Nigeria has joined a small group of nations including Qatar, South Africa, Malaysia and Australia that operate hi-tech Gas to Liquid (GTL) plants, as the Chevron owned Escravos GTL has produced its first liquids, after being behind schedule for several years.

The plant would allow Nigeria to perform a leading role in an advanced sector of the energy and fuel market.

“We recently achieved a major milestone at our Escravos gas to liquids plant with the production of GTL diesel and naphtha. We anticipate continued ramp-up in first product lifting later this year,” said George Kirkland, Vice Chairman and Executive Vice President-Upstream and Gas, at Chevron Corp., during the company’s Q2 Earnings conference call.

Chevron partnered with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to build the GTL plant designed to convert 325 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, into 33,000 barrels of liquids—principally synthetic diesel.

When completed, the plant is expected to supply clean-burning, low-sulphur diesel fuel for cars and trucks.

The key component of the gas-to-liquids conversion is the Fischer-Tropsch reaction, pioneered by German scientists Franz Fischer and Hans Tropsch almost a century ago.

The Escravos GTL project had been severally delayed and capital expenditure on it is approaching $10 billion, according to Chevron.

This compares with the $1.2 billion that was spent on the 34,000 bpd Oryx GTL in Qatar, a similar project in terms of technology and capacity, which was inaugurated in 2006.

The Slurry Phase Distillate technology developed by Sasol and utilised at the Oryx project is also in use at the Escravos GTL project.

The Escravos GTL project will also produce kerosene and LPG – with the kerosene providing the nation with premium transportation fuel to produce jet fuel for aviation.

The products are expected to offset some oil product imports.

Nigeria spent N192 billion ($1.18 billion) to import refined petroleum products in the first quarter of 2014, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The business rationale behind the GTL project is based on the wide differential between gas and liquids (crude oil) pricing, which Chevron believes will persist over the long-term.

Global GTL production has the potential to deliver the equivalent of 32 billion barrels of liquids, or about a year’s worth of global oil demand, Bernstein analysts wrote in a November report titled “What if Small-Scale Gas to Liquids Was the Next Shale Gas? Are We on the Verge Of Another Energy Revolution?”

A pre-feasibility study of Escravos GTL was conducted in April 1998, followed by an engineering feasibility study.

The Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) were completed in 2002.

The same year, agreements between Chevron Corporation, Sasol, and NNPC were signed.

The construction contract was awarded in April 2005 to a consortium of JGC, KBR and Snamprogetti.

Chevron Nigeria Limited has a 75 percent stake in the GTL projects, the NNPC 15 percent and Sasol 10 percent, while there are plans to expand the EGTL capacity to 120,000 b/d within 10 years.

PATRICK ATUANYA

http://businessdayonline.com/2014/08/10bn-chevron-escravos-gtl-produces-first-liquids

Nice one... I hope this will improve our economy on the high side and not get abandoned after some period...

EGTL at long last... this is very good news

Wow

another avenue to chop money

Nigeria of our dream.... #Giveusmore

The same mistakes we made in the '60's we are making again now.
Why on earth should Chevron Nig Limited have 70% stake and NNPC just 15%?
Who is signing off these contracts?

Blah blah blah. Are we going to gain from it?

Good news... hopefully this will reduce the price of diesel.

Since this is financed and owned by a private company (as opposed to the useless NNPC) I expect this plant to operate maximally.

i hope this will revive the economy abit

Space booked.

The Escravos GTL project had been severally delayed and capital expenditure on it is approaching $10 billion, according to Chevron.
This compares with the $1.2 billion that was spent on the 34,000 bpd Oryx GTL in Qatar, a similar project in terms of technology and capacity, which was inaugurated in 2006

Whats there to celebrate apart from the waste of scarce funds? The money wasted on this project will be used to build about five of the same capacity. Nonsense

GEJ till 2019..Fresh air choking d polluted air!

Welcome Development.

Some good news hitting fp this few days, @ list better than the Ebola madness.

Blockus:


You sound like a vulcaniser.

and what do you sound like

That's good news for nigeria. I love my country.

Na wa oh!

Chevron, Exxon mobil, Total, Shell major players of nigerian oil and gas since amalgamation.


Meanwhile am proudly a #Geologist

Some people wey comment no understand wetin d whole thing mean, well neither do I.

Nice one

Chevron partnered with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to build the GTL plant designed to convert 325 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, into 33,000 barrels of liquids—principally synthetic diesel.

The Escravos GTL project had been severally delayed and capital expenditure on it is approaching $10 billion, according to Chevron.

This compares with the $1.2 billion that was spent on the 34,000 bpd Oryx GTL in Qatar, a similar project in terms of technology and capacity, which was inaugurated in 2006.

So it cost almost $10billion to construct this plant in Nigeria, yet cost just about one-eighth of the amount for a similar-sized plant in Qatar?

Even when you account for the time value of money over 8 years at the rate of 10%, $1.2 billion amounts to less than $1.5 billion (or thereabouts).

The cost of doing business in Nigeria ehn...

if being daft can move our nation this forward, then God please make all of our leaders daft! Amen!

J12:

Whats there to celebrate apart from the waste of scarce funds? The money wasted on this project will be used to build about five of the same capacity. Nonsense

The report doesn't tell us that the money was spent by the government. Private investors can decide how they want to spend their money, it is within their rights to do so.

Any job opportunities here?

Good news.but when i wake up this morning,d first persn i saw was my mum.thats why i av bn hearing gudnews 6

Thats real Big Money.....
hope its for a better Naija