By Charles Ebi
NNPC Limited would activate its $2.8 billion Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano ,AKK, pipeline for export early in 2026, its Group CEO Bashir Ojulari said.
The update followed a recent tour of the project by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, accompanied by Ojulari, and the Company’s Executive Vice President (Gas, Power, and New Energy), Olalekan Ogunleye.
The AKK pipeline, first conceived in 2008, is central to Nigeria’s ambition to leverage its vast gas reserves for economic growth.
Its completion could transform the north, where chronic power shortages and a lack of energy infrastructure have stifled manufacturing for decades.
Ojulari, after briefing President Bola Tinubu on Sunday, noted that the company has completed welding the main line of the pipeline, including the critical River Niger crossing – a feat that has stalled progress for years.
The milestone, he said, has cleared the way for connecting the pipeline early next year. Ojulari said once activated, the project will “bring gas in its full form into the northern part of Nigeria”.
“This is not just about energy”, Ojulari said. “It’s about industrialisation – fertiliser plants, power generation, and gas-based industries in Kaduna, Kano, Abuja, and Ajaokuta. We expect to see industrial parks spring up”.
Ojulari also revealed NNPC’s production targets: oil output is expected to rise to 1.8 million barrels per day in 2026, up from about 1.7 million this year, while gas production will continue to climb.
He credited structural reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act for enabling NNPC to operate as a profit-driven company, no longer reliant on federal allocations.
Ojulari said President Tinubu reaffirmed his push for $30 billion in new investments by 2030 and oil output of 2 million barrels per day by 2027.
The NNPC GCEO noted that upon completion, the pipeline network will deliver economic opportunities, boost power supply, and drive national industrialization, ushering in a new era of energy and economic security for the country.
The completion of the AKK pipeline main line positions NNPCL to significantly expand gas availability in northern Nigeria, a region long constrained by limited energy infrastructure.
Ojulari said the company’s key focus in 2026 will be increasing oil and gas production by attracting new investments, with a target of at least 1.8 million barrels per day in oil output next year.
He said President Tinubu has mandated NNPC to attract $30 billion in investments by 2030 and boost oil production to two million barrels per day by 2027, highlighting the strategic value of the AKK gas pipeline to Nigeria’s long-term energy and industrial goals.
In July, NNPC Ltd announced the successful completion of the River Niger crossing on the critical Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano ,AKK, Gas Pipeline Project.
River Niger crossing was previously considered one of the most technically challenging segments of the project.
AKK pipeline, spanning approximately 614 kilometers, is designed to transport 2.2 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day.
