With an estimated reserve of 187 trillion cubic feet of gas and a policy thrust of domestic gas utilisation and participation as a key player in the international gas market, Nigeria in the last two and half decades has invested significantly in the development of its gas sector thus positioning itself as a potential gas producing country. To this effect, a lot of capital resources were committed to building the necessary infrastructural backbone for the country's gas development. In some cases, these projects are financed by loans with strict repayment terms contingent on the off-take of gas production. It is against this background, that the development of gas from unconventional sources such as the shale basin becomes a subject of concern and the focus of this paper in order to assess its economic implication and cost to erstwhile importing countries and hitherto exporting countries.

Natural resources in the context of this chapter refer to raw materials embedded in the soil, which are extracted and modified by man for his/her benefit and use. They can be thought of as natural capital assets, distinct from physical and human capital, in that they are not created by human activity. See World Bank (2010: 44-46). 2 Aladeitan (2013: 160). 3 See World Bank (2017). 4 Ibid.