Energy expert Dan Kunle has formally urged President Bola Tinubu to suspend further commitments to the proposed $27 billion (approximately ₦43.2 trillion) African Atlantic Gas Pipeline. Mr Kunle argues that the project currently lacks sufficient commercial justification and risks becoming a costly national asset with limited economic returns.
In an open letter addressed to the President dated 23 July—his third such correspondence within three weeks—Mr Kunle stated that Nigeria must prioritise domestic gas utilisation over ambitious regional export projects until critical questions regarding supply, financing, and market demand are definitively resolved.
His warning follows the unanimous endorsement of the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline project by Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) member states on 19 July, after the signing of an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) in Lungi, Sierra Leone. The ‘Memorandum of Misunderstanding’
Mr Kunle criticised the project as potentially another “Memorandum of Misunderstanding,” highlighting the discrepancy between political ambition and economic reality.
“The project is now estimated to cost about $27 billion (approx. ₦43.2 trillion),” Mr Kunle noted. “Recent agreements have moved it forward politically, but a project company, investors, and a final investment decision are still required before construction can become a commercial reality.”
