Nigeria’s ambition to deepen gas utilisation and position the country as a major supplier within Africa’s emerging energy market faces a critical commercialisation test, as industry stakeholders highlight the need to match rising production with infrastructure, demand creation and regional cooperation.
 
The country may ship more of its gas resources to Europe and other parts of the world following the advance of three critical projects valued at $30.5 billion. 
 
Speaking at the 25th NOG Energy Week in Abuja, stakeholders said Nigeria’s gas growth strategy must move beyond production targets to building a sustainable market that could support power generation, industrial development and cross-border energy trade.
 
The Executive Vice President, Gas, Power and New Energy, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Olalekan Ogunleye, said the country’s target of achieving 12 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d) gas production by 2030 would require coordinated interventions across the value chain, stressing that increasing output alone would not deliver the desired impact.
 
“The target to produce 12bcf of gas per day by 2030 is actually tied to the presidential mandate in relation to gas development, and there are also other targets required to invest in,” Ogunleye said.

He added that the target was not only about production growth but also ensuring increased utilisation of gas resources across various sectors.
 
According to him, ongoing interventions, including the NNPC Gas Consortium and partnerships, were designed to create a structured pathway towards achieving the target.
 
Ogunleye noted that achieving the production target would create additional gas supply for electricity generation, industries and other energy applications.
 
“In return, it means that between now and the end of 2030, we will be able to increase gas production significantly. That means there will be more gas for power generation, more gas for industries, and not just petroleum, but many other energy applications,” he added
 
He also emphasised that Nigeria’s gas strategy was tied to regional opportunities, given the country’s geographical advantage and proximity to markets.
 
“Because of our geographical proximity to markets, we must take advantage of our location and mature and actualise these great export projects,” Ogunleye said.
 
Meanwhile, the Managing Director, West African Gas Pipeline Company Limited (WAGPCo), Abbey Bodunrin, projected increased gas supply flows from Nigeria into the West African region, as the company seeks to maximiseutilisation of the 690-kilometre pipeline linking Nigeria, Benin, Togo and Ghana.
 
Bodunrin said the pipeline, which has been in commercial operation since 2011, had helped advance the vision of regional energy cooperation.
 
Director-General of Morocco’s National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines, Amina Benkhadra, said Africa’s vast gas resources had not translated into sufficient economic benefits, largely due to infrastructure and integration challenges.
 
She said the proposed African Gas Pipeline project could accelerate access to energy, support industries and strengthen economic development across the continent.
WHILE UTM Offshore yesterday secured a 15-year gas supply agreement for a final investment decision on its $3 ‌billion Liquid Natural Gas project, Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said key conclusions had been reached on the $25 billion Nigeria-Morocco pipeline and another $2.5 billion Nigeria-Equatorial Guinea Gas Pipeline. 
 
This comes as the Federal Government struggles to drive domestic gas utilisation expansion, including completion of the Ajaokuta -Kaduna-Kano pipeline, as well as the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) Gas Pipeline, which are expected to fuel power generation, drive gas-based industries and stop export of cooking gas.
 
The government also seeks to capitalise on rising global demand for natural gas following Europe’s efforts to diversify energy supplies away from traditional sources amid increasing interest in lower-carbon transition fuels.
 
At the NOG conference in Abuja yesterday, Ekpo said Nigeria had reached key milestones on both regional pipeline projects, describing them as strategic infrastructure that would transform the country’s gas industry.
 
“These projects represent strategic arteries of shared African prosperity, resilience and global relevance,” Ekpo said, adding that they would unlock stranded gas resources while enhancing regional integration and economic cooperation.
 
The Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline, also known as the Africa-Atlantic Gas Pipeline, is one of Africa’s most ambitious energy infrastructure projects, but may face critical security challenges amid unrest in the Sahel and rising regional tensions. 
 
Stretching between 5,600 and 6,900 kilometres along the West African coastline, the pipeline is expected to connect Nigeria’s enormous gas reserves to Morocco before linking with existing European gas networks.
 
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had earlier disclosed that President Bola Tinubu and Morocco’s King Mohammed VI were expected to sign an intergovernmental agreement during the fourth quarter of 2026, following the completion of preliminary technical studies.
 
The development followed discussions between the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and her Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, highlighting renewed diplomatic efforts to move the long-delayed project into its implementation phase.
 
The second regional initiative, the Nigeria-Equatorial Guinea Gas Pipeline, estimated at $2.5 billion, is expected to further strengthen regional energy trade while creating additional export routes for Nigerian gas that currently remains stranded due to inadequate evacuation infrastructure.