Imo State has been officially included in Nigeria’s 2026 Gas Master Plan, marking a major shift in the state’s role in the country’s energy and industrial development strategy.
The announcement was made on January 30, 2026, by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, which named Assa North in Ohaji Egbema Local Government Area and Izombe in Oguta Local Government Area as new gas hubs under the national plan. This is the first time Imo State has been recognised in the Gas Master Plan.
For many years, Imo State and the wider South-East region were left out of Nigeria’s core gas infrastructure planning. The original 2008 Gas Master Plan focused largely on facilities in the Niger Delta, Akwa Ibom and major gas transmission routes linking the south to the north. Efforts to revise the plan to include Imo State were unsuccessful until now.
Speaking on the development, the Imo State Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Gas Development, Emeka Mgbudem, described the inclusion as a strategic breakthrough for the state’s economy. He said earlier attempts to address the South-East’s exclusion dated back to a review committee set up in 2008 under late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, but concrete results only emerged in the current administration.
Mgbudem credited the progress to the leadership of Governor Hope Uzodimma, noting that Imo State, which sits on large gas reserves, is now positioned as a key gas hub that will also support the proposed Aba-Owerri-Nnewi-Onitsha gas pipeline project.
Under the 2026 plan, Assa North will supply gas into the OB3 pipeline, while the Izombe hub will focus on using associated gas to power industries. According to the state government, this will boost domestic gas supply, attract major investors and strengthen activities within the Orashi Special Energy Zone.
The Orashi Special Energy Zone is being developed as a resource-based industrial hub, with the potential to deliver some of the lowest industrial power costs in Africa. Officials say this could give Imo State a strong advantage in agro-processing and heavy industries such as fertiliser production, methanol, refining and liquefied natural gas.
Beyond industrial growth, the state government says the gas projects will improve electricity supply, support digital infrastructure and reduce the cost of living for residents. Natural gas, the commissioner said, will now play a central role in powering homes, businesses and economic activities across the state.
On environmental concerns, Mgbudem assured that host communities would benefit from Nigeria’s Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme. He explained that the Assa North–Ohaji South gas plant was designed to operate without routine gas flaring, while operators in Izombe and other fields in Imo State are implementing flare reduction programmes in line with national sustainability goals.
Nigeria is targeting an end to routine gas flaring by 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2060. The ongoing flare capture programme is expected to cut millions of tonnes of carbon emissions annually, attract billions of dollars in investment and create thousands of jobs.
In terms of revenue, the state government expects Imo’s internally generated revenue to rise significantly once gas-based industries and the Orashi Special Energy Zone become fully operational. Improved power supply and increased industrial activity are also expected to attract manufacturing firms and expand the state’s tax base.
