At the 2025 Africa Gas Innovation Summit (AGIS) held in Abuja, leading voices in Africa’s oil and gas sector—including the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) and Nigeria LNG (NLNG)—issued urgent calls for increased investment in pipeline infrastructure, warning that the continent’s massive gas reserves risk remaining untapped.
A Continent Rich in Gas, Poor in Pipelines
APPO Secretary General Omar Farouk stressed that despite Africa’s 600 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves, lack of infrastructure—particularly pipeline networks—continues to strand these resources.
“Nigeria has only about 7,000km of gas pipelines, compared to France’s 37,000km, even though Nigeria has nearly four times France’s population,” Farouk said. “The entire African continent has barely 30,000km of pipelines, with Algeria alone accounting for 13,000km, while Europe operates over 227,000km.”
He called for a shift from reliance on foreign financing and systems to continental self-reliance and regional integration. Farouk also confirmed that APPO, in collaboration with Afreximbank, is working to establish the Africa Energy Bank, headquartered in Abuja, to support the development of critical infrastructure such as pipelines across Central Africa.
NLNG: Infrastructure Is an Economic Lifeline
Reinforcing the infrastructure challenge, Philip Mshelbila, Managing Director and CEO of Nigeria LNG, noted that without sufficient pipelines, gas remains stranded, and industries underperform.
“Infrastructure—whether pipelines, metering systems, or processing plants—isn’t just a technical necessity; it’s an economic lifeline,” he stated.
NLNG has already developed over 5,000km of pipelines, but Mshelbila insisted that further scalable, decentralised investments are required to create industrial corridors and drive broader domestic gas utilisation.
Government Calls for Regional Cooperation
Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, emphasised the need for shared regional infrastructure, spotlighting two major initiatives:
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The Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline
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The Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline
“These are not just pipelines; they are economic arteries for the continent,” he said.
PTDF: Building Skills and Solutions
Ahmed Galadima Aminu, Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), underscored the agency’s role in supporting indigenous innovation and workforce development.
“Our support for AGIS 2025 reflects PTDF’s commitment to nurturing local expertise and fostering collaboration across government, academ
