Successful applicants for the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialization Program (NGCFP) have been advised to get familiar with key provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act to ensure that they comply with the Act in the execution of the projects.
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote gave the advice in the keynote address he delivered at a conference organised by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources for the applicants in Abuja on Monday.
He counselled them to imbibe the compliance mind set, noting that the Nigerian Content Act was designed to protect investors and not to frustrate business endeavours.
He said applicants should focus on technical safety in their operations adding that ”most operators will insist on top-notch technical assurance to show that you have the right systems in place to take over the flared gas from their facility.”
He further advised them to start with the number of flare sites they can handle and grow sustainably and to complete end-to-end thinking before submitting proposals, because centers for flares utilisation projects are usually at considerable distance from the flare sites.
Other nuggets from the Executive Secretary to the applicants include: ”be very creative with structuring your source of funding, it is most unlikely that you will get your funding from a single source. Data is king. Get the right resource to analyse and interpret the data set for your field/flare site of interest.
”Some aspects of the value chain is partially deregulated or not deregulated at all. Factor these into you financial models with realistic assumptions. Collaborate to divide and conquer. For example, you can focus on LPG extraction while you partner with someone else that uses the stripped gas for power generation.
”There are several technologies out there for gas processing. Beware of reliance on untested and unproven technology. Some communities have come to rely on the flare as source of heat for some of their activities, it is important to beware of this as you take over their ‘source of heat’.
”Some studies show that gas to power and LPG extraction are the most economic means of flare gas utilisation. Ensure you carry out a valid feasibility study of your preferred or target flare gas utilisation.”
The Executive Secretary also congratulated the applicants for scaling through the rigorous selection process which had seen only 25 percent of the companies that indicated interest in the program get to the next stage.
He quoted data from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources which indicated that if the 700MMsc/day of flared gas in Nigeria was properly harnessed, the nation can produce 600,000 MT of LPG per year and generate 2,500MW of power from new and existing independent power projects to serve the economy.
He further indicated that the Board’s Investment Policy devotes substantial portion of the Nigerian Content Development Fund (NCDF) to support project promoters in the areas of LPG penetration and power.
He said, “Our $200million Nigerian Content Intervention Fund is still available especially if you are a contributor to the NCDF. We are the custodian of the Project 100 initiative currently having 60 beneficiaries. The second batch of the program will be rolled out in Q1, 2020 to nurture and support businesses in areas of need such as Human Capacity Development, Access to Market, Funding, etc. You too can apply once the application details are published.”
He also encouraged partnerships and collaboration among the bidders, adding that some companies stand a better chance when they team to combine resources.
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