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Nigeria lagging in domestic utilisation of gas as over 120m people face energy poverty

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The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, has said over 120 million Nigerians are facing energy poverty despite the huge natural gas resources in the country.

The minister, while speaking on Monday, at the pre-summit conference of the 2021 Nigeria International Petroleum Summit, tagged ‘The Decade of Gas,’ in Abuja, said the county’s gas reserves, with proven 203 trillion cubic feet and 600 Tcf potential, were the most extensive in Africa and among the top 10 globally.

However, he said Nigeria was doing poorly in the area of domestic utilisation of gas to power the economy, noting that the government was working hard to change the narrative over the next decade.

The minister maintained that the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration revolves around the utilisation of natural gas.

READ ALSO: “Petrol is consumed by elites in Nigeria, so people should not complain about hike” – Timipre Sylva

His words: “It is no longer acceptable that despite the country’s vast natural gas resources, the gap between electricity supply and demand is huge; access unreliable, and cost expensive.

“We must deal with energy poverty in this country. We must find a way to unlock the natural gas potential of this great nation, and drag over 120 million of our people out of energy poverty.”

Meanwhile, he said a robust road map would be presented to the President in a bid to continue the determined pursuit of transforming Nigeria into a gas-based industrial nation, at the end of the summit.

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