#EndGasFlaringNG: The Unspoken Dangers of Gas Flaring In Nigeria — by @mista_blak
By: Iccdi Africa
Tags: Health, Gas, Climate Change, Gas Flare, Renewable Energy

It’s estimated that about 140 billion cubic meters of gas are flared annually across the oil-producing countries of the world (McGreevey & Whitaker, 2020). Gas flaring has been illegal in Nigeria since 1984, yet the country still ranks among the top 10 gas-flare countries with about 7.4 billion cubic meters of gas flared in 2018; and about 425.9 billion standard cubic feet of gas flared in 2019 (Eboh, 2019). Gas flaring is associated with lots of dangers. This essay aims to explain these dangers in details, and also to provide an insight into the efforts made by stakeholders to end gas flaring, identify the missing links between current strategies, and recommend viable solutions to gas flaring in Nigeria.

WHAT IS GAS FLARING?

Gas flaring is the controlled combustion of associated gas generated during various processes including oil and gas recovery, petrochemical process, and landfill gas extraction (Generon.com, 2019).

GAS FLARING IN NIGERIA: A TALE OF NIGHTMARES

The health risks associated with gas flaring are glaring. In the oil-rich Niger Delta, 2 million people live within 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) of gas flare (Schick et al, 2018), which makes them more vulnerable to several health issues including cancer and lung damage, as well as deformities in children, asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, neurological and reproductive problems (CSL Stockbrokers, 2020). Relatively, agricultural productivity (in the oil-producing areas) has been severely hampered by gas flaring. The combustion process raises the soil temperature, with a decline in crop yield and acid rains as its two major ripple effects. The smokes which emanate from the flares also lead to black rainfall and water bodies which affect aquatic and Wildlife.

The economic costs of gas flaring are mind-boggling. Data obtained from the Nigerian Gas Flare Tracker showed that 25.9 billion Standard Cubic Feet of gas, valued at N460.5billion, were flared between January and November 2019. As shown in the figure below, this amount would comfortably finance the capital expenditure of Ministries of Education, Power, Defence and Transport which stood at a combined total of N450 billion.

Also, the volume of gas flared is capable of generating 42,600 megawatts of electricity which would have helped solve the electricity problem of the country.

Climate change is another danger of gas flaring. In 2019, as much as 22.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide were emitted into the environment as a result of gas flaring in Nigeria. In fact, the environmental costs of gas flaring in Nigeria amount to N28.8 billion annually (PWC, 2019). There is also the issue of air and noise pollution and a rise in temperature in the oil-producing areas. Issues related to gas flaring also leads to protests and attacks which worsen the fragile security situation of the oil-producing areas.

Meanwhile, several efforts have been aimed at checking gas flaring in Nigeria. Some of these efforts include the Associated Gas Re-injection Act (1979), the Nigeria Gas Master plan (2008), and the Nigeria Gas Flare Commercialization Programme (2017). Nigeria is also part of the Global Gas Flare Reduction Partnership of the World Bank. However, all these efforts couldn’t help the Federal Government of Nigeria achieve its dream of zero gas flaring by 2020. This is a result of several combined factors: the “tax-deductible” charges imposed on gas flaring are too cheap for oil companies; insufficient infrastructure to process and transport gas to end-users; institutional challenges in the gas market which make the cost of processing and transporting gas more expensive than the income from its sale; significant amount of gas in oil-fields which makes greater re-injection impossible; and the country’s heavy dependence on crude oil for revenue.

RECOMMENDATIONS

For the goal of zero routine gas flaring to be truly achieved, the following recommendations should be considered:

The 2018 regulations, which increased the charges on gas flaring, should be adequately enforced.

The Federal Government should pay attention to the development of critical infrastructure such as gas processing technologies and transportation pipelines to enhance the movement of gas from oil fields to end-users.

The Federal Government should address the institutional challenges affecting the gas market in Nigeria. These challenges include underdeveloped local markets and low market prices for gas. Addressing these challenges will incentivize greater investments in gas processing and utilization.

Investments in petrochemical industries should be encouraged. These industries utilize gas to produce polymers, ammonia, hydrogen fuel for cars, etc. We can borrow a leaf from Russia where the petrochemical industry is on the rise, with companies like Sibur leading the way. According to the company’s data, in 2018, through recycling hydrocarbon byproducts of oil and gas extraction (about 22.3 billion cubic meters of gas), it helped reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 71 million metric tons (Frolovskiy, 2019).

There should be increased investment in power generation using gas. This would help reduce the quantity of gas flared and also increase the nation’s electricity capacity.

Oil companies should include gas processing technologies during the development of new oil-fields, and also ensure transparency while reporting to authorities, the quantity of gas flared.

Concrete efforts should be made to diversify the Nigerian economy to reduce dependence on crude oil for national revenue. Reduced dependence on petroleum would increase the government’s tenacity in enforcing measures against gas flaring in the Country. Agriculture, tourism, and processing can provide alternative sources of revenue.

CONCLUSION

Ending routine gas flaring in Nigeria will lead to an increase in revenue generation, infrastructural development, and power supply. It would also support thousands of jobs and businesses, improve health conditions in the oil-producing areas, and reduce the emission of CO2 into the atmosphere. With these benefits in mind, tackling gas flaring in Nigeria should be a priority.

REFERENCES

CSL Stockbrokers (2020, February 18). Gas flaring: A never-ending dark tunnel. Retrieved fromhttps://nairametrics.com/2020/02/18/gas-flaring-a-never-ending-dark-tunnel/

Dmitriy Frolovskiy. (2019, December). Gas flaring remains issue for Russia. Retrieved from https://asiatimes.com/2019/12/russias-gas-flare-up-but-less-than-before/

Eboh, M. (2019, December 31). Nigeria: Despite Paucity of Funds, Nigeria Flares N461bn Gas in 2019. Retrieved from https://allafrica.com/stories/201912310199.html

Generon.com (2019, September 24). What is Gas Flaring? — Why is It Done & Viable Alternatives. Retrieved from https://www.generon.com/what-is-gas-flaring-why-is-it-done-alternatives/

McGreevey, C.M. & Whitaker, G. (2020). Zero Routine Flaring by 2030. Retrieved from https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/zero-routine-flaring-by-2030

PWC (2019). Assessing the impacts of gas flaring on the Nigerian economy. Retrieved from https://www.pwc.com/ng/en/assets/pdf/gas-flaring-impact1.pdf

Schick, L., Myles, P., & Okelum, O.E. (2018, November 14). Gas flaring continues scorching Niger Delta. Retrieved from https://www.dw.com/en/gas-flaring-continues-scorching-niger-delta/a-46088235

This article was submitted by Sobechi Evans-Ibe, for the Gas Flaring In Nigeria Essay Competition.