The Federal Government on Tuesday began it’s ambitious development of the economy of the southeast region with the signing of over 100 million dollars gas pipelines project in the region.

President Bola Tinubu declared that the over 400 kilometres pipelines from spanning from Ohaji in Imo State, through Anambra, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi States is part of the efforts of his administration to build an industrial economy in which affordable energy becomes a foundation for investment, competitiveness and employment.

At the signing of the project, which is a partnership between the South East Development Commission (SEDC), NNPC and Gas Syc Limited, the President declared: “Our ambition is not simply to deliver gas to existing factories. It is to make possible factories that do not yet exist, industrial parks yet to be developed, and investments that have remained on the drawing board because reliable energy was unavailable”.

Represented by the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, he stated that the true value of the nation’s gas is in the factories it powers, the jobs it creates and the prosperity it brings to the people.

“Gas infrastructure must therefore serve industries and markets, not stop at political boundaries. That is the economic logic of regional integration.
But our ambition must go further.

“Our ambition is not simply to deliver gas to existing factories. It is to make possible factories that do not yet exist, industrial parks yet to be developed, and investments that have remained on the drawing board because reliable energy was unavailable. We must build an industrial economy in which affordable energy becomes a foundation for investment, competitiveness and employment”, he said

He continued: “With the Assa North–Ohaji South gas processing project in Imo State achieving first gas earlier this year, we have an important opportunity to connect domestic gas resources to productive industries. The proposed South East Gas Distribution Pipeline Project seeks to do precisely that.

It aims to develop a regional gas distribution network serving industrial and commercial users across Imo, Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi States.

“Consider what this could mean: More competitive manufacturing in Aba.

Stronger industrial clusters in Nnewi and Onitsha. New investment and productive enterprises in Enugu. Greater opportunities for agro-processing and manufacturing in Ebonyi. A stronger connection between Imo’s gas resources and the wider regional economy. These are not five separate economies. They are parts of one interconnected economic region.

He said during one of his engagements with the region, the governors had called for gas infrastructure, saying he was grateful they could recognise that “we can realise some of our greatest economic opportunities only when we work together”.

Tinubu said that the reforms by his administration in the electricity sector are opening new opportunities for states and private investors to strengthen power supply.

“There is a sound familiar to every manufacturer in Aba, Nnewi, Onitsha, Enugu and across the South East. It is the sound of a generator.

“For decades, that sound has represented the extraordinary determination of a people who have refused to allow inadequate infrastructure to defeat their ambition. When electricity failed, they generated their own power. When infrastructure was lacking, they found alternatives. When capital was scarce, they mobilised resources and built enterprises that became the backbone of Nigerian commerce. The South East’s entrepreneurial spirit is one of Nigeria’s greatest economic assets.

“But resilience must never excuse inadequate infrastructure. Our manufacturers should not have to spend more on generating electricity than on expanding production. Our young entrepreneurs should not find that the greatest obstacle to their ambition is the cost of keeping their machines running”.

The South East has demonstrated what enterprise can achieve, stressing that the prosperity of the region is inseparable from the prosperity of Nigeria.

“When Aba’s industries thrive, when Nnewi’s factories expand, and when commerce flourishes in Onitsha, the entire Nigerian economy benefits. Nigeria cannot achieve its full economic potential while any region operates below its productive capacity. This conviction is central to our Renewed Hope Agenda. It informed my decision to assent to the legislation establishing the South East Development Commission in July 2024”, he added and solicited the commitment of the stakeholders to see the project through .

He commended the South East Development Commission for committing $3 million to the project and for establishing a framework to mobilise additional investment from state governments, institutions, and private investors for the project.

Managing Director of the SEDC, Dr Mark Okoye said through the South East Gas Distribution Pipeline Project, concrete step towards mobilising the investment required to connect the region’s natural gas resources with its industrial and commercial centres had been initiated.

He noted the transition from identifying regional development priorities to preparing projects, committing capital and building partnerships for their implementation, thanking the President for approving the SEDC.

He said the commission created an important institutional opportunity for the region to think beyond fragmented interventions and address the structural challenges that have constrained it’s economic

“We needed a shared regional vision, credible projects, investment capital and partnerships capable of delivering infrastructure at scale.That conviction informed our work on South East Vision 2050, developed through engagements with our Governors, State Governments, the private sector, development partners and other regional stakeholders.

“Across those engagements, certain priorities emerged consistently: reliable energy, stronger transportation networks, industrial development, security and greater economic opportunities.

“The gas infrastructure initiative before us today is one such. The project seeks to expand access to natural gas for industrial and commercial users across the five South East States, drawing initially on gas resources associated with the Assa North–Ohaji South development in Imo State, with the potential to connect additional gas resources within the region.Its initial phase has an estimated investment requirement of approximately 100 million United States dollars”, he added

Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Mbah, hailed Tinubu for establishing the SEDC, describing the commission as the institutional vehicle needed to realise the Southeast’s longstanding industrialisation aspirations.

“Tinubu loves the Igbo. The SEDC is a commission whose time has come. It was an idea conceived many decades ago, but it took President Tinubu to establish this long-awaited dream of industrialisation of the Southeast,” Mbah said.

He described the signing of the investment agreement as the commencement of the investment process, adding that the initiative would help realise the region’s aspiration for a common market and coordinated industrial development.

“What we have just signed here today is an investment agreement, meaning that investment has commenced,” he said.

Mbah, who said he was excited that the project was advancing less than 13 months after he publicly advocated the idea, praised the commission for adopting an innovative financing model that brings governments and private investors together.

He said the project would create opportunities for young people to build their futures in the Southeast rather than migrate to other parts of the country in search of jobs.

“Before now, it was our young people running out of the region in search of greener pastures. But with what we have now, our young people can sit back and find their future here in the region. This is all thanks to President Tinubu,” he said.

The governor also commended Tinubu for supporting major infrastructure projects in the region, including the concessioning of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, to facilitate its development as an international aviation hub.

He disclosed that the airport’s cargo wing was expected to be ready in the first quarter of 2027.

Mbah assured the SEDC and its partners that the Southeast governors were committed to the pipeline project, promising to expedite right-of-way arrangements and environmental impact assessment approvals.

“We, the Southeast governors, are committed to this. We will ensure that the right of way and EIA are given accelerated approval,” he said.

Deputy Governors of Ebonyi, Anambra and Imo States, committed to the project.

Representing GasSync, the project promoter, Callistus Mba, said the pipeline would connect gas resources close to the Southeast to industrial users across the five states, reducing dependence on expensive road transportation of compressed and liquefied natural gas.

Mba explained that the proposed network would originate from the gas processing facilities in the Ohaji area of Imo State, run through Owerri and branch towards Aba in Abia State and Onitsha in Anambra State, with extensions to Enugu and Ebonyi.

He said the company planned to begin construction at two points simultaneously to accelerate delivery, following concerns raised by Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah that constructing the entire network sequentially from Imo could delay gas supply to other states.

“We are going to start at Ohaji and Onitsha at the same time,” he said, explaining that the approach would allow work towards Enugu and Ebonyi to progress alongside construction on the Imo and Anambra sections.

Mba said the company had identified about 150 prospective customers across the region and was engaging industries to secure demand for the gas. Among the prospective beneficiaries are manufacturing companies, power-generation facilities and agro-processing businesses.

He cited Geometric Power in Abia State among the companies with which engagement was already underway, adding that the project would also support plans to revive moribund industries in Enugu and develop agro-processing facilities in Ebonyi.

According to him, the pipeline’s design would accommodate potential gas resources within Enugu State, including opportunities associated with coal-bed methane, subject to further development.

On the implementation schedule, the GasSync representative said procurement activities had commenced, funding arrangements were advancing towards financial close, and engineering, procurement and construction preparations were progressing.

“We intend to start construction in the first quarter of 2027,” he said, projecting that construction would continue until the second quarter of 2028, when the project was expected to be ready for first gas delivery, subject to the completion of the necessary requirements.

He identified timely regulatory approvals, right-of-way arrangements, community engagement and coordination among federal and state authorities as critical to meeting the schedule, urging the governors and relevant institutions to facilitate permits and work with host communities along the pipeline route.