Akwa Ibom is moving closer to having a local supply hub for Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). Nsik Oil & Gas Company Limited has taken delivery of critical equipment for its planned 10 million standard cubic feet per day (10 MMSCF/D) mother station in Esit Eket Local Government Area. The equipment arrived on Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
The Federal Government is expanding infrastructure and incentives to move Nigerians away from petrol. CNG is cheaper. It is cleaner. The government launched the Decade of Gas programme in 2021. It targets gas supply of 12.6 billion cubic feet per day by 2030. The Presidential CNG Initiative was launched in 2023. It aims to convert vehicles and build refuelling stations. Akwa Ibom has gas resources. It lacks distribution infrastructure. The Nsik project addresses that gap.
The project consultant, Mkposong Asuquo, spoke at the project site during the delivery of the first consignment. The equipment was manufactured by China-based Original Equipment Manufacturer, CIMC. The consignment includes four reciprocating compressors, dehydration and filtration systems, heat exchangers and four generating sets.
“We have our first set of equipment from CIMC China, all the way from Jiangsu Province,” Asuquo said. “We actually went there, we did the Factory Acceptance Test with the regulators from NMDPRA.” He said the equipment had been cleared and transported directly to the site. It will serve as the core of the facility’s compression and processing system.
The facility at Uquo Isi Edoho will compress gas. It will serve as the supply point for a network of stations planned across Akwa Ibom. The promoters have ordered two trailers for transporting compressed gas from the mother station to planned daughter stations. Asuquo said the model would allow the company to distribute CNG beyond the host community. “Our intention is also to feed most of the vehicles that are already CNG-powered,” he said.
The facility is about 500 metres from Frontier Energy and three kilometres from Savannah Energy’s Accugas facility. It will obtain its gas feedstock from Accugas. The project is an equity partnership between Nsik Oil & Gas and the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund.
Winners: Akwa Ibom, which gains energy infrastructure. Nsik Oil & Gas, which advances the project. Motorists, who gain a cheaper fuel option. The Federal Government, which advances its CNG agenda. Losers: Petrol marketers, who face competition. States without CNG infrastructure. Taxpayers, if the project requires subsidies. No serious losers if the hub works.
Bottom Line: Akwa Ibom is building a CNG hub. Equipment has arrived. The station will compress gas and supply daughter stations. The project supports the federal push for gas-powered transport. CNG is cheaper than petrol. The infrastructure is coming.