The 10 million standard cubic feet per day Compressed Natural Gas, CNG, mother station being developed by Nsik Oil & Gas Company Limited in Akwa Ibom State has moved closer to commissioning following the arrival of its first batch of major equipment from China.
The equipment was delivered to the project site at Uquo Isi Edoho in Esit Eket Local Government Area on Thursday, according to reports by the Independent and LEADERSHIP newspapers.
The consignment, manufactured by China-based CIMC, includes four reciprocating compressors, dehydration and filtration units, heat exchangers and four generating sets.
Speaking at the site, the Project Consultant, Mkposong Asuquo, said the arrival of the equipment marked the movement of the project from the construction stage into equipment installation and eventual commissioning.
“We have our first set of equipment from CIMC China, all the way from Jiangsu Province in China. We actually went there, we did the Factory Acceptance Test with the regulators from NMDPRA, and by the time that was concluded, we looked at their excellent performance, and we went into a contract with them,” Asuquo said.
The consultant explained that the facility was designed to use pipeline gas available around the project site. He said the location is about 500 metres from Frontier Energy and roughly three kilometres from Savannah Energy’s Accugas facility, which is expected to provide part of the gas feedstock.
The project is being developed through an equity partnership between Nsik Oil & Gas and the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund, MDGIF, under the supervision of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The latest delivery followed a Factory Acceptance Test conducted in China with the participation of the project team and regulators, including officials of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.
The power system for the plant is expected to combine gas-fired generation with an alternative gasoline-powered arrangement to keep the facility running in the event of a gas supply interruption.
Asuquo also disclosed that two trailers had been ordered to move compressed gas from the mother station to planned daughter stations across the state.
The planned network is expected to take CNG beyond the immediate project location and make it available to motorists, industries and other consumers.
“Our intention is also to feed most of the vehicles that are already CNG-powered,” Asuquo said, according to The Nation.
The project dates back to March 2025, when the Federal Government and other stakeholders performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the 10MMSCFD CNG mother station. At the time, officials said the facility was expected to support CNG distribution across Akwa Ibom and neighbouring states.
A previous inspection of the equipment in China in September 2025 had also involved representatives of Nsik Oil and Gas, MDGIF and NMDPRA, as stakeholders assessed the equipment before shipment to Nigeria.
The project is expected to form part of a wider CNG distribution network in Akwa Ibom, with the planned mother-and-daughter station model designed to take compressed gas closer to users.
The development comes as Akwa Ibom intensifies plans to introduce CNG-powered buses as part of efforts to provide cheaper transport options. LEADERSHIP reported that the state government had planned to launch at least 50 CNG-powered buses, although the launch was affected by the incomplete gas-filling infrastructure.
The Akwa Ibom Investment Corporation also inspected the Nsik Oil and Gas facility in April 2026 and reported that procurement and shipment of critical equipment had been completed, with the machinery expected to arrive in phases. The company had earlier said it had secured arrangements for raw gas supply involving the Nigerian Gas Company, Frontier and Savannah Energy.
With the first major equipment now delivered to the site, attention has shifted to installation, testing and completion of the remaining stages before the facility can begin full operations.
