By EricJames Ochigbo
Abuja – The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara has urged the Federal Government to do everything possible to gain maximum benefits of the emerging global gas economy.
Dogara said that way, the country would be able to take advantage of the global drive towards the use of greener fossil fuel to turn around the country’s present economic fortunes.
Speaking at a public hearing in Abuja on Thursday, the speaker, who was represented by the Chief Whip of the House, Rep. Alhassan Doguwa, said the country had 187 trillion cubic feet of gas, enough to support the efforts of the Federal Government at diversifying the economy.
“Presently, Nigeria has gas reserve of about 187 trillion cubic feet and with the global drive towards the use of greener fossil fuel, we must do everything possible to gain maximum benefits of the emerging gas economy and global trend of gas resources.
“The establishment of fertiliser plants, utilisation of gas for electric power production and other significant and several economic purposes has tremendously heightened interest in the gas production sub sector.
“It is for this reason that the House of Representatives is highly committed to enacting legislation that would attract capital into the Nigerian gas sector.’’
The public hearing was on a bill for an Act to provide for the establishment of the National Gas Resources Development Agency and a bill for and Act to establish the Nigeria Gas Processing, Marketing, and Regulatory Board.
Dogara said in spite of several commercial efforts by the private sector, the gas sub-sector had failed to yield its value chain benefits.
He said the laws in the country had continued to make crude oil production the corner stone of the country’s petroleum sector development with inadequate focus on gas production.
The speaker urged stakeholders to maximise the opportunity of the public hearing presented by the process of law making to make their input to the bills.
He urged the House Committee on Gas Resources to take into consideration the need to cut cost and the views of all stakeholders in fashioning out a proper legislative solution to the issues at stake.
In his remarks, the sponsor of the bills, Rep. Albert Agbedi (Bayelsa-PDP) said the bills seek to establish the much needed legislative framework to play up Nigeria’s gas deposit.
He said the bills are expected to propel the country and to give gas development, production and marketing its rightful place.
The lawmaker said once the bills were enacted, they would help create the legislative framework for the development of the gas sector.
He said it would also facilitate the establishment of an independent agency with the mandate to monitor the country’s gas sector in the interest of investors and the public.