Gazprom Nigeria move bodes ill for the west

Russia’s moves to tap Nigeria’s huge energy reserves will send shivers through western governments already concerned about a shortage of global gas supplies.

Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy giant, has offered to invest billions of dollars in developing the gas sector in Nigeria, where western majors have traditionally put most of their efforts into extracting oil.


Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil exporter, is believed to have some of the largest untapped gas reserves in the world.

Gazprom’s move comes at a time when North American and European governments are increasingly turning to gas imports to meet rising demand as domestic production falls.

Western nations are also particularly keen on securing supplies of liquefied natural gas – gas cooled to a liquid so it can be transported by tankers around the globe – to reduce their dependence on vulnerable pipelines. Demand for LNG is set to reach 16 per cent of global gas demand by 2015, but supply conditions are tightening.

Financial Times