NLNG scraps shipments after vandals damage pipelines

Nigeria LNG Limited canceled several liquefied natural gas shipments after vandalism on pipelines from gas fields disrupted production, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The company scrapped loading of at least two cargoes scheduled for January delivery from the Bonny Island facility, according to two people who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. As many as ten shipments were canceled, one of the people said.

Nigeria LNG Ltd. canceled several liquefied natural gas shipments after vandalism on pipelines from gas fields disrupted production, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The company declared an additional force majeure on LNG cargo for export and canceled the loading of at least two scheduled for January delivery from the Bonny Island facility, according to two people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. As many as ten shipments were canceled, one of the people said.

Nigeria has been a key LNG supplier to Europe over the last year, helping to partially plug the gap created by the loss of Russian supply. Imports from Nigeria made up about seven per cent of Europe’s LNG supply last year, data compiled by BloombergNEF said.

The latest incident comes after gas exports from the African country were disrupted earlier this year by floods. Security issues, as well as feedgas problems, also curbed output from Nigeria over the past two years.

More shipments, for February, could also be scrapped, the people said. Nigeria LNG wasn’t immediately available for comment.

In early October 2022, the NLNG declared force majeure on its 22.2 million ton per year Bonny LNG export facility due to widespread flooding that disrupted supply, thereby, worsening Nigeria’s gas shortage challenges and revenue crisis.

The development come as Nigeria had to battle its worst floods in about a decade, with no fewer than 500 people reported to have been killed and billions of naira worth of properties damaged.

The revenue loss was attributed to the increasing security challenge which has hit the oil and gas companies across the country and has negatively been impacting the production and revenues of the NLNG.

The latest problem will further negatively impact the ability of Nigeria to close the gas supply gap in Europe and others, which has been affected by the Russia-Ukraine war.

Nigeria has been a key LNG supplier to Europe over the last year, helping to partially plug the gap created by the loss of Russian supply.

According to data compiled by BloombergNEF, gas imports from Nigeria constitutes about 7 per cent of Europe’s LNG supply in 2022.