Thursday, 21st September 2000, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo President, Federal Republic of Nigeria officially commissioned The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas plant located in Finima, Bonny Island.
Over four hundred guests from within and outside Nigeria attended the event. Prominent among the guests were Governors of Rivers and Bayelsa States, senior government officials, traditional rulers and chiefs from the various host communities of the company, including the Amanayabo of Grand Bonny Kingdom. Others were members of the Diplomatic Corp, representatives of NLNG shareholding companies, customers from Europe, and former Managing Directors of the company.
In his welcome speech titled "Partnering For Success" Nigeria LNG's Managing Director Andrew Jamieson said "we are creating a world class business that helps diversify the economy away from oil. Our profitability and cash flows will enable the government to fund and improve Nigeria's physical and social infrastructure.
To mark Nigeria LNG's commissioning, he said, "I am pleased to announce that we will expand our education programme by making a sum of fifty million naira (N50,000,000) available for improvements and upgrading of primary schools in the communities, distributing sixty thousand commemorative notebooks to all secondary schools on Bonny and along the GTS communities and doubling our university scholarship programme from 250 to 500." He also announced the provision of five hundred million naira (N500, 000,000) over a period of ten years to set up the Nigeria LNG Micro Credit Scheme to promote business development in Bonny and the GTS Communities.
President Olusegun Obasanjo while commissioning the plant commended the commitment of the Management and staff of the company and expressed the Federal Government's resolve to support the Nigeria LNG especially its efforts at future expansion.
The Nigeria LNG plant commissioning is one of the landmark activities planned to mark the celebration of Nigeria's 40th Independent Anniversary.