NLNG pledges more local cooking gas supply

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG, Philip Mshelbila, disclosed that the company is committed to supplying more liquefied petroleum gas into the domestic market to stop unclean cooking.

According to a statement, Mshelbila spoke at a global leadership panel on energy inclusion at the George R. Brown Convention Centre, Houston, Texas, United States.

 He stated that NLNG currently supplies almost 40 per cent of Nigeria’s LPG demand in-country, delivering over 400,000 tonnes.

‘’Our company’s focus on the domestic market solidifies its reputation as a top-tier global player. Also, by channelling the LPG, we are invariably displacing charcoal and wood burning, which release pollutants that cause about 1.6 million premature deaths annually,” he said.

The MD NLGN reiterated that developing nations like Nigeria would need huge investments in infrastructure development to drive their energy transition efficiently and equitably.

Mshelbila worried that the dearth of quality infrastructure like insufficient pipelines, storage, and regasification facilities, high costs of importing LNG, and energy poverty like limited access to affordable energy are key issues that must be addressed.

He affirmed that by addressing these challenges and leveraging on solutions, emerging economies can widen access to natural gas and support a lower-carbon energy transition and energy inclusion.

 He stressed that global energy policymakers must create energy equity and inclusion to ensure that the average African woman’s daily energy needs are met.

 On growing population and energy needs, he said, ‘’Nigeria’s population is estimated to grow to about 250 million in 2050, and most of them are young people who will need one form of energy, in one way or another.  So, it is expedient to have various energy sources to cater to this growing population.”

 He noted that the Nigerian government was doing all it could to meet the energy needs of its growing population, using natural gas as its transition fuel.