Successfully Financing Sustainable LNG Growth In Changing Global Markets: Lessons From Nigeria Available to Purchase

Forecast to grow at seven per cent per annum, world LNG trade has proved to be the ‘vector of growth’ for the natural gas market. Not only have demand and prices shot up, the number of projects and the investment required to meet growing demand have gone the same way up. If the loaded pipeline of LNG projects on the drawing board is anything to go by, the future looks bright. The projects would require billions of dollars to bring to production. Without finance, the growth trend currently witnessed in the LNG trade and anticipated to continue would be unsustainable. True, 'the world runs on energy and energy runs on finance'. So, where does the money come from, given the rapid changes in global financial and oil and gas markets? The paper discusses the contemporary trends in global markets and shares learning points from successful financing deals which have helped the growth of Nigeria LNG's Bonny Island plant. Already Africa's largest single industrial site, the Bonny Island plant is among the world's fastest growing. Nigeria LNG's shipping subsidiary, BGT, has one of the largest dedicated fleet of LNG vessels. How were these feats achieved within a decade and how is financing part of the growth strategy of the future? How robust are third-party financing options amid the global equity and debt market turmoil triggered by the summer 2007 US subprime mortgage crisis? The paper sets out success templates for LNG and related business, seeking to access global finance for their projects.