Nasarawa State Government, GACN, NNPC Sign MoU

A remarkable event of great economic importance took place yesterday in Lafia, the state capital of Nasarawa State, Nigeria, as the State Governor, Abdullahi A. Sule, hosted the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mele Kyari, and other key industry players at the Nasarawa Gas Roundtable.

The event was aimed at unlocking the enormous opportunities in the gas sector and positioning Nasarawa State as a key investment destination.

The core discussants looked at the gas value chain component and proposed strategic ways to collaborate on the development of a framework for gas utilization, distribution, and expansion channels that will optimize the sector’s potential.

At the roundtable discussion, the participants tabled the issues, challenges, and proffered solutions to leverage gas as the state seeks to embrace the future of energy while also setting the policy agenda for adoption that is critical to increasing productivity and competitiveness of the Nasarawa Gas Industry.

According to a press statement released by the MD/CEO, Nasarawa Investment & Development Agency (NASIDA)-Ibrahim A. Abdullahi, the Roundtable centered around the need for the state to tap into the ongoing Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) pipeline project, which is at an advanced stage, given that the pipeline passes through the Nasarawa corridor.

"In this regard, the need for engagement and sensitization of communities on the AKK corridor to optimize the opportunities through strategic partnerships and collaborations was emphasized."

"In line with this, and as a matter of deliberate policy, effort needs to be geared towards skill development and training on gas utilization for youths of Nasarawa State based on the AKK Gas Pipeline capacity requirement."

"Exploring virtual gas pipelines as a way to also optimize the gas value chain opportunity was also a key recommendation in terms of the future of gas."

A tripartite memorandum of understanding was signed between the Nasarawa State Government, the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company to ensure an actionable plan towards implementing the recommendations set out for the full optimization of the gas value chain opportunity. He emphasized

It is believed that this MOU will serve as an enabler for future collaboration for increased industrialization of the State.

It will also aid in the formation of a multi-party joint working team to drive the delivery of the MOU as well as the development of a short-term gas supply solution to support Nasarawa State's industrialization.