The Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben Gas Pipeline project is scheduled to be completed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited as a significant step in increasing the countrywide gas supply to promote industrialization and economic growth.
This was confirmed on Saturday by the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mr. Mele Kyari, in a post on the official X handle of the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye.
Kyari made this statement during an inspection tour of the OB3 pipeline River Niger Crossing operation at Aboh, Delta State.
The Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS) in the west and the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Pipeline in the north are connected to the Eastern gas pipeline network by design through the OB3 Gas pipeline.
The River Niger Crossing operation has been the major impediment to the completion of the strategic OB3 Gas Pipeline for over three years due to the failure of the various technologies deployed to achieve the construction of the 48-inch pipe under the riverbed between Ndoni in Rivers State and Aboh in Delta State.
In his speech after the inspection tour, Kyari expressed her joy at the development, which suggests that the project would soon be finished.
Kyari said “This is a major project of monumental value to our country. What this means is that this is the only way we can deliver the gas revolution. I am very happy and convinced that, latest by the middle of August, we will complete this project. I have been assured of that by the project team.
“Once completed, we will see about 2.2 billion standard cubic feet of gas coming into our network. We believe that this will give our country a breathing space of demand, I am sure we can catch up with that kind of demand in the next one and a half years. We are happy that this will give us the platform to unleash the gas revolution in our country.”
Also speaking on the project, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo, expressed satisfaction with the pace of work at the OB3 River Niger Crossing operation, describing it as “Renewed Hope at work”.
“I was here last year, and I saw the work that was going on. There was a promise that it would be completed by December last year. I took it with a doubt. But today, from what I can see, I am confident that by July or August, it will be completed, and it will be commissioned by the President”, the Minister stated.
In her remark, the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen expressed her excitement for the project’s completion, citing assurances from the technical team that the appropriate technology has been identified to address the intricate problems associated with the River Niger Crossing.
Verheijen noted, “As the Minister and other speakers have said, we are looking forward to having this project deliver prosperity to Nigerians in the form of electricity and other areas.”
Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Tunnel Service Group (TSG), one of the contractors for the project, Mr. Ingo Justen, who supervises the project at the request of the GCEO, expressed optimism that the project would be completed quickly because of the current technology being used.
