TotalEnergies: We’ll end routine gas flaring by end of 2023

TotalEnergies says it will stop routine gas flaring by the end of the year.

Victor Bandele, deputy managing director of deepwater operations at TotalEnergies Exploration and Production (E&P) Nigeria, spoke on Tuesday during a panel session at the ongoing Nigeria international energy summit (NIES) in Abuja.

He said the company’s decision to end gas flaring this year started in the past 15 years.

“The effort did not start today; we can announce this today,” Bandele said.

He added that the decision was made on purpose to provide safer, cleaner, and more affordable energy for the energy transition.

The deputy managing director noted that about 95 percent of the company’s gas production was currently being utilised, as he expressed the firm’s commitments in ensuring fully integrated, sustainable, and readily available energy in the oil and gas industry to actualise the country’s transition plans.

According Bandele, TotalEnergies has made significant success in educating stakeholders about domestic gas and is constantly expanding its gas portfolio in terms of export.

“Over the years, we have been consistent in development, making sure that all infrastructure we have are fully utilised,” he said.

“This year, we have just finished drilling an exploration well and we will continue to consolidate on the things we know how best to do.”

Speaking on gas as the transition fuel, Bandele said the company had inaugurated onshore projects, which were already at the engineering stage.

He said the action was a deliberate plan by the company to supply electricity to communities situated at the site of its oil block which had been in darkness for the past 25 years.

Also commenting on solar energy utilisation, he said TotalEnergies was in talks with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited on installing another 10 megawatt electricity to a community in the zone of its project.

He explained that the project would be 100 percent solar-based with a two-year completion target.

“We acquired the second largest solar company in the world. It is also a deliberate action to work in that space to boost the industry,” he added.

Bamidele also said 50 percent of TotalEnergies’ 550 filling stations now run on solar power, as he called for collaboration among all stakeholders to achieve the desired outcome in the sector.

“Nigeria is a cornerstone to the development of Africa. No country is as mature as Nigeria on gas development and we must take advantage of that,” he said.