Nigeria’s national oil company NNPC says coordinated containment measures have been successfully carried out on a section of the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline System (Elps) following an explosion.
The NNPC-operated network, one of Nigeria’s most critical gas transport infrastructures, suffered an explosion at about 5:50pm on 10 December near three communities in the Gbaramatu Kingdom, Delta State. The company said all relevant pipeline sections had been “safely and securely isolated”.
While the cause of the incident is yet to be confirmed pending a full investigation, NNPC said initial observations indicated a pressure drop consistent with a loss of containment. Emergency response procedures were immediately activated.
A joint inspection of the affected line was also carried out by representatives from NNPC, maintenance contractors and the downstream regulator, NMDPRA.
“The operator has activated its business continuity plan to manage the impact on all affected stakeholders,” NNPC said four days after the incident. “The company remains committed to the safety of its host communities, the protection of the environment and the reliability of its operations across all assets.”
The looped 36-inch Elps, built in 1989, runs more than 340km through Delta, Edo, Ondo, Ogun and Lagos, where it connects to the West African Gas Pipeline system. The 50km Iseni pipeline project is also being developed as a potential tie-in.
It transports up to 2.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas daily from Delta State to Lagos, supplying power plants and industries across the southwest. That’s over 40% the entire 1.29 bcf that Nigeria LNG has so far secured for its seventh liquefaction train.
Any disruption can affect electricity supply and raise costs for industries reliant on the line.
NNPC said its continuity plan, which typically involves rerouting supply through alternative pipelines, is expected to minimise downtime and help organisations resume operations quickly.
In its October 2025 report, the company noted that Elps was undergoing expansion. It added that other major pipeline projects such as OB3 and AKK were at advanced stages of completion.