Ike Amosx
05 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Abuja — The Federal Government, Wednesday, said the recently approved National Gas Policy would remove the barriers affecting investment and development of the gas sector of the petroleum industry.
Director of Press in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Idang Alibi, in a statement in Abuja, said the new policy articulates the vision of the Federal Government of Nigeria, sets goals, strategies and an implementation plan for the introduction of an appropriate institutional, legal, regulatory and commercial framework for the gas sector.
He added that to ensure consistency in Government policy objectives at all times, the policy would be reviewed and updated periodically.
He maintained that the gas policy intends to move Nigeria from an oil-based economy to oil and gas-based industrial economy which would be driven by certain core principles.
The principles, he said, include: separating the respective roles and responsibilities of government and the private sector; establish a single independent petroleum regulatory authority and implement full legal separation of the upstream from the midstream.
He further stated that other principles include: implementing full legal separation of gas infrastructure ownership and operations from gas trading; realise more of the LNG international downstream value; pursue a project-based, rather than a centrally-planned domestic gas development approach and make a strong maintenance and safety culture a priority among others.
He added that the main aspects of the recently approved National Gas Policy cover: governance, as it relates to legislation and regulation; industry structure; development of gas resources; infrastructure; building gas markets; developing national human resources.”