The Nigerian Nationwide Petroleum Firm Restricted (NNPC Ltd) has introduced the profitable completion of the River Niger crossing on the essential Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Fuel Pipeline Challenge, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s gasoline infrastructure improvement.
Group Chief Government Officer of the NNPCL, Mr Bayo Ojulari, disclosed this whereas talking on the ongoing Nigeria Oil and Fuel Power Week Convention on Tuesday in Abuja.
His keynote tackle marks his first to trade leaders and contributors since President Bola Tinubu appointed him as NNPCL GCEO.
The occasion is themed, “Accelerating World Power Progress By means of Funding, Partnerships & Innovation”.
River Niger crossing was beforehand thought-about probably the most technically difficult segments of the undertaking.
However addressing trade stakeholders and contributors, the NNPCL GCEO mentioned the corporate has surmounted the largest problem to the undertaking activation.
He added that the pipeline will likely be accomplished earlier than the top of the yr, noting that it could ship gasoline to a number of markets throughout the nation and help long-awaited industrial development in northern Nigeria.
“Now we’re honoured by the grace of God, earlier than the top of the yr, to finish the pipeline connections and start the connections and all of that, and feed all of the markets that we have to feed alongside the traces with the financial improvement affect that all of us anticipate.”
The AKK pipeline is a flagship undertaking aimed toward enhancing home gasoline utilisation, enhancing energy technology, and creating new industrial corridors.
The Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano Fuel Pipeline is a 40-inch by 614km linear pipeline system operating from Ajaokuta in Kogi State to Kano with related intermediate, terminal gasoline amenities and different associated tools to move pure gasoline to off-takers at Abuja
Ojulari additionally introduced a full restoration in pipeline infrastructure safety and capability throughout the nation. In accordance with him, as of June 29, 2025, the nation had achieved 100 per cent pipeline availability, a feat he described as “beforehand unthinkable” given the lengthy historical past of sabotage and vandalism within the sector.
“For years, each time we gathered at this occasion, we lamented the insecurity round our pipeline community and its affect on crude oil manufacturing. However I’m happy to share with you in the present day that, by way of collective efforts of the federal authorities, regulatory our bodies, the army, and the trade, we now have 100 per cent pipeline availability in the present day,” Ojulari mentioned.
Nevertheless, he famous that whereas pipeline entry is now not a constraint, the nation’s oil manufacturing ranges stay under potential.
“As of final month, we averaged 1.35 million barrels per day in crude manufacturing, and with condensates, it got here to about 1.6mbpd. So now that the pipelines can be found, the query turns into: the place is the manufacturing?”
Ojulari attributed the suboptimal output to years of underinvestment, warning that Nigeria should urgently entice new capital into the oil and gasoline sector to take full benefit of the restored infrastructure and beneficial market dynamics.
“We have now solved the infrastructure bottleneck; now we’d like investments to lift manufacturing. The celebs are starting to align, and that is the time to behave,” he mentioned.
The GCEO known as on each native and worldwide buyers to make the most of Nigeria’s improved pipeline safety, regulatory reforms, and increasing gasoline infrastructure to commit recent capital to upstream and midstream tasks.
What you need to know
AKK pipeline, spanning roughly 614 kilometers, is designed to move 2.2 billion normal cubic toes of gasoline per day.
In its Month-to-month Report Abstract for April 2025, the NNPC introduced the completion of key technical interventions on the AKK and OB3 gasoline pipeline tasks, significantly addressing challenges associated to River Niger crossings.
In accordance with the report, the AKK gasoline undertaking stood at 70%.
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