Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) have reaffirmed their commitment to collaboration as NLNG prepares to revamp and enhance key operational facilities across Trains 1 to 6 of its plant. 

The discussions took place during the Nigerian Content Stakeholders Retreat at NLNG’s operational base in Finima, Bonny Island, Rivers State, highlighting a renewed focus on operational excellence and the strategic role of local capacity in the energy sector.

During the retreat, NLNG’s General Manager, Production, Nnamdi Anowi, outlined the company’s Accelerated Asset Intervention (AAI) programme, set to begin in 2026. The initiative aims to overhaul the Trains and Common Facilities, essential to the company’s operations, while introducing predictive maintenance practices to sustain top-quartile performance. 

Anowi emphasised that the programme would require regulatory support and approvals from NCDMB to ensure timely execution. He noted that the AAI programme is part of NLNG’s broader goal to continue delivering gas and value to the country while retaining its position as a leading Nigerian company.

Representing NCDMB, the Director of Capacity Building, Engr. Abayomi Bamidele pledged the board’s support for NLNG’s plans. He recalled the successful development of the first Service Level Agreement between a regulator and an operating company in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and highlighted other ongoing technical capacity-building initiatives. 

Bamidele also cited NCDMB’s role in granting accelerated approvals for NLNG’s Train 7 project, which commenced in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for new gas projects that will provide feedstock for Train 7. He stressed that maximising Nigerian content and utilising local capacities in the proposed packages are central to the initiative, in line with the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.

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The retreat also recognised the economic impact of NLNG’s projects. The Executive Secretary of NCDMB praised NLNG for the progress of Train 7, noting that the project employs thousands of workers and has made a significant contribution to the nation’s economy. 

Dr Ernest Nwapa, pioneer Executive Secretary of NCDMB, highlighted NLNG’s long-standing leadership in local content development, describing the company as an early “icon of Nigerian Content” due to its voluntary compliance. He also commended NLNG for commissioning the industry’s first skills gap analysis and circulating the findings to guide stakeholders and policymakers on priority capacity-building needs to strengthen in-country value addition.

The retreat concluded with an award gala celebrating outstanding contributions to Nigerian content. Recipients included NCDMB for the Nigerian Content Business Enabler Award; Promat Coating Limited for Train 7 Local Manufacturing and Procurement; EVOMEC Global Services Limited and ARCO Worldwide Services for Overall Best Nigerian Content Compliant Contractor, technical and non-technical, respectively; and Seflam SGL Limited for Nigerian Content Diversity and Inclusion Award.

The renewed partnership between NLNG and NCDMB underscores a clear direction for the Nigerian oil and gas sector: investing in infrastructure upgrades, prioritising local capacity and compliance, and ensuring that critical projects contribute to national economic growth while maintaining world-class operational standards.

Meiza Nigeria