NLNG has announced it has commenced preliminary work on Trains 8, 9 and 10 as it looks to expand its liquefied natural gas (LNG) production beyond the ongoing Train 7 project.

The gas company also called on Nigeria to hasten the commercialisation of its abundant natural gas resources before the global energy transition closes the window of opportunity.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NLNG, Mr Adeleye Falade, disclosed this at the presentation of NLNG Facts and Figures, an engagement aimed at providing insights into NLNG’s business performance, strategic priorities and contributions to Nigeria’s energy sector and sustainable development in Lagos on Tuesday.

He said: While the completion of Train 7 is the company’s immediate priority, it has already begun strategic discussions and technical assessments to underpin the next phase of expansion.

He said the proposed projects were designed to reinforce Nigeria’s position in the global LNG market and to maximize the value that could be derived from the country’s gas resources.

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“We’re looking at Train 7 right now, but we have begun discussions on what it would take to go to Trains 8, 9 and 10. “We have to keep growing. We have people in the company already working on what that future looks like,” he said.

NLNG boss also highlighted the company’s contribution to Nigeria’s economy since it commenced operations.

The company, he said, has generated more than $149.6 billion in revenue over the years, and paid close to $50 billion in dividends to shareholders, including to the federal government.

He said NLNG has also emerged as one of the highest corporate taxpayers in Nigeria since the expiration of its pioneer tax status, paying about $10 billion in taxes, while consistently earning recognition from the Federal Inland Revenue Service as one of the most tax-compliant companies in the country.

Falade stressed that Nigeria is still more of a gas nation than an oil nation but warned that having huge reserves alone would not guarantee future prosperity.

“We have gas resources in abundance, but what matters is what we do with them. The energy transition has not progressed far enough yet for there to be a window of opportunity to monetise these resources. “If we don’t act now, we may lose a lot of value,” he said.

He noted that while natural gas is widely recognised as the transition fuel in the global quest for cleaner energy, countries with substantial gas reserves must act quickly to develop infrastructure, attract investment and commercialise their resources.

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With the financing now secured, UTM Offshore says it is on track to make a Final Investment Decision on Nigeria’s first floating LNG project in September, with construction expected to start in the first quarter of next year. Julius Rone, Group Managing Director said during Nigeria Oil and Gas Week in Abuja that the project will support gas monetisation, reduce gas flaring, strengthen domestic Liquefied Petroleum Gas supply and position Nigeria as a more attractive destination for energy investment.

UTM Offshore has set a goal of a final investment decision in September on what would be Nigeria’s first floating liquefied natural gas project, a critical move for a development that the firm says could unlock stranded offshore gas, cut flaring and boost domestic fuel supply.

“The project now has financing in place, which gives it the momentum to move from agreements and contracting into execution,” UTM Offshore Group Managing Director Julius Rone told CNBC Africa on the sidelines of Nigeria Oil and Gas Week in Abuja.

“Today is a great day for not only Nigeria but the world because signing this gas agreement underpins that this project can go to the next stage,” Rone said, adding that the deal provides the certainty needed to move the project through final investment decision, financing closeout and construction.Rone said UTM Offshore is targeting a FID in September, with more milestones to come before year-end.

He said the company expects to sign the gas supply agreement and the engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning contract before Christmas, which will allow construction to start in the first quarter of next year.

The timeline is crucial for Nigeria’s gas sector, which has struggled for years to monetize large offshore resources, much of them stranded by limited infrastructure. Floating LNG, or FLNG, is designed to process natural gas at sea, close to the field location, so companies can liquefy and export gas without waiting for long onshore pipelines and processing plants.

“Rone pitched the project as a strategic solution to that challenge. He said Nigeria has “a lot of gas resources that are stranded offshore”. FLNG, he said, offers a proven way to process gas where it is produced, export volumes bound for international buyers and channel some products back into the domestic market.

One of the most concrete local benefits UTM Offshore refers to is the supply of liquefied petroleum gas. Rone said over 300,000 tons of LPG would be sent back to Nigeria to support the domestic market. This could reduce the country’s reliance on imported LPG, while also increasing access to cleaner cooking fuel for households.

The domestic angle is becoming more important as Nigeria seeks to increase the use of gas under its wider energy transition strategy. LPG is a cleaner alternative to traditional biomass fuels typically used in homes and greater penetration could help reduce indoor air pollution and deforestation.

The project could provide industrial and social benefits consequently, Rone said. He said the development would improve LPG availability, which would support the adoption of cleaner cooking and help households, especially women in rural and underserved communities, transition away from more polluting and less efficient energy sources.

UTM Offshore also framed the project as an environmental play, especially on the issue of gas flaring. Rone said that some of the gas earmarked for the project is being flared today, so the FLNG facility will capture gas that would otherwise be wasted and convert it into LNG and LPG.

“Automatically you’re saving the environment,” he said.

Gas flaring has long been a thorn in the side of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, inviting criticism from regulators, communities and climate-conscious investors. Converting flare gas and rejected gas to commercial products can improve project economics and help address pressure on producers to reduce emissions and improve environmental performance.

Rone said the company has done a lot of environmental, social and governance work on the project, and has built eco-friendly systems into the floating LNG facility to minimize harm to surrounding communities and marine environments. “The design is to prevent water pollution and damage to the environment within the operating area of the project,” he stated.

Besides the first development, UTM Offshore has also expressed wider ambitions to develop a pipeline of FLNG projects in Nigeria. The company is already considering “Project 2 and Project 3” to succeed the first installation, Rone said, referring to the offshore LNG development history in Mozambique where a number of floating LNG projects have been implemented after the first one.

He said the strategy is around offshore stranded gas and fits with a broader push in Nigeria to focus on gas development. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company is a partner in the project with a 20% stake along with other stakeholders, Rone noted and said the latest gas deal should help open the door to the construction phase.

The comments follow a renewed focus by investors on African energy projects aiming to diversify supply in the face of geopolitical disruptions. “The recent instability affecting traditional energy routes has increased international interest in Africa as an alternative source of supply,” Rone said.

“There is a huge flow of investment into the African continent,” he said, adding that he believed the next 12 months could see a flood of capital as global buyers and investors looked for new reliable sources of exports.

As for Nigeria specifically, Rone said trusted local partnerships would be key to international investors. “UTM is a credible local operator that has worked to build its reputation and attract global capital,” he said, adding that Nigeria is becoming more aligned with international business standards.

His message was that the country is more open for business, with greater investor confidence and fewer concerns that previously deterred foreign participation. How much of that optimism translates into project execution will likely come down to whether UTM Offshore meets its September FID target and lands the commercial and engineering deals needed to begin construction in early 2026.

If so, the project would be a milestone for Nigeria’s gas industry: the launch of its first floating LNG development and a potentially important test case for how the country can commercialize offshore gas, reduce flaring and deepen its position in global energy markets.

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