FG budgets N195bn for gas development

Abuja – The Director General of  the  Budget Office, Dr Bright Okogwu, says N195 billion has been budgeted for  the national domestic gas development initiative this year.

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Okogwu said this  on Thursday in Abuja at the budget defence session with the joint National  Assembly Committee on Gas.

He said  it was impossible to get the total budget of N725 billion required to complete the project, adding that it was necessary to explore third party financing to augment what was being provided by government.

“You cannot get N725 billion in any given year because that is nearly a trillion.

Over the years, government has provided funding for the power sector. We try to optimise within available resources,” he said.

Okogwu said economic growth could only be achieved with regular power supply, adding that more than 5.3 billion dollars had been provided for joint venture contracts in the power sector.

“We need a holistic reform of the sector. Investment in the sector is not robust because of insufficient funding,” he added.

Also speaking, the Head, Presidential Task Force on Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, called for more funding of the power sector and adequate infrastructure for gas development.

“This is the key to unlocking the economic growth of Nigeria.

“We have sufficiency of gas for now but by June 2, we will begin to have a decline,” he said.

He said that the Federal Government would no longer build power plants while the distribution of power would also be privatised.

The Chairman of the committee, Sen. Osita Izunaso, said that the gas to power project should be listed in the national budget to attract prominence.

He said that the framework for alternative funding of  the project should also be made available to the committee.(NAN)