Nigeria’s ability to sustain its position in the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market and advance domestic gas projects will depend on production-ready infrastructure, operational efficiency and timely project execution, Iretomiwa Odusote, a Regional Segment Leader for Energies and Chemicals in West Africa has said.
Odusote made the remarks in an opinion article examining the future of West Africa’s gas industry, where she argued that the region’s substantial gas resources would need to be matched by infrastructure capable of supporting rapid project development and sustained production.
“Possessing abundant gas reserves alone is no longer enough. Operators are under increasing pressure to commercialise projects rapidly and generate returns on significant capital investments. Success will be measured by three key outcomes: speed to first gas, operational safety and reliability, and sustained production efficiency over the life of the asset,” he said.
Nigeria remains a major player in the global LNG market while pursuing domestic gas-to-power projects to support power generation and economic development.
According to the World LNG Report 2026 of the International Gas Union, cited by Odusote, Nigeria is the world’s seventh-largest LNG exporter, accounting for 3.4 per cent of global LNG exports.
Odusote, who works with Schneider Electric West Africa, said the race to bring new projects into production was becoming more important as global LNG markets became increasingly competitive.
He noted that Nigerian and other West African projects were now competing for investment capital and long-term customers with developments in the United States, Qatar, Australia, East Africa and other producing regions.
“The ability to deliver projects on schedule and begin production safely is becoming a genuine competitive advantage,” Odusote said.
He, however, stressed that achieving first gas would not by itself guarantee the long-term success of a project, as operators would still have to manage equipment reliability, energy consumption, production efficiency and maintenance after facilities become operational.
Odusote identified fragmented operational data and limited visibility across production processes as some of the issues that could undermine efficiency in gas facilities.
“Many facilities struggle with fragmented operational data, limited visibility across production processes, inefficient energy usage, and reactive maintenance practices. These issues often remain hidden until they begin affecting production, reliability, or profitability,” he said.
He said greater access to real-time operational information could allow operators to monitor equipment health, energy consumption, production efficiency and process performance from a unified operational environment.
“When operators can monitor equipment health, energy consumption, production efficiency and process performance from a unified operational view, they are better positioned to identify bottlenecks early, optimise performance and minimise unplanned downtime,” he said.
The executive also highlighted the need to integrate electrification systems, process automation, safety systems and digital technologies during project development, saying the traditional approach of treating them as separate workstreams could create integration challenges.
Odusote said the region’s gas opportunity would ultimately depend on its ability to convert reserves and investment into reliable, sustained production.
“The next generation of successful gas projects will be distinguished not only by the size of their reserves, but by how quickly they achieve first gas, how consistently they operate, and how effectively they leverage integrated infrastructure and digital technologies to sustain production over decades,” he said.
SOURCE: Guardian Nigeria