Nigeria

Nigеria stands as thе riсhest nаtiоn in Afriсa in tеrms оf natural gas resоurces аnd plays a lеading rоle in thе glоbal liquefiеd natural gas (LNG) sесtоr. With prоven rеservеs аmоunting tо 210 trilliоn cubiс fееt (Tсf) and a pоtеntial rеsоurce estimate reаching as high as 600 Tcf, Nigеria surpasses all оther Afriсаn nаtiоns in gаs resеrvеs and is rankеd amоng the tоp ten wоrldwidе.

Fоr many yеars, а significant pоrtiоn оf this vаluаble resоurce remаinеd unusеd, еithеr being flared, rеinjeсtеd, оr hindered by insuffiсiеnt infrastructurе. Hоwever, this situatiоn is bеginning tо сhаnge.

Thrоugh a dual pоlicy apprоаc, thе Fеderаl Gоvеrnmеnt's Decade оf Gаs initiative (2021–2030) and the NNPC's Gas Mаster Plan 2026, Nigeria hаs priоritizеd nаtural gas as a key elеmеnt оf its strаtеgy fоr ecоnоmiс transfоrmatiоn. Natural gаs prоduсtiоn has inсrеased frоm arоund 6.8 billiоn cubic fеet per day (bcf/d) in 2023 tо 7.5 bcf/d in 2025, with а natiоnаl gоal sеt аt 12 bcf/d by 2030.

Numerоus signifiсаnt upstream prоjects havе reасhеd the Final Investment Deсisiоn stage, majоr infrаstructure develоpmеnts arе аpprоaсhing cоmpletiоn, and Nigеriа is establishing itself аs a сentrаl plаyеr in аn intеgrаted Africаn gаs mаrket.

$377.4 bn

GDP

~215 Tcf (9th globally)

Proven Gas reserves, 9th globally

~7.5 bcf/day

Gas production

10 bcf/day

2027 production target

12 bcf/day

2030 production target

2 mtpa

LNG export capacity (current)

30 mtpa

LNG export capacity, post Train 7

~7.5%

Gas flaring as share of total volumes, 2025

~1.8million

LPG consumption, metric tonnes per annum (2025)

3 million

LPG target, metric tonnes per annum (2030)

Powering the Future

Nigeria’s gas story is entering a new phase. With vast untapped reserves and a renewed focus on dedicated gas exploration, the country has the potential to become a major driver of energy access, industrial growth, and prosperity across Africa.

Main Infrastructure Projects

Explore the key infrastructure projects powering Nigeria’s gas sector.

Bonny Island, Rivers State — Nigeria

2025-06-14

NLNG Train 7

Ajaokuta, Aduna State, Kano State

2020-01-01

Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline

Offshore Akwa Ibom State

2026-01-01

UTM FLNG Project

NLNG Train 7

2025-06-14

Bonny Island, Rivers State — Nigeria

Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline

2020-01-01

Ajaokuta, Aduna State, Kano State

UTM FLNG Project

2026-01-01

Offshore Akwa Ibom State

Leadership

Meet the key government officials and regulatory leaders shaping Nigeria’s energy sector, from national policy and petroleum resources to upstream, midstream, and downstream regulation.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu

President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri

Honourable Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil)

Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo

Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas)

Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan

Commission Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Council (NUPRC)

Mr Rabiu Abdullahi Umar

Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA)

Mrs. Olu A. Verheijen

Special Adviser to the Nigerian President on Energy

Nigeria Gas & Power Infrastructure Map 2026

A comprehensive overview of Nigeria's gas and power infrastructure, highlighting key assets, major projects and strategic investment opportunities across the value chain.

Nigeria's Gas Leaders

Shaping Nigeria's Future

Roger Brown

CEO

Seplat

Pulak Sen

Vice Chairman

Power Gas

Abiodu Oshodi

ILF

Africa's largest proven reserves of natural gas

Nigeria's gas reserves potential makes it Africa's biggest gas market

Strategic initiatives and infrastructure challenges

To support its energy transformation, economic diversification and industrialisation agendas, Nigeria has embarked on an ambitious mission to enhance gas penetration, reduce energy costs, and promote cleaner energy sources.

Central to this strategy is the "Decade of Gas" initiative launched in 2021, which aims to position natural gas as a cornerstone of national development until 2030. This initiative is bolstered by the 2021 Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) – an overhaul of Nigeria’s oil & gas legal framework – and recent executive orders from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu providing better incentives to produce gas, including the removal of gasoline subsidies. However, the country’s gas infrastructure remains underdeveloped, posing a significant challenge to achieving these goals.

Historically, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and International Oil Companies (IOCs) have dominated the gas sector, driving infrastructure development through substantial investments in pipeline and processing infrastructure. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, these investments led to the construction of a backbone gas network linking production centres in the Niger Delta in the Southeast to the consumption and industrial centres in the Southwest, and to the commissioning of the Nigeria LNG terminal, the Escravos Gas-to-Liquids plant, and several gas-to-power plants.

Yet, NNPC’s financial constraints and IOCs’ shift away from Nigerian onshore to focus on deepwater developments are reshaping midstream and downstream infrastructure development dynamics.

State-owned NNPC ambitions to expand the backbone network to connect states in the Middle Belt and in the North but securing financing for such plans has become increasingly challenging. Its landmark pipeline project to connect South and North, the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, has demonstrated the complexity of developing critical gas infrastructure projects in today’s environment. The 614km pipeline is currently under-construction but faces financing constraints that affect its timeline, despite its ability to provide gas to all industries in the Northern states and unlock feedstock for 3.6 GW of future power generation capacity.

Despite their deep pockets, IOCs in Nigeria have rationalized their portfolio and have little appetite to expand the country’s midstream and downstream gas infrastructure. Their investments are largely driven by the need to provide feedstock to Nigeria LNG – of which TotalEnergies, Shell and Eni are shareholders. Shell is the only exception given that its subsidiary Shell Nigeria Gas operates some 150km of downstream gas pipeline network supplying over 140 industrial and commercial customers.

Yet, NNPC’s financial constraints and IOCs’ shift away from Nigerian onshore to focus on deepwater developments are reshaping midstream and downstream infrastructure development dynamics.

Securing future gas supply in the face of growing demand

Nigeria’s projections expect its gas supply gap to materialize from 2025 and reach anywhere between 2 Bcf/d to 12 Bcf/d by 2030, depending on economic growth patterns and the pace of infrastructure commissioning. Under-construction projects like Nigeria LNG’s seventh train and the AKK pipeline will already put pressure on the gas sector in the short-term, but several upcoming LNG, power, fertilizer, petrochemicals, methanol and cement plants could significantly affect demand by the end of the decade.

Unfortunately, investment in gas supply has been scarce due to the economics of gas drilling and production in Nigeria. Most of the country’s gas producers are owed millions of dollars in debt for gas delivered over the years to the power sector – Nigeria’s largest gas off-taker and consumer. In 2024, the Tinubu Administration announced a gradual clearing of the ₦ 3.3 tn (US$2 bn) power sector debts, but gas producers will need assurance of future sector liquidity and bankability to justify new gas drilling programmes.

Nigeria’s gas production also relies largely on associated gas and is subject to oil sector disruptions. In that context, incentivising non-associated gas (NAG) production – which currently represent 40% of gas production - is becoming ever more critical. This necessarily puts the focus offshore, where several NAG discoveries are waiting to be developed in shallow and deep-water.

Public sector constraints coupled with the rationalization of IOCs’ investments are also affecting future gas supply dynamics. Most gas-rich onshore assets that were previously developed by IOCs are now operated by Nigerian companies, including state-owned NNPC E&P and independents like Seplat Energy, ND Western, Neconde Energy, Oando Energy Resources, Amni International, Newcross, First E&P or Heirs Energies. Together, they represent a key pillar of Nigeria’s future gas supply and infrastructure but are more likely to consolidate their oil production and cashflow before focusing on gas developments.

Seplat Energy followed such a pattern and commissioned in 2024 the 300 MMscf/d ANOH gas processing plant in partnership with NNPC’s Nigerian Gas Infrastructure Company (NGIC). The Nigerian independent is currently expanding its gas business to capitalise on its robust position established in oil production over the past decade.

A mushrooming of private midstream and downstream gas ventures

Under President Tinubu, the Nigerian government is prioritizing gas as a transitional fuel, supported by substantial private sector investments in gas infrastructure.

Such private participation has so far focused on laying private gas pipeline distribution networks within industrial and commercial clusters in the Southeast and Southwest and developing virtual CNG networks towards the Middle Belt and Northern states where gas pipelines are not available.

Under the Decade of Gas and following policy reforms of the Tinubu Administration, the segment is witnessing growing projects activity to expand CNG infrastructure by promoting public-private partnerships with NNPC or its subsidiaries (NGML, NGIC, NNPC Retail) and encouraging new private ventures to invest in gas infrastructure. Participation from a wider range of small and medium-size developers coupled with limited backbone infrastructure means that small-scale gas projects are on the rise in Nigeria, driven by the need to deliver LNG, CNG and LPG to industries scattered across the country.

These developments have given rise to several domestic businesses like Axxela, NIPCo or Powergas Africa, three of Nigeria’s most dynamic private gas companies. Over 2023-2024, several new projects have broken ground or been commissioned by the likes of Optimera Energy, Tetracore Energy Group or Greenfuels.

The private sector is also keen on tapping into gas export opportunities, which are more lucrative. The pipeline of LNG export projects in Nigeria has exploded in recent years with both onshore ventures (Padah LNG, Riverside LNG) or floating LNG projects (UTM FNLG, Golar LNG etc).

Under President Tinubu, the Nigerian government is prioritizing gas as a transitional fuel, supported by substantial private sector investments in gas infrastructure.

Looking Ahead

Nigeria’s path to harnessing its gas potential is fraught with both challenges and opportunities. The "Decade of Gas" initiative, supported by policy reforms and private sector collaboration, aims to transform the country’s energy landscape. By balancing export ambitions with domestic needs, the country can drive industrialization and achieve sustainable economic growth. Continued investment in infrastructure and robust policy support will be crucial in realizing the full potential of Nigeria’s gas sector.