FG Insists on In-country EPC Work for $7bn NLNG Train 7 Plant

Chineme Okafor in Abuja

The federal government has said that the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) work for the planned $7 billion Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited Train 7 plant will be done in-country by mostly Nigerian companies.

The government through the Executive Secretary of Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote, said this Tuesday at a public workshop to discuss opportunities for the Nigerian content aspect of the NLNG Train 7 plant. The workshop was organised by the the NLNG.

Wabote said the era of building such big projects in modules abroad and then shipped to Nigeria to be coupled, was over.

He explained that the government would now assess such new projects with what has been achieved with the Egina Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) oil platform built by Total.

Wabote said: “I know how we insist on some of these local content requirements (from the international oil companies (IOCs). If you leave them alone, they will build this Train 7 in modules and then ship them from England or Netherlands and then take them straight to Bonny and couple them. That is not going to happen. We are going to build the Train 7 in-country because we have the capacity.”

He equally explained that the NCDMB was confident the NLNG Train 7 plant would come through unlike some other oil and gas projects that have been in the pipeline for years now.

The NLNG has been adjudged as one of Nigeria’s most successful corporate organisations. It is reportedly a private limited liability company owned by the federal government, represented by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) with 49 per cent stake; Shell – 25.6 per cent; Total – 15 per cent and Eni – 10.4 per cent.

Also, the company recently announced it was shopping for $7 billion to expand its operations, adding that the expansion project will see to the construction of an extra gas processing facility and investment in upstream gas production which will ensure sustainable supply of feed gas to its existing Trains 1 to 6 and the new train.

NLNG equally indicated that the target Final Investment Decision (FID) date for the new train is the fourth quarter of 2018.

Speaking at the workshop, NLNG’s Managing Director, Mr. Tony Attah, said that the company’s planned Train 7 project, which will increase production output of its plant by 35 per cent from 22 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 30 MTPA, will improve Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Nigeria.

He said 2019 would mark the company’s 30th year in existence and 20th year of operation as a global company.

The company, in a presentation on an overview of the Train 7 project, said opportunities exist for in-country fabrication of pressure vessels, pipes, and flare stack, among others.

In the area of procurement of equipment and materials, the company said in-country opportunities exist for Nigerian companies to supply cement, fuel, lubricants and vehicles including earth moving equipment.

In construction, it noted that opportunities exist in consulting services, installation, commissioning and inspection, testing and certification.

The NLNG said Nigerian companies can take advantage of opportunities to supply logistics including marine and air transport for thousands of workers that would be engaged when construction of the new train begins.