.
Yilleng said the company had identified gas as a cleaner alternative and was working to establish the policies, strategies and partnerships required to make decarbonisation an integral part of its operations.
“Now we have been able to identify gas as our transition fuel. So for us, gas is not just a transition fuel, but our destination fuel. So we want to identify gas as a cleaner alternative for us,” he said.
He explained that the company’s approach was guided by the Petroleum Industry Act, which requires it to balance energy security, environmental stewardship and commercial viability.
According to him, the NNPCL is pursuing immediate opportunities to reduce its environmental footprint, including cutting emissions, recovering gas currently being flared and improving operational efficiency.
“Now, for us in NNPC Limited, what we have been able to do is to identify the basics. And that’s what I think you’re trying to ask me. What are the basics? Try to take advantage of the quick wins, such as maintaining emission reduction, flare recovery, and as well as optimise our processes,” Yilleng stated.
He said the company had also adopted decarbonisation as a central element of its energy transition strategy, stressing that its operations would need to change to ensure that environmental considerations were incorporated into business decisions.
“Our strategy is decarbonisation, which is an element of energy transition. So what that speaks to us is that we will be doing in our business, not as usual, but ensuring that we reduce our emissions and leave the environment better than how we met it,” he said.
Yilleng further disclosed that the national oil company had developed policies and frameworks to guide its sustainability efforts, including a measurement, reporting and verification system designed to monitor its emissions and track progress.
He said the company was working with regulators, joint venture partners and financiers to ensure that sustainability commitments were implemented beyond boardroom policies and translated into practical changes at operational levels.
READ ALSO:
- COP31: Delegates stranded as transport delays hit Türkiye
- COP31: Nigeria Advocates for Increased Climate Funding and Food Security Measures
- Two Injured in Fire at Gas Plant in Anambra State
“We are collaborating with our regulators, our joint venture partners, and our financiers also, to ensure that we integrate sustainability in our businesses and operations, so that it’s not just going to be a buy-in from the board alone, but to demonstrate that even at the bottom, at the operational level, we are putting things in place to ensure that we deliver that much-expected value,” he added.
However, the NNPCL official identified inadequate financing for gas development as one of the major obstacles to accelerating the country’s energy transition.
He argued that Nigeria’s abundant gas resources could play a significant role in addressing energy poverty, supporting industrialisation and strengthening energy security if the necessary investments were mobilised.
“For us in NNPC, I think one of the greatest barriers that I see as a gap is the identification of gas as a transition fuel. Now, what I mean by that is that there is a need for gas to be financed. Let’s have this transition financed for gas, because for us, we’ve identified gas as a cleaner alternative,” he said.
Yilleng added that developing the country’s gas resources would help narrow the gap between energy demand and supply while supporting economic development under a just energy transition framework, among others.
The Managing Director of Carbon Limits, Stephanie Saunier, acknowledged progress made by the NNPCL in developing its emissions measurement, reporting and verification system over the past 12 to 18 months.
She described the company’s progress as significant but said it needed to move further towards actual field measurements to establish the credibility of its emissions data.
Similarly, the Assistant Director and Head of Environment Management and Sustainability at the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Celina Evbuomwan, identified inadequate technology, infrastructure and financing as major constraints to emission reduction.
She said scattered and insufficient infrastructure around gas-producing facilities had limited the ability of operators to recover flared gas and channel it into electricity generation and industrial use.
Evbuomwan said the recently launched National Gas Transportation Network Code was expected to improve access to information about gas availability, existing infrastructure and transportation tariffs.
KPMG’s Partner and Head of Energy and Natural Resources for Africa, Anish De, also said national oil companies had a critical role in providing infrastructure, mobilising investment and deploying technology to accelerate Africa’s energy transition.
