Nigeria’s major gas facility belonging to Anglo Dutch giant, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), has been shut down. Shell Petroleum also shut down its Soku Gas Plant to repair pipelines damaged by Niger Delta vandals.
The country’s Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd (NLNG), supplier of around 10 per cent of the world’s Liquified Natural Gas, declared forced cut-down on gas delivery to its customers.
It is also reported that Nigeria’s gas export will also suffer setbacks as Nigeria’s Liquified Natural Gas in Bonny Island plant, the third world’s largest, supplies gas to mostly European customers including in Spain, Turkey, France and Portugal.
Its biggest customer, the Italian electric power giant ENEL, had agreed to buy 3.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year of LNG for over 22 years.
NLNG, which exports 22 million tonnes per year of compressed gas, said it had warned buyers that it was bound to lose some cargoes as a result of Shell’s shut-in.
SPDC is in a joint venture with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Total’s unit Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited and Italy’s Agip.
The power generation has already dropped by over 800 megawatts owing to inadequate gas supply to two big power Stations in Sapele and Egbin in the Niger Delta.
Explaining the current epileptic power supply, the Management of Power Holding Company of Nigeria, said in a statement that the recent increase in load shedding nationwide is due to the disruption of gas supply to two big power stations in the country.
‘As a result of this gas supply limitation, we are losing about 800 mw generation capacity from the national grid as Sapele Power Station is completely shutdown while Egbin is running at reduced capacity,’ the statement said.
‘Consequently, we have no alternative than to adhere strictly to the nationwide 12-hourly zonal power rotational rationing to maintain system stability and ensure even distribution of the limited generation output from the functioning plants,’ the statement added
