The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has called for increased financing for natural gas development, identifying funding shortages, inadequate infrastructure and limited technology as obstacles to Nigeria’s efforts to reduce emissions from oil and gas operations.
Philemon Yilleng, Manager of Sustainability Strategy, Standards and Policy at NNPC Limited, said investment in gas was necessary to advance the company’s decarbonisation plans while supporting Nigeria’s energy security and economic development.
He spoke during a high-level panel on decarbonising Africa’s energy value chain at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP31, in Antalya, Türkiye, on Tuesday.
Yilleng said NNPC had adopted natural gas as its transition fuel, describing it as a cleaner alternative that would remain central to its long-term energy strategy.
“Gas is not just a transition fuel, but our destination fuel,” he said.
He explained that the company was pursuing practical measures to reduce its environmental footprint, including recovering flared gas, cutting operational emissions and improving efficiency across its processes.
Yilleng said NNPC’s decarbonisation strategy was guided by the Petroleum Industry Act, which requires the company to balance environmental responsibility with energy security and commercial viability.
The company has also developed policies and a measurement, reporting and verification system to monitor emissions and assess progress towards its sustainability targets.
According to Yilleng, NNPC is working with regulators, joint venture partners and financiers to incorporate environmental considerations into its operations rather than limiting sustainability commitments to board-level decisions.
He maintained that Nigeria could use its gas resources to address energy poverty, support industrialisation and strengthen energy security if sufficient investment was mobilised.
However, he identified inadequate financing for gas development as a major gap in the country’s energy transition efforts.
Stephanie Saunier, Managing Director of Carbon Limits, acknowledged progress made by NNPC in establishing its emissions measurement, reporting and verification system over the past 12 to 18 months.
She said the company had made significant progress in developing emissions data but needed to expand actual field measurements to establish its credibility.
Meanwhile, Celina Evbuomwan, Assistant Director and Head of Environment Management and Sustainability at the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, said technology, infrastructure and financing gaps were also limiting efforts to reduce emissions.
Evbuomwan explained that insufficient and scattered infrastructure around gas-producing facilities had made it difficult for operators to capture flared gas and channel it into electricity generation and industrial use.
