Nigeria strengthens energy industry: Major fertilizer project with global participation

Nigeria has reached an agreement with a number of international joint venture (JV) partners on a gas supply deal aimed at supporting the construction of a planned $3.5 billion fertilizer and petrochemical plant on Brass Island in Bayelsa State. The ambitious project not only promises to boost the monetization of natural gas but also aims to reduce the country's dependency on fertilizer imports. Significant JV partners include industry giants such as Shell, TotalEnergies, and Eni. According to Nicholas Agbo Ella, the Permanent Secretary of the Nigerian Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the gas sales agreement is expected to generate annual revenues of at least $1.5 billion from petrochemicals and other gas-based products. Another aspect of the project is the notable reduction of fertilizer imports by 30 percent, which would save Nigeria approximately $200 million annually in foreign exchange. Ella emphasized the contract's significance as a major advancement in efforts to utilize Nigeria's vast gas reserves. The methanol project is operated by the Brass Fertilizer & Petrochemical Company (BFPCL), while ExxonMobil is further engaging with a $10 billion investment in offshore oil projects in Nigeria. The focus is on the Owo project, a major deepwater project that aims to increase oil production by 50,000 barrels per day in the coming years. Meanwhile, the Nigerian oil sector faces challenges such as measurement inaccuracies, acts of sabotage, and production adjustments, which led to a loss of 362 million barrels of crude oil between 2014 and 2023. According to the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, these losses amount to about 992,000 barrels daily. Part of the longer-term strategy is to secure supply for industries and power plants, increase exports, and end routine gas flaring by 2030.