US-based energy company Fulcrum LNG Incorporated has partnered with the Bayelsa State Government to develop a gas gathering and processing facility aimed at reducing gas flaring, improving electricity supply and supporting industrial growth.
The proposed project will be implemented in phases, with an initial focus on capturing gas currently being flared and putting it to commercial use. The gas is expected to supply Bayelsa’s Independent Power Plant and support electricity demand from emerging industrial clusters across the state.
The agreement was reached during the inaugural US-Nigeria Governors Government-to-Business Forum on Energy, Mining and Infrastructure in Texas, where Bayelsa Governor Douye Diri met with representatives of American energy and investment companies.
Fulcrum LNG Chief Executive Officer, Jesus Bronchalo, said the company would begin by assessing gas flare sites across Bayelsa to establish the scale of available resources and identify the infrastructure required to collect and process the gas.
He explained that the assessment would determine whether flaring at different locations resulted from inadequate transportation facilities or limited capacity to reinject the gas. According to him, some remote flare sites may not be commercially viable to develop.
Bronchalo said the company would finance 100 per cent of the investment, although the state government could acquire an equity stake by providing capital for its share of the project.
He added that construction and commissioning could take approximately 12 months after a final investment decision is reached. The eventual investment value will be determined by the outcome of the feasibility study.
The company is also executing a similar project in Guyana, valued at about $3bn, although Bronchalo indicated that the Bayelsa development could be larger in scale.
Governor Diri described the partnership as an opportunity to address environmental challenges while creating the conditions for industrial development. He pledged his administration’s support for the project and called for work to begin without delay.
During his presentation at the forum, Diri said Bayelsa accounts for an estimated 15 to 20 per cent of Nigeria’s proven gas reserves and supplies approximately 60 per cent of the gas used by Nigeria LNG Limited in Bonny, Rivers State.
He also highlighted the state’s 203-kilometre Atlantic coastline and access to the Gulf of Guinea as advantages that could support energy investments and wider economic activities.
The agreement emerged from a forum facilitated by Westpaq International in collaboration with the US Department of Commerce and the US Commercial Service in Houston. The event brought together officials from Bayelsa, Nasarawa, Ogun and Ondo states, as well as more than 15 American companies operating in the energy, mining and financial sectors.
