
Article
By Alex C
The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited has generated over $50billion for the Nigerian economy since October 1999, when it exported its first LNG cargo, Pride Magazine investigations reveal. The company which exported its 1000th cargo in December 2006, exported its 2000th cargo in October 2010 and 3000th cargo in January 2014.
In a bid to diversify the nation’s revenue base and monetise gas resources in Nigeria, NLNG now owns $14 billion of assets in Bonny Island of Rivers State.
These revelations, contained in the company’s ‘2014 Facts and Figures’ report, reveal that the company paid $13 billion in dividends with another $11 billion earned as feed gas sales revenue. While over $10 billion expenditure was spent in the local economy on goods, services and salaries of thousands of staff employed, the company paid a corporate income tax of over N200 billion annually.
With the Rivers State Government earning over N6 billion annually from personal income taxes, the Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State earns over N88 million annually as tenement rate from NLNG.
The company had been an arrow-ahead in the Federal Government’s quest to eliminate gas flaring and derive value from the nation’s 187 trillion cubic feet of a proven gas reserves. Nigeria LNG’s near term expansion plans which include a construction of seventh train to complement the existing six- train structure that when in full operation, will up the ante of the company’s total production capacity to 30 million tonnes per annum ( MTPA) of LNG.
Over the years, the company has committed to a 67 percent increase in volume supplied to 250,000 tonnes of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG). This has increased the benefit in environmental (deforestation), health (respiratory), kerosene cost about $3.5billion subsidy and increase in investments and job creation (improvement in cooking gas value).
NLNG has 23 LNG vessels which constitute the largest shipping fleet in the country. Out of the 23 vessels, 13 are owned by NLNG’s subsidiary, which is Bonny Gas Transport, while the 10 others are long term leased vessels.
All 23 ships load at NLNG Terminal in Bonny for delivery in Europe, South America, Gulf of Mexico, United State, Middle East and Asia. This development has created several job opportunities platform for many Nigerian seafarers through shipboard placements on BGT vessels.
The NLNG Ship Management Limited (NSML) was responsible for resourcing, developing and manning shipboard personnel for BGT Ships. Currently, the company had entered into partnership with Hyundai and South Korean companies to train Nigerian captains and cadets in order to be able to compete internationally.
Image: https://www.shippingherald.com