The Nigerian government has announced the relaunch of its gas flare commercialisation programme.
The government launched the National Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme in 2016 to involve third-party investors or off-takers in harnessing gas released as a byproduct of oil production.
The programme was one of the government’s initiatives to drive the attainment of zero routine gas flaring by 2035 and net zero emissions by 2060 in the country.
The government said 226 companies submitted bids before the project was suspended at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The government now says it will award contracts by the end of December under an accelerated programme.
Gbenga Komolafe, chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, said in a statement that, “A comprehensive audit of the flare gas portfolio and facilities’ disposition across the industry, as well as an in-depth assessment of the prevailing operational realities in producing areas and changes in the wider macro-economic environment, has been carried out by the Commission; towards charting the optimum path forward for the Programme.”
The regulator said it has issued “Request for Qualification” form on its website for companies to complete.
The RFQ provides updated guidelines that will assist investors to package their Statement of Qualification (SOQ) submissions and enable them to proceed to the next phase of the Programme.
Applicants who previously submitted bids under the first launch would be deemed pre-qualified once they meet the basic requirements for status validation.
Winners will be announced in December.
