The Federal Government on Wednesday announced that the country’s total domestic gas demand was currently 4.482 billion standard cubic feet per day. It announced this in a statement issued in Abuja by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority on the new domestic gas demand requirement for Nigeria.
The Chief Executive, NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, said the requirements were jointly determined by all relevant stakeholders. He said the requirement, which was transmitted to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, showed that the power sector was pegged at 2.324 billion standard cubic feet per day; while gas-based industries was 1.125 billion standard cubic feet per day.
Others include the commercial sector, which was set at 1.034 billion standard cubic feet per day, while the total domestic gas demand requirement was 4.482 billion standard cubic feet per day.
The authority stated that the transmitted document had its reference number as NMDPRA/GMR/DGSU/V.1/34. The statement quoted Farouk as saying, “The determined domestic gas demand requirement for the strategic sectors for the year 2022 as presented below is transmitted to NMDPRA for prescribing and allocating the domestic gas delivery obligation among all lessees as stipulated in the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.”
The authority added that the stakeholders consulted include gas producing companies, gas transportation companies, gas off-takers and key regulators such as the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission and Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
The agency further explained that pursuant to Section 173 of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, the NMDPR was obligated to determine the domestic gas demand requirement which shall be the total amount of marketable natural gas required for all wholesale customers of the strategic sectors.