TheCable

Timipre Sylva, minister of state for petroleum resources, says the country is committed to achieving the global consensus on the elimination of gas flaring by 2025.

Speaking on Monday at a public hearing on gas flaring at the house of representatives in Abuja, the minister said the elimination of gas flaring is an issue the ministry is taking seriously.

He added that that Nigeria has significantly reduced gas flaring, while programmes have been put in place towards the utilisation of gas that is being flared.

“Today, we have actually reduced gas flaring significantly to a very minimal level of eight per cent. If you all recall, in 2020, the ministry of petroleum started what we call the National Gas Expansion Programme and we declared year 2020 as the year of gas,” Sylva said.

“At the beginning of this year, we also declared year 2021 the beginning of the gas decade. We believe that with all the programmes we have in place, we are on course to achieving complete elimination of gas flaring by year 2025.”

Also speaking, Mohammad Mahmood, minister of environment, said all hands must be on deck to ensure the elimination of gas flaring.

Represented by Abah Suleman, director of environment, the minister noted that gas flaring leads to global warming.

“The fear that the earth might snowball into a runaway greenhouse effect as we have on planet Venus is one of the major reasons why it has been globally accepted that all hands must be on deck to ensure that gas flares are totally put out,” Mahmood said.

“The federal government has made commitments to the Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change through our intended national determined contribution.

“The ministry of environment is highly desirous and have been giving support to the ministry of petroleum in this regard.

“As far back as 2003 when the ministry along some oil companies pushed for the use of compressed natural gas, which went comatose.

“I am happy to say that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has kick-started the programme.”