Bayelsa State Government has partnered with US energy company Fulcrum LNG Incorporated to build a gas gathering and processing facility valued at $100 million, an agreement reached at a governors' forum in Texas. The partnership was sealed at the inaugural US-Nigeria Governors G2B Forum on Energy, Mining and Infrastructure, which brought together state delegations from Bayelsa, Nasarawa, Ogun and Ondo alongside more than 15 American energy, mining and financial firms including Honeywell, KBR and Worley.
The project will roll out in phases, starting with gathering and commercialising flared gas to supply power to the state's Independent Power Plant and emerging industrial clusters while tackling environmental damage from gas flaring. This will be followed by a comprehensive integrated gas monetisation and development plan to unlock Bayelsa's gas reserves. Fulcrum LNG Chief Executive Jesus Bronchalo said the governor's presentation sparked the company's interest and that a similar project in Guyana is valued at about $3 billion, suggesting the Bayelsa investment could eventually exceed that scale. He noted the company will conduct a field study of Bayelsa's flare sites to select appropriate technology and infrastructure, with the investment size to be determined after feasibility work.
Bronchalo said the timeline from final investment decision to commissioning would take about 12 months once the company understands the magnitude and causes of gas flaring in the state. The company will invest 100 percent in the project, though if the government wants equity, it can contribute capital for that portion. Governor Douye Diri called the deal a win-win and said his administration was committed to immediate commencement, noting it had about 15 months remaining in office.
Diri said Bayelsa holds an estimated 15 to 20 percent of Nigeria's proven gas reserves and supplies about 60 percent of the gas used by Nigeria LNG Company in Bonny, Rivers State. The state also has the longest Atlantic coastline in Nigeria at 203 kilometres with direct access to the Gulf of Guinea, and the Agge Deep Seaport, described as Nigeria's deepest natural port requiring no dredging.
For Bayelsa residents and businesses, the project could reduce pollution from gas flaring while creating industrial opportunities and potentially generating revenue from previously wasted gas resources.