Nigeria: Market Driving Lots of Investments in Gas Infrastructure – GM Aggreko
Teryima Toryila, General Manager, Aggreko Nigeria, a global supplier of mobile and modular power, has said that market is driving lots of investments in gas infrastructure.
Toryila, however, opined that the government and other stakeholders have key roles to play to close gas infrastructure gap in Nigeria, and deepen domestic utilization of the resource.
He pointed out that deficit exists in the virtual pipeline required to move gas from where it is produced to where it is needed by end users across the country.
Toryila said: “There is a need for gas infrastructure to be consolidated upon. The market is driving a lot of investment in gas infrastructure, but the government and other stakeholders have a role to play to ensure that the required infrastructure such as generators is made available for gas utilization, especially across Nigeria.
“We also spoke about virtual pipelines, they are the trucks, the badges required to move gas from where it is produced, where there are no pipelines to where the end users require them across the country.
“There have been a lot of investment, but there is still a deficit in the virtual pipeline required to ensure that users of diesel today that want to covert to gas, are able to have gas supplied to them.”
The General Manager who spoke during an exclusive interview with Majorwaves on sidelines of the just concluded Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES), which held in Abuja, stated that although there have been numerous gas development plans and initiatives mapped out by successive governments in the country, the will to execute them has largely been missing.
He applauded the Federal Government for coming up with initiatives such as the Decade of Gas and the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) project which confirm its commitment to ensuring gas availability and accessibility; but noted that there is still much to be desired, as the development of Nigeria’s gas industry goes beyond beautiful and well-schemed plans but requires proper implementation.
“Like we have heard across various panels in the (NIES 2023) event, there are many plans; the decade of gas plan, the gas master plans have been there all these years but the will to implement has largely been missing.
“Today, the development you see in the market are primarily driven by the demand. Manufacturers and other users of diesel are being forced to switch to gas. So, the market is driving that change.
“Some progress has also been made like we talked about the AKK pipeline which is going to be a game changer, but it has to be executed and completed. We must ensure that these projects come to fruition,” he stated.
He also identified government policy and pricing as some challenges faced by stakeholders of the gas industry in Nigeria, while calling for consistency in government policies and synergy between government agencies as they cannot work in isolation.
“Clearly there is the issue of policy, and as discussed on the panel, issues around pricing, those issues have to be addressed where duties and taxes were removed from domestic LPG but were introduced on imported LPG, that led to a spike in the price of LPG last year and today the market is still suffering from it.
“Again, there needs to be consistency in government policy, and better engagement between government agencies as they cannot work in isolation,” the General Manager said.
Focusing on Power, Toryila identified unfavourable investment climate due to inconsistent government policies as one among many constraints bedeviling the sector.
He noted that investors who come into the country are frustrated by the complexities in Nigeria’s financial policies making it difficult for them to repatriate capital to meet up payment obligations offshore.
“As an investor who brings in huge amount of capital to Nigeria, you invest that capital, you provide generators, but then, you are not able to repatriate that capital to meet up with your payment obligations offshore. We are not even talking about profit.
“When you earn in naira for example, the money stays in the bank, value is lost, you incur huge loses so the appetite to continue investing in the market is lost.
“As a company, I’m asking myself, why bring this fund to Nigeria, why invest further in Nigeria, why not take this fund and invest them where there will be better returns, where there is better investment climate,” he said.
Toryila further stated that Nigeria needs a lot of support in terms of forex availability, consistent government policies to ensure investors keep investing in the market.
“I think that if we get the investment climate right, every other thing will fall in place. We don’t need government to do all the investment, to fund all the infrastructural development. We just need government to do what they are supposed to do which is create the enabling environment required for investors like us and other potential investors to bring their funds into Nigeria and get things done,” he concluded.
Aggreko, a well renowned energy solutions providing company globally, is specialized in providing services such as; Power Generation, Temperature Control, Cooling Towers, Power Plants, Loadbanks, Diesel Generators, Gas Generators, Transformers, Chillers, Industrial Air Conditioners, Rental Power, Temporary power, Industrial Heaters, Spot Coolers, and Industrial Chillers.
The company also recommends the right choice of energy and specialty rental solutions to improve productivity from rapid-response emergency support to multi-decade investments.
It offers its customers access to the latest, cleanest, and most efficient technologies, removing the need for them to invest in and manage these assets directly. This allows customers to focus more on their own customers, their communities, and creating a sustainable future.
