A stronger coordination in regulation, infrastructure, market design and financing is imperative to build a liquid, creditworthy and investable domestic gas market by 2028, the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, Falcon Corporation Limited, has said.

Joe-Ezigbo spoke in Lagos, where she said Nigeria had established much of the policy and regulatory framework needed to develop its domestic gas market.

However, she stressed that the next phase would depend on implementation, reliable gas delivery, commercial discipline and investor confidence.

She cited the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the evolving fiscal regime, NNPC’s Gas Master Plan 2026, the Domestic Base Price framework and the planned transition to a willing-buyer, willing-seller market in September 2028 as key building blocks.

However, “the real measure of progress will not be the size of our reserves or the number of announcements we make but the gas delivered to the customer, invoices paid when due, and the capital that the market has enough confidence to keep,” she stated.

“That is how Nigeria builds a functioning domestic gas market and earns global leadership.”

She identified deliverability, creditworthy demand, market design, market access, and capital and competitiveness as the five issues that would determine the success of the domestic gas market.

On infrastructure, she said Nigeria could achieve faster gains by maximising existing assets through stronger gathering systems, compression, gas conditioning and improved access to available processing capacity.

Joe-Ezigbo also identified payment certainty in the power sector as critical to attracting investment in gas production and midstream infrastructure.

Moreover, she emphasised the need to strengthen the last mile of the gas value chain through distribution networks, virtual pipelines, liquefied petroleum gas infrastructure and compressed natural gas deployment to expand access.