Data from the Energy Institute, a global professional organization for the energy sector, show that the Federal Government lost N3.3 trillion in gas revenue last year as a result of a decline in exports due to poor output.
According to The Punch, in its most recent report on the Statistical Review of World Energy, which was released in June, the Institute stated that liquefied natural gas exports fell by 16% to roughly 20 billion cubic meters last year, giving Nigeria a share of less than 4% in worldwide LNG exports.
“However, according to industry group the Energy Institute, gas output decreased by about 11% from the preceding year to 40.4 bcm in 2022, down from over 49 bcm a year in 2019 and 2020.
Due to a 20 billion cubic meter output shortfall, the average price of LNG in 2022 was $388 per thousand cubic meters, representing an estimated $7.8 trillion loss. As of the previous year, the average dollar-to-naira exchange rate was similarly N424 to $1. The estimated total revenue lost as a result of low LNG exports is N3.3 trillion.
Nigeria exports 3.7 billion cubic feet of gas per day via the West African Gas Pipeline and Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited to foreign locations.
7.8 billion cubic feet of gas are produced every day, while 2.2 billion cubic feet are reinjected every day. A daily average of 1.5 billion cubic feet of gas is consumed for both home and industrial purposes.
According to data from CEDIGAZ, global LNG commerce reached a new high in 2022, averaging 51.7 bcf per day, a 5% rise from 2021.
The US LNG shipments climbed the most among all LNG exporting nations in 2022, rising by 16 percent (1.4 Bcf/d) to 10.2 Bcf/d. After the new LNG export station at Calcasieu Pass was put into operation in the first half of 2022, the United States for the first time overtook other countries in LNG exports.
The second half of the year saw a fall in U.S. LNG shipments due to the closure of the Freeport LNG export station. The top two LNG exporters worldwide in 2022 continued to be Qatar and Australia; Qatar’s exports averaged 10.5 Bcf/d and Australia’s exports averaged 10.4 Bcf/d.
According to the Minister of State for Gas, Ekperikpe Ekpo, Nigeria has significant natural gas reserves and can boost its output to more than 5 billion cubic feet per day by 2030. He made this statement at the Gastech conference on Tuesday in Singapore.
“In Nigeria, the years 2020 to 2030 have been designated as the decade of gas. Thus, by 2030, we’ll produce 5.5 billion cubic feet a day, or 57 billion cubic meters annually,” according to Ekpo.
