The Managing Director of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), Mr. Babs Omotowa, has stated that the gas flaring, which was previously at 65 per cent, putting the nation on the league of top five gas flaring countries in the world, has reduced to 20 per cent. Omotowa, who disclosed this in at the weekend during the commissioning of NLNG/University of Ilorin Engineering Research Centre, in Ilorin, Kwara State, said that through 'efforts, Nigeria was no longer in the league of top five gas flaring countries in the world.

He said, "One of the reasons why Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas was established was to reduce gas flaring in the country. When we started Nigeria was flaring about 65 percent of its gas. We were the second highest gas flaring nation in the world. "Through the construction of the six trains, we have in NLNG we have helped to bring that down to about 20 percent and today we are no longer top five gas flaring countries in the world. So we are very proud that we have contributed to the environmental improvement in the country and the health implications of that.

"In addition, we provide a significant source of revenue for the nation and are also today supplying a vast majority of the cooking gas used in many homes in Nigeria today," he stressed. According to him, through the company's university support programme, NLNG had invested $12 million in six universities in the country.

He listed the benefiting universities under the support programme as Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), University of Ibadan (UI), University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) and University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT). He added that one of NLNG's approaches was to develop Nigerian human capital and foster technological advancement in our great country, explaining that the company recognized that universities were one of the critical fertile grounds from which ideas to fast-track Nigeria's progress would spring from.

Omotowa noted that "With this programme, Nigeria LNG is partnering with six universities in Nigeria to uplift engineering teaching and research in our tertiary institutions. On its part, Nigeria LNG invested two million dollars each in building and equip world-class engineering facilities in these schools." He pointed out that the universities were chosen based on their relative ranking in their geopolitical zones by the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) and the world ranking of universities.

The Kwara State Governor, Mr. Abdulfatah Ahmed, who was represented by the Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Alhaji Musa Yeketi, said that NLNG, a major global gas supplier, had been a huge revenue earner for the country. Ahmed stated, "Practically every state in the country has felt the positive impact of this company as proven by the huge tax which the company paid to the Federal Government last year which was utilised as a bailout fund for several states.

"The company's intervention in the domestic LPG market has also guaranteed product availability and stabilised prices in the country. It is my prayer that Nigeria LNG will continue to enjoy the goodwill of the Nigerian government and people for being such a worthy and committed partner in the country's advancement." Earlier, the Vice Chancellor of University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), Prof Abdulganiyu Ambali, appreciated the thoughtfulness of NLNG's choice intervention area based on the problems confronting Nigeria's developmental efforts.

Ambali said: "It is engineering, whether we talk of stable electricity, good water supply, motorable roads or safe and secure housing as well as other components of our much-needed infrastructure. "We realize largely, the success of the country is that of engineering and the failure is also the failure of engineering. In other words, if Nigeria gets her engineering right, she will get her bearing right," he added