EU Seeks to Substitute Russian Gas from Nigeria

The EU is seeking additional gas supplies from Nigeria as it prepares for possible Russian supply disruptions, Matthew Baldwin, deputy director general of the European Commission's energy department, said on Saturday.

Baldwin was speaking in Nigeria this week, where he held talks with officials from Africa's largest oil producer. He was told that Nigeria has improved security in the Niger Delta and plans to reopen the Trans Niger pipeline after August, which would enable more gas exports to Europe. The EU imports 14% of its total LNG supplies from Nigeria, with the potential to double that, Baldwin told Reuters by phone. Oil and gas production in Nigeria has been declining due to theft and vandalism on pipelines and gas producer Nigeria LNG Ltd's terminal on Bonny Island is operating at 60% capacity. "If we can get it above 80%, at that point there could be additional LNG available for spot cargoes coming to Europe," Baldwin said. "The Nigerian authorities have said to us 'come back and talk to us again at the end of August because we think we can make real progress on this'." Nigeria's NLG is owned by state oil company NNPC Ltd, Shell (LON:RDSa), TotalEnergies and Eni. The European Commission said on Wednesday that EU member states must cut their gas use by 15% from August to March. The target will initially be voluntary, but will become mandatory if the Commission declares an emergency. Nigeria exported 23 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas to the EU last year, but that figure has declined over the years. In 2018, the bloc bought 36 billion cubic meters of LNG from Nigeria, Baldwin said.