Nigeria and Germany agree on gas supplies and investment in renewables

On Tuesday, Nigeria and Germany significantly expanded and strengthened their economic partnership. This is evidenced by two memoranda of understanding signed by Nigerian and German companies.

The first agreement, involving gas supplies to Germany, was signed by Nigeria’s Riverside LNG and Germany’s Johannes Schuetze Energy Import AG. Under the agreement, Nigeria will export 850,000 tonnes of natural gas to Germany each year, with volumes expected to rise to 1.2 million tonnes.

Nigeria has the largest natural gas reserves in Africa. However, due to insufficient processing capacity, around 8.5 million cubic metres of this gas are vented or flared every day. Exports to Germany will therefore help make use of around 1.5 million cubic metres of surplus natural gas per day.

The first deliveries to Germany are expected in 2026. Frank Otto, CEO of Johannes Schuetze Energy Import AG, described the partnership as a major opportunity for the German market.

$500 million for renewables

Union Bank of Nigeria and Germany’s DWS Group have also reached an agreement focused on financing renewable energy projects in Nigeria. The investment, worth $500 million, is expected to help integrate poor rural areas in Nigeria into the economy. For Germany, which plans to import large volumes of green hydrogen in the future, the deal will also help achieve carbon neutrality by 2045.

On Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also announced that Germany would invest a total of four billion euros in “green energy” in Africa by 2030.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu is seeking to make the country as attractive as possible to foreign investors and revive its economy, which is weighed down by slow growth, high debt and inflation. Speaking at the 10th German-Nigerian Business Forum in Berlin, he said that Nigeria was ready to attract foreign investment thanks to its stable democracy.