Vice President Kashim Shettima revealed on Tuesday, May 2, that Nigeria is actively seeking funding for its $25-billion ambitious pipeline project, which would see the West African nation supply its abundant natural gas to European markets. 

Shettima also revealed that new economic reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu have positioned the country as not only a prime investment destination for foreign investors but also as an energy powerhouse capable of supplying energy resources to Europe.

The second on command made the remarks on Monday, during a special meeting with Vitol Group at the presidential Villa in Abuja. 

During the meeting, Shettima emphasized that the economic transformations under the current regime, including the removal of fuel subsidy, tax reforms and the unification of exchange rates, present a great opportunity for investors to be part of the country’s growing economic landscape. 

VP Shettima appealed to Vitol to bring its technical expertise in the energy sector and its vast global influence to advance Nigeria’s gas infrastructure and export potential, describing the country’s gas sector as a beacon of stability amid global uncertainty. 

“The world is changing, and ours is actually a gas and not an oil economy. We have the eighth largest gas reserve in the world,” VP Shettima said.

‘​’The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited, NLNG, has been largely insulated from government interference. What we are getting from the NLNG is so predictable. We really want to harness the potential in the gas sector fundamentally because of the stability and transparency in that arena,” he added.

Earlier, a delegation from Vitol affirmed the company’s commitment to long-term operations in Nigeria. 

“This has been an incredibly close and important country for Vitol for a very long time. We have participated in a lot of things from the downstream, financing, trading and government support when needed,” Chief Financial Officer of Vitol Group, Jeffrey Dellapina, said during their first delegation meeting with Nigerian officials. 

“We do want to maintain an understanding that Vitol is committed, and we are always available to deploy capital when needed. We want to say that Vitol is committed to this country, and we want to stay in this country and evolve with you,” he added. 

Vitol was one of the key funders of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s Project Gazelle, a forward-sale finance facility backed by future crude oil sales. 

The multinational injected $300 million into the project to keep the company running during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Vitol Group’s Head of Public Affairs, Murtala Baloni. 

Vitol’s commitment to boosting investments in Nigeria’s gas sector is good news for the nation, whose economy has struggled for the past years, and will also boost Nigeria’s energy sector.