Gov. Abubakar Bello of Niger on Monday joined President Muhammadu Buhari to virtually inaugurate the construction phase of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline project.
The event which took place through video conferencing was coordinated at the Aso Rock Villa Abuja with the governors of Kogi, Kaduna and Kano also participating.
The pipeline, which is expected to be completed within 24 months, is a section of the Trans-Nigeria Gas Pipeline (TNGP), with the capacity to transport 2.2 billion cubic feet of gas per day.
The project is expected to start from Ajaokuta, in Kogi and traverse through Abuja (FCT), Niger, Kaduna and terminates in Kano.
Bello commended the president for awarding the project, saying that the project would be of immense benefit to the people of the state, as regard power supply.
“This is considering the fact that the project when completed will unlock 2.2billion cubic feet of gas to the domestic market, support the addition of 3,600 megawatts of power to the national grid,” he said.
He said the pipeline had the potential of generating employment, adding that it would support the development of petrochemicals, fertilizer, methanol and other gas-based industries.
According to him, the pipeline project when completed would also boost domestic utilisation of natural gas to bring about social-economic development.
