The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPC Ltd, says it is pursuing multiple pathways to transform Nigeria into a global gas hub while expanding domestic utilisation and export capacity.
The company’s Executive Vice President, Gas, Power and New Energy, Olalekan Ogunleye, disclosed this on Monday while speaking at the 2026 Gas Technology & Exhibition Conference, GASTECH, in Bangkok, Thailand.
Ogunleye, who spoke on a panel titled, “The New LNG Order: Leadership Strategies for Energy Security and Growth,” said Nigeria was leveraging its more than 215 trillion cubic feet, tcf, of proven gas reserves to drive domestic industrialisation and expand its presence in international markets.
“Gas development and monetisation from Nigeria’s standpoint is a purely commercial play. NNPC Ltd. is implementing a Gas Master Plan, GMP, engineered as a gap-to-potential tool to move Nigeria from a 215tcf reserves position to above 600tcf,” he said.
He said the company’s strategy was anchored on stronger coordination under the Petroleum Industry Act, the Decade of Gas Framework and the Gas Master Plan, with a near-term target of increasing national gas production to 10 billion standard cubic feet per day, Bcf/d, by 2027 and 12 Bcf/d by 2030.
Ogunleye said Nigeria was already a reliable global gas supplier and was pursuing major expansion projects, including the Nigeria LNG Trains 1-6, which have a combined production capacity of 22 million tonnes per annum and have exported more than 6,000 LNG cargoes since 1999.
He added that Train 7, currently under development, was expected to be completed in 2027, further strengthening Nigeria’s position in the global LNG market.
According to him, Nigeria’s strategic geographical location gives it an advantage in serving both Atlantic Basin and Asian markets, while its vast gas reserves and renewed national focus on gas development provide a strong foundation for expansion.
Ogunleye stressed that domestic gas utilisation and exports were not competing priorities, saying Nigeria had adopted a dual pathway designed to generate foreign exchange through exports while using gas domestically to create jobs, strengthen energy security and support economic growth.
He said the country had also taken steps to de-risk new LNG investments through a robust legal and regulatory framework, backed by attractive fiscal incentives.
“With continued efforts towards stable security, competitive gas pricing and assured gas supply, there is no better time for investors and financiers to confidently participate in the development of Nigeria’s LNG projects,” he said.
GASTECH, now in its 54th edition, is a major global exhibition and conference focused on natural gas, LNG, hydrogen and low-carbon solutions.
The 2026 edition in Bangkok is bringing together about 50,000 participants from more than 150 countries, including energy experts, chief executives, policymakers, investors and technology leaders, to deliberate on energy security, LNG supply, infrastructure investment and decarbonisation.
