‘Why Nigeria may miss gas flaring stop date’ – NUPRC

Ibrahim Illo, a senior manager in the Sustainability, Health, Safety and Environment Department of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), disclosed this in an interview with PREMIUM TIMES at the ongoing COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye.

Mr Illo said that although the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) provides mechanisms to discourage gas flaring and promote the commercial use of associated gas, financing remains a challenge for operators seeking to execute gas utilisation projects.

“Some of the operating companies are also making an effort to see how they can source funds to execute this project,” he said.

“Oil and gas projects are not cheap projects; you need funding.”

He attributed the financing difficulty partly to the global energy transition, which he said was constraining funding for fossil fuel projects.

Mr Illo said the NUPRC was participating in international climate discussions, including COP31, to present Nigeria’s initiatives and government commitments and explore opportunities for collaboration to support emissions reduction.

Nigeria’s gas-flaring record

The financing concerns come amid a deterioration in Nigeria’s recent gas-flaring performance.

The World Bank’s 2025 Global Gas Flaring Tracker reported that Nigeria’s gas flaring increased by 12 per cent in 2024, marking the second consecutive year of rising volumes.

The country recorded an eight per cent increase in flaring intensity, from 11 cubic metres per barrel of oil produced in 2023 to 12 cubic metres in 2024, more than twice the global average.

The report attributed 60 per cent of Nigeria’s gas flaring in 2024, and 75 per cent of the increase recorded that year, to facilities operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and several smaller, mainly indigenous companies.

It noted that some of these companies might lack the technical expertise and funding required to undertake capital-intensive gas utilisation projects.

The report also identified the commercial and regulatory challenges associated with using captured gas for electricity generation, alongside limited project financing and infrastructure constraints.

Nigeria has previously struggled to meet its gas-flaring commitments. 

In 2016, the country launched the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP), targeting 2020 as the deadline for ending routine gas flaring. The target was missed, and the programme subsequently faced implementation delays.

Nigeria also endorsed the World Bank’s Zero Routine Flaring by 2030 initiative in June 2016.

Regulatory measures

Despite the implementation challenges, Mr Illo said the PIA had strengthened the regulatory framework for addressing gas flaring by empowering the commission to take ownership of gas that operators would otherwise flare and make it available to third parties willing to utilise it.

He said the provision had deterred operators, while the law also required oil and gas companies to pursue gas monetisation.

Under Section 105(2) of the PIA, the NUPRC has the right to take, free of charge, natural gas destined for flaring and make it available for commercialisation.

The 2023 Gas Flaring, Venting and Methane Emissions (Prevention of Waste and Pollution) Regulations also require producers to submit plans to eliminate and monetise gas flaring, maintain emissions records, and comply with reporting requirements.

However, PREMIUM TIMES reported in an October 2026 investigation that implementing the anti-flaring framework faced regulatory delays and gaps in methane monitoring.

The investigation found that the NUPRC issued permits to 28 companies in December 2025 to commercialise flare gas, more than four years after the PIA was enacted.

It also found gaps in the commission’s publication of emissions data and in operators’ submission of mandatory methane information, raising concerns about monitoring compliance with existing regulations.

Mr Illo said reducing emissions would require sustained cooperation among government agencies, operators and other stakeholders.

He also cautioned that climate action would not end with the 2030 deadline.

“Climate change issues are continuous. Even if you get to 2030, there will still be emission reduction efforts that we need to do,” he said.

Host community obligations

Beyond gas flaring, Mr Illo said the PIA introduced provisions to address environmental degradation and improve conditions in communities hosting oil and gas operations.

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He identified host community development, environmental remediation and the decommissioning of oil and gas facilities as key measures under the Act.

Under Chapter Three of the PIA, oil and gas companies must contribute three per cent of their annual operating expenditure to host community development trusts.

The funds are intended to finance projects identified through community needs assessments, including healthcare, education and infrastructure.

Mr Illo said more than 174 host community development trusts had been incorporated across oil-producing areas, with some already implementing and commissioning projects.

He added that the framework had improved cooperation between communities and operators and helped reduce vandalism of oil and gas assets.

Asked how the commission holds operating companies accountable for fulfilling these obligations, Mr Illo said compliance was built into the regulatory approval process.

He explained that companies must incorporate host community development trusts and commit to environmental remediation and decommissioning plans before their field development plans can be approved.

He also said operators were required to make financial provisions for environmental restoration in the event of pollution incidents and for the decommissioning of facilities after production ends.

However, he did not provide specific examples of enforcement actions or sanctions against companies that failed to meet their environmental and host community obligations.