By Abbanobi -Eku Onyekachi, Abuja
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has told the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, on Monday that Nigeria needs an injection of $200 billion into its gas infrastructure to maximize its natural resources. As the ninth highest gas producer in the world and the largest in Africa, the country’s current infrastructure is insufficient to meet its gas production potential.
According to Dr. Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, Executive Secretary of NEITI, the required infrastructure for maximizing gas resources in the country is not available. “Based on NEITI’s findings, Nigeria needs to invest at least $20 billion per year into gas infrastructure for ten years,” he stated, adding that the investment will be used to construct gas pipelines along and across the West African sub-region and beyond, which is a huge expenditure.
In the area of solid minerals, the Senate Committee on Public Accounts expressed dissatisfaction with the less than 1% contribution of proceeds from solid minerals to GDP on a yearly basis. The committee described this contribution as “unacceptable” and called for a complete overhaul of the sector.
Dr. Orji Ogbonna Orji noted that the solid minerals sector is not generating the desired revenue for the country, with yearly proceeds contributing less than 1% to GDP. The committee questioned why certain states, including Nasarawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Plateau, and Bauchi, were omitted from the report, despite their known mineral activities.
When asked about the alleged $8.5 billion unremitted into the consolidated revenue fund by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Federal Inland Revenue Service, and Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission in 2023, Dr. Orji stated that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is already investigating the matter.
The NEITI report has highlighted the need for urgent investment in the gas sector and a complete overhaul of the solid minerals sector. With Nigeria’s natural gas reserves and renewable energy resources, the country has the potential to become a major player in the energy sector.
