From Blessing Ibunge, Port Harcourt
A group from Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State under the aegis of G 30 Ibani Voice has described the the Final Investment Decision (FID) for the Train 7 Plus project of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited taken by the company’s shareholders in Abuja, Nigeria as “a good thing for the Bonny people” and “a major milestone opportunity for Bonny people.
President of the group, Dr Fubara Dan-Jumbo in a chat with newsmen, noted that the project in line with the ideals and principles of the group which was human capital development holds huge opportunities for the people of the area and called for constructive engagement from all stakeholders.
It would be recalled that the in Firday, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Shell, Total and ENI, took the Final Investment Decision for the construction of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG’s seventh gas plant, commonly called Train 7.
The train 7 project, according to the Managing Director And Chief Executive Officer Of NLNG, Mr Tony Attah, will increase NLNG’s production by 35percent and its competitiveness in the global LNG market.
Attah said the decision allows the expansion to increase the capacity of NLNG’s six-train plant from the extant 22 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) to 30 MTPA, with the award of contracts for the engineering, procurement and construction activities to follow the closure of bank and Export Credit Agency (ECA) financing, and the finalization of some key supporting commercial agreements expected in early 2020.
The NLNG boss stated that the construction period after FID will last approximately five years with first LNG rundown expected in 2024.
He explained that the actualisation of the Train 7 Project comes as NLNG celebrates 30 years of its incorporation and 20 years of safe and reliable operations since exporting its first LNG cargo in 1999.
“Train 7 is the crux of a growth agenda which will ensure the Company’s position as the 5th major supplier of global LNG is maintained, increasing value to its Shareholders and other stakeholders, as well as further reducing the gas that would otherwise have been flared, in fulfilment of its vision of ‘being a global company, helping to build a better Nigeria’.
“Over 12, 000 jobs will be created during the peak of construction, trade and commercial activities within the Niger Delta region equally receiving a boost as a result.
“The Project will also support the development of local engineering and fabrication capacity in the country. Other opportunities for local content include procurement, logistics, equipment leasing, insurance, hotels, office supplies, aviation, haulage, and many more’.
Meanwhile, the G30 Ibani Voice President has also noted that the project is a major milestone opportunity for the Bonny people with about 40,000 job spaces coming into the area.
“So, if it is followed accordingly, every youth in Bonny, even those that are graduates and non-graduates and those who want to empower themselves by getting new skills to be gainfully employed, will benefit from the project. And this is what we want for our people even though we know that it is a temporary thing.
“Apart from that it is also going to bring about a lot of businesses in the area. It is going to empower a lot of entrepreneurs in the kingdom.”
He, however, cautioned against disruption of educational pursuit by youths of the community, warning that such moves would be counterproductive for the progress and wellbeing of the community, urging the people of the area to learn from history.
“Don’t forget that sometime in July, we had a programme where we said that if this project comes the effect will be massive. And we also noted that while we are looking at all the things it will bring we need to also look at the negative side of the project and how to ensure that the education of our people remains intact.
“Our children should not say that the FID has been announced today and people in school should begin to drop out and say they want to go and work in the site. Our people should be very conscious about that. That also will affect our girls. They should not be dropping out because they hear that a lot of girls will be coming into the town and they will be making money based on prostitution. They should not drop out because it is a temporary project.
The G 30 Ibabi Voice leader lauded all stakeholders of NLNG for mustering the need resources and determination for the decision, noting that it will open a new vista of opportunities for job creation and businesses which will boost the economy of not only Bonny LGA but the nation as a whole.
