The Senate Committee on Gas has commended the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on the various gas development projects it has undertaken, especially the Ajaokuta- Kaduna- Kano (AKK) gas pipeline project. Speaking during the 2021 Budget Defense and Performance Appraisal meeting with officials of the Corporation which held at the National Assembly Complex, Chairman of the Committee, Senator James Manager, expressed satisfaction with the various gas development projects embarked upon by the NNPC despite the impact of Covid-19 on the oil and gas industry, saying: “We are proud of the AKK and some of your other projects”.
He said the interface between the committee and the NNPC would have been more frequent but for the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He seized the opportunity to reassure the Corporation that his committee would undertake an oversight visit to the projects for proper assessment soon. On his part, a member of the Committee, who is also the immediate past Chairman of the Committee, Senator Albert Akpan Bassey, said NNPC under the leadership of Mallam Mele Kyari has taken the Corporation to a new height by publishing the 2018 and 2019 Audited Financial Statements and for reducing losses by over 95 per cent. “I want to commend the team led by the present GMD, a team of dedicated and passionate Nigerians. If they can reduce losses drastically within such a short time, I am sure the next report will reveal huge profit to the country. We must give them our support and cooperation,” he stated.
Speaking earlier during a presentation, the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari, who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power, Engr. Yusuf Usman, attributed the success of the Corporation in the gas sector to the support and cooperation of the Committee and the entire legislature. He said gas supply to power has improved significantly, which was evident in the improved power supply currently being witnessed in the country. “We have significant gas in the network currently, but the challenge however, is transmission,” the COO stated. On the AKK pipeline project, Engr. Usman told the lawmakers that it was designed to supply 2billion cubic feet of gas per day (2bcfd), stressing that it would be the primary source of gas for the power plants currently being developed in Abuja, Kaduna and Kano.
