A clean-energy company, Energy Ventures B.V., has secured the Federal Government’s support to harness flared gas in the Niger Delta to provide electricity to over 80,000 homes and business units in the region.
Speaking during a media briefing held in Abuja, Chief Executive Officer, Energy Ventures B.V., Herbert Okibe acknowledged the support of the government in ensuring the project succeeds.
Also at the briefing were its Chief Financial Officer, Gobert Rieteme and Chief Commercial Officer, Yvonne Wierik-Chioke.
Okibe said the Energy Ventures B.V. entourage met with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Minister of Power and other agencies in Abuja. The project idea, he said, was well received by the ministry and agencies, with a promise to support its execution.
He disclosed that the project, which has already conducted a pilot in the Abada oil field, will be providing energy to approximately 80,000 connections, which translates to roughly half a million individuals in the region.
He said the scheme will also be mitigating over 60 years of pollution caused by gas flaring in the Niger Delta by converting wasted gas into power.
‘The project will utilise modularised ‘flare out’ units designed by FB Group in the Netherlands. These units will be digitally connected to allow Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to perform remote diagnostics and root cause analysis on gas engines,’ he said.
On smart metering, Okibe said the team would embark on a smart metering solution designed to prevent tampering and provide transparent usage data via a mobile app.
Despite historical violence in the Niger Delta, he reported high levels of cooperation through extensive customer enumeration and engagement with local chiefs and electricity committees.
Okibe said the company adopted critical measures that include high-quality fencing and armed security supported by Nigerian authorities to secure its equipment in the region.
He acknowledged that the government has put in place a conducive environment for such projects to happen.
For instance, he clarified that the power regulations law has now made it possible for states to have their own generation and regulation of electricity.
Such guidance provided by the regulators, he said, opened ongoing discourse to provide electricity to people, and opportunity for franchise arrangements with third parties to happen.
Also speaking, Wierik-Chioke said access to energy is one of the major things that enable economies to thrive, provide better quality of life for the people and take away pollution that gas flaring has promoted for the past 60 years.
She said: ‘Once you’re able to have access to clean, reliable energy, it means that you can build and grow your business. You can plan better by simply having access to electricity. But we also understand that it will take time to fully achieve that result.’
According to her, the project aims to provide reliable energy to approximately 80,000 households in the immediate coverage area.
‘Successful implementation serves as a pilot to potentially unlock energy from over 100 other flare sites across Nigeria. Beyond direct energy supply, the project seeks to reduce pollution caused by decades of gas flaring in the Niger Delta,’ she said.
Continuing, Okibe clarified that while they cannot solve Nigeria’s total power deficit, the project will improve quality of life for local businesses, schools, and hospitals.
‘Engagement with community leaders, youths, and local government chairmen has been overwhelmingly positive so far. Security measures include high-quality fencing and armed security supported by Nigerian authorities to protect assets. We emphasise a ‘win-win’ approach by involving local electricity committees in the operational process,’ he said.
Okibe said: ‘We brought both stakeholders up to speed on what we were trying to do. Their teams were listening very attentively to us, and asked some very good questions. They gave some very good suggestions, and also asked us how they could be of support’
‘For us, we thought bringing them along as a key stakeholder was essential, but also there were roles that they could play in helping us. For example, with the electricity metering system we’re trying to put in place, they could link us to the presidential metering initiative. So, that was positive, and we believe that we will have many more of such conversations,’ he stated.
‘And also, the honourable minister was quite helpful in guiding us in areas where he thought we had not done enough coverage. So, for example, engaging with NNPC or other government regulatory agencies, and that was well received,’ he added.
‘The benefit for Nigeria as a whole is, of course, when you take away the customers in the Niger Delta who we can supply, then whatever is left of the power supply in Nigeria can be better distributed to the rest of the country. So there’s going to be benefits for everybody. Directly, we’re looking at 100,000 homes. Indirectly, I think all Nigerians will benefit,’ he said.