The West African Gas Pipeline Company (WAPCo) is set to resume natural gas exports through the offshore trunkline routing Nigerian gas to countries along the littoral, including Benin, Togo and Ghana.

Based in Accra, Ghana, West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) operator WAPCo has wrapped up inspection of the 20-inch pipe running for 569 kilometres from a T-junction located off the Nigerian town of Badagry to Takoradi in Ghana’s Western Region, well ahead of the scheduled completion date of 21 March.

Data gathered during the inspection will be analysed over the next two months, enabling WAPCo to “critically assess pipeline and enhance optimal operations” before resuming gas supplies, the operator said this week.

“Apart from cleaning the pipeline of debris, pigging will provide information on the condition of the pipeline to inform decisions on effective maintenance to prolong pipeline life-span and improve the safety of our operations,” the company added.

WAPCo is currently only supplying gas to its Takoradi Regulating & Metering Station, while supplies will resume to the Tema Regulating & Metering Station after construction of the Takoradi-Tema Interconnection Project is completed and becomes operational next month.

Regulated by the Abuja-based West African Pipeline Authority, WAPCo is co-owned by Chevron on 36.9%, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on 24.9%, Shell on 17.9%, Ghana’s Takoradi Power Company on 16.3%, the Togolese gas utility Sotogaz on 2% and the Benin gas utility SoBeGaz on 2%.

Despite a nameplate capacity of 170 million cubic feet per day of gas, the WAPG system has rarely delivered to target.

Nigeria exported some 27.3 billion cubic feet of gas via the WAGP, according to NNPC managing director Mele Kyari, and aims by the second quarter to begin construction of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline to facilitate supply of gas to power stations in northern Nigeria.

Planned expansion of the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS) 2 and the OB3 gas pipeline, linking output from Eastern Nigeria to markets in the west, will double ELPS throughput capacity from 1100 MMcfd of gas to 2200 MMcfd, Kyari said.

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Nigeria gas link set to go