The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has renewed Nigeria’s dedication to ending routine gas flaring by 2030, a goal underneath scrutiny given persistent flaring at oil services and gaps in regulatory enforcement and emissions monitoring, as documented by PREMIUM TIMES.
The fee’s Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, mentioned the nation was pursuing stricter penalties and the commercialisation of gas at present being burned at oil manufacturing websites.
According to a report by the News Agency of Nigeria, Ms Eyesan, represented by Janice Anyanwu, the fee’s deputy director of gas utilisation, spoke on Wednesday on the Emogas International Natural Gas-Based Industry Conference and Exhibition (EINGICE) 2026 in Abuja.
She mentioned gas flaring, which beforehand accounted for about 90 per cent of manufacturing, had declined to roughly seven per cent, with about 500 million normal cubic ft of gas nonetheless flared day by day.
However, the pledge comes amid questions on whether or not Nigeria’s regulatory framework is being enforced successfully and whether or not obtainable information can independently show the size of progress towards ending routine flaring.
A PREMIUM TIMES investigation discovered main gaps in implementing the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and the rules governing gas flaring, venting and methane emissions.
The investigation discovered that regulatory delays, weak enforcement and deficiencies in methane measurement had undermined efforts to curb emissions, practically 5 years after the PIA was enacted in August 2021.
It additionally found that the fee had not printed some data required underneath its personal rules, together with complete information on gas venting, which releases methane immediately into the environment fairly than burning it.
In an April 2026 directive reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES, the fee acknowledged technical capability limitations and gaps in measuring, reporting, and verifying methane emissions.
The regulator later directed oil and gas operators to enhance emissions reporting, together with a shift to extra correct, measurement-based monitoring programs.
TotalEnergies flaring declare underneath investigation
PREMIUM TIMES not too long ago investigated TotalEnergies’ declaration that it had ended routine gas flaring in Nigeria
In our report, we documented persistent flare exercise across the firm’s OML 58 and OML 130 belongings.
During visits to host communities, together with Obite and Obagi in Rivers State, our reporter noticed gas burning day and night time at services operated by TotalEnergies despite its public declaration.
Satellite information reviewed by this newspaper additionally indicated that flare exercise at OML 58 and OML 130 had neither disappeared nor diminished considerably after the announcement.
The investigation sought explanations from TotalEnergies and the NUPRC, together with whether or not the regulator had independently assessed the corporate’s declare and the way the noticed flaring had been categorised. Neither organisation responded to the enquiries on the time of publication.
The findings raised questions on how routine flaring is assessed, what proof helps corporations’ declarations that they’ve eradicated it, and whether or not regulators can independently confirm these claims since ending routine flaring doesn’t essentially imply that every one flaring has stopped. Operators should flare gas for emergencies, security causes or different non-routine functions, topic to relevant rules.
However, figuring out whether or not such exercise is justified requires clear operational data, dependable emissions measurements and efficient regulatory oversight.
Penalties, commercialisation
At Wednesday’s convention, Ms Eyesan attributed the discount in gas flaring to stricter penalties and efforts to develop business makes use of for gas that will in any other case be wasted.
She mentioned the NUPRC launched the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme in 2021 and auctioned 42 flare websites to third-party traders.
The tasks embody mini-liquefied pure gas (LNG) vegetation and services for producing liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
Under the PIA, the fee’s chief govt mentioned the gas-flaring penalty was standardised at $2 per thousand normal cubic ft, with further penalties for operators exceeding authorised thresholds.
The regulation additionally supplies a framework for capturing and commercialising flare gas fairly than permitting it to be wasted.
However, PREMIUM TIMES reported that a number of operators continued flaring gas despite authorized obligations to scale back emissions.
Our investigation discovered that flare volumes elevated at some oil belongings after the introduction of the 2023 gas-flaring and methane rules. The investigation additionally documented compliance issues and situations by which operators mentioned that they had not confronted sanctions for failing to satisfy reporting or different regulatory obligations.
In October, PREMIUM TIMES additional reported that the fee issued permits for flare-gas commercialisation to twenty-eight corporations in December 2025, greater than 4 years after the PIA turned regulation.
The fee’s subsequent menace to revoke permits from traders that failed to point out main progress in utilising flare gas highlights the issue of translating the programme into measurable reductions.
The newest pledge raises questions on how shortly the remaining flare websites will likely be introduced underneath efficient commercialisation preparations and the way the regulator will reveal that the ensuing tasks are decreasing emissions.
Gas reserves, funding
Ms Eyesan mentioned Nigeria had confirmed gas reserves of 215.19 trillion cubic ft as of 1 January, giving the nation an estimated reserve lifetime of 85 years.
She mentioned Nigeria produced a median of seven.42 billion normal cubic ft of gas day by day in 2025, with about 92.4 per cent utilised.
READ ALSO: Akwa Ibom oil communities demand action on gas flaring, host community rights
She attributed investor curiosity to reforms, together with Executive Order 40 of 2024, and cited the Ubeta, HI and Ima gas tasks, which have a mixed potential manufacturing capability of about one billion cubic ft day by day.
The fee can also be advancing a gas-swap framework and has launched a licensing spherical providing 40 blocks to draw additional funding, she mentioned.
Despite the nation’s substantial reserves, insufficient infrastructure, excessive funding prices and inadequate gas volumes at some flare websites stay obstacles to eliminating routine flaring.
Ainojie Irune, managing director of Oando Energy Resources Nigeria Ltd., mentioned Africa wanted to focus much less on celebrating its gas reserves and extra on delivering dependable provides and changing sources into financial worth.
Speaking on driving gas industrialisation by means of progressive upstream funding choices, Mr Irune mentioned Africa’s gas business would require about $1 trillion in funding by 2050.
He mentioned Nigeria’s gas growth remained constrained by insufficient infrastructure, unsure fee preparations and delays in business choices, including that greater than 55 trillion cubic ft of found Nigerian gas remained undeveloped or awaited commercialisation.
Mr Irune known as for built-in gas-to-market programs, bankable provide contracts, dependable infrastructure and steady regulatory insurance policies.
He mentioned progress needs to be measured by the amount of gas delivered and investments executed fairly than reserves found or tasks introduced.
The convention, EINGICE 2026, introduced collectively power business leaders, policymakers, traders, regulators and know-how innovators to debate increasing Africa’s LNG commerce and accelerating gas-based industrialisation.
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