ABUJA: Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Monthly Financial and Operations Report for June, has shown that the volume of gas exported by the country in June stood at 99.38 billion standard cubic feet, scf. This came as the report shows that natural gas supply to thermal power plants in July 2016 came down to 400 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd), a 50 per cent drop from about 800 mmscfd in July 2015. The report noted that a total of 216.60 billion scf of natural gas were produced in the month, translating to an average daily production of 7.22 billion scf.
The 99.38 billion scf of gas exported during the month was part of about 115.88 billion scf of gas commercialised during the month, the balance being 16.5 billion scf channeled to the domestic market. This, the report noted, translates to an average daily supply of 550.1 million scf per day of gas to the domestic market and 3.31 billion scf per day of gas supplied to the export market. The report further stated that from the 550.1 million scf per day of gas supplied to the domestic market in June 2016, about 326.80 million scf per day of gas representing 59.41 per day was used for gas-fired power plants while the balance of 223.30 million scf per day or 40.59 percent was supplied to other industries. “This implies that 54.51 percent of the total gas produced was commercialised while the balance of 45.49 per cent was either re-injected, used as upstream fuel gas or flared. “Gas flare rate was 6.98 percent for the month of June 2016, which gives 494.70 million SCF per day compared with average gas flare rate of 8.62 per cent, that is, 660.89 million SCF per day recorded in period between July 2015 and June 2016.”
It added that: “For the period of July 2015 to June 2016 an average of 991.72 million SCF per day of gas was supplied to the domestic market comprising of an average of 650.39 million SCF per day or 65.58 percent as gas supply to the power plants and 341.32 million SCF per day or 34.42 percent, as gas supply to industries”. On thermal power plants receivables, the corporation while attributing this development to militancy and pipeline vandalisation in oil producing communities, also recorded a huge drop in power generation to about 2000 mega watt (mw), about 42.9 per cent decline from 3500mw recorded same month in 2015 due to same reason. The reports have been replete with adverse impact of militancy in the upstream sector. For instance the report revealed in June, 2016 that there was additional shut in of about 50,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), as a result of sabotage/attack on the delivery pipelines to Escravos Terminal. At Forcados Terminal about 300,000bopd was also shut-in in the same month.
In addition, the report also noted that, Force Majeure was declared on 10th May, 2016 for the repair works on Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL) with a resultant shut-in of about 275,000bopd. The report show that a total of 211.93 billion standard cubic feet, bscf, of natural gas were produced in the month of July, 2016 as against 225 bscf in the corresponding month of 2015. The company further stated that out of the 205.9 bscf of gas produced in July 2016, a total of 114.86 bscf of gas was commercialized comprising of 20.30bscf and 94.56bscf for the domestic and export market respectively. This translates to an average daily supply of 654.78 mmscfd of gas to the domestic market and 3,050.40 mmscfd of gas supplied to the export market.