Germany is considering the possibility of imports of Nigerian natural gas to "diversify production," the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said during a visit to the West African country.
"It is important to use the capacities where they are, and that we diversify production all over the globe," Scholz added.
Moreover, the chancellor stressed that this move will influence the global gas price, noting that provided that gas was offered by more countries on the global market, there would be reduction in prices.
As for the Nigeria's position regarding the issue, Tinubu highlighted that since the West African state has considerable resources, the country is "ready to encourage investments in a gas pipeline."
According to the media reports, given that Germany shut down its last nuclear power plants in April and was cut off the Russian gas pipeline last September, large quantities of liquified natural gas (LNG) will be needed to supply the German industry. So far, Nigeria has been providing Europe with crude oil, but not gas.
Last September, the Nord Stream pipelines, built to deliver gas under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany, were hit by explosions. In February 2023, Pulitzer Prize-winning US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh published a report, saying that the explosions had been organized by the US with the support of Norway to reduce Russia's influence on Germany.
In late September this year, Russia's First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyanskiy revealed that Russia spread in the UN Security Council a draft statement by the council's president urging to denounce the last year terrorist attack on the pipeline.
On Sunday, Scholz arrived in the West African country, where he discussed bilateral cooperation in the energy field with Tinubu. On Monday, the chancellor will continue his third African trip since taking office almost two years ago by traveling to Ghana.
As for Scholz's previous trip to the continent, last year, he paid a visit to Senegal, where the chancellor offered assistance in development of gas fields off the coast. In the second half of 2024, the first quotas of fuel are expected to be delivered from Senegal, according to reports.