LAGOS - State-owned Nigerian oil company NNPC has expanded shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to a port in China after its first delivery to Japan in June, it said on Monday.

Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer, holds the continent's largest gas reserves at more than 200 trillion cubic feet and has often shipped most of its LNG through Nigeria LNG, in which the NNPC has a 49% stake.

NNPC Ltd said it has been involved in LNG trading since 2021 with its first LNG cargo sale in November of that year. It said it has since traded over 20 cargoes into the European and Asian markets on Free On Board basis, where the buyer assumes risks once the seller ships the product.

But now the company says it will ship directly to ports in the countries ordering the cargoes bearing shipping and insurance costs, known as Delivered Ex-Ship (DES) in the industry, which it says is more profitable.

"The DES system, apart from being more financially rewarding, allows NNPC Ltd inroads into the downstream segment of the LNG sector and positions it to capture more market share, while building in-house capacity and ensuring that global customers are familiar with the NNPC Ltd brand," said Dapo Segun, executive president of NNPC Downstream.

Since last year, the NNPC has been expanding its footprint in the LNG market, signing an agreement to build a new floating LNG plant in Nigeria that will boosts exports to Europe.

The NNPC said it achieved the feat in collaboration with its shipping subsidiary and they are scheduled to deliver at least two more LNG cargoes to ports in Asia by November.

(Reporting by Isaac Anyaogu; editing by David Evans)