By Obas Esiedesa
Top managers of Nigeria’s oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria have called for a stable fiscal environment to attract investments that would grow the country’s production.
Speaking at the opening of 2020 Nigeria International Petroleum Summit in Abuja on Monday, the leaders of the Industry called for a robust regulatory framework that ensures that the country reaps benefits and investors get fair returns for their investments.
Speaking at the event, the Group Managing Director, Aiteo Eastern E&P Company Limited, Mr. Victor Okoronkwo said although the world is undergoing major shift in energy mix, hydrocarbon would continue to play dominant role in global energy demand.
According to him, “the energy transition has largely been driven by three key factors namely environmental, technological advancements and National Policy Realignments. Climate change is a serious issue that has gained ascendance in shaping global policy discussions with respect to actualizing less carbon intensive scenarios.
“However, given the diverse applications of hydrocarbon and hydrocarbon derivatives in support of human civilization and industrialization, fossils will continue to play a dominant role in the global energy mix in the foreseeable future. Consequently, there is a still window of opportunity for the Nigeria to realize its Hydrocarbon objectives of 3MMbbl/d production and 40Billion bbls of Reserves by 2025”.
Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company Ltd (Aiteo E&P) started up as an SPV to participate in IOC asset divestment exercise of 2014. The company emerged the winner of the competitive bid for 45% private stake held by Shell (30%), TOTAL (10%) and AGIP (5%) in OML 29 and the Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL) under the NNPC-SPDC Joint Venture.
By virtue of this successful acquisition, Aiteo E&P is the operator of the NNP-Aiteo Joint Venture. OML 29, located in the swamp of the Niger Delta has 6 flow stations and 4 Associated Gas Gathering Compressors Stations.
In his speech, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, stated that it would expand its operational footprints across the globe, saying the move would enable the corporation boost its global profile.
Kyari explained that though the primary focus of the corporation was to ensure energy security for Nigeria, it had capacity to meet the energy needs of the entire West African sub-region.
He said the NNPC was working with its technical partners to restore its three refineries to be able to operate at optimal levels.
Mallam Kyari added that already the Phase 1 of the rehabilitation work on the Port Harcourt Refinery had begun with Phase 2 work in the offing.
“We will continue to support the Dangote refinery and the other modular refinery projects in the country to guarantee energy security for Africa. Nigeria welcomes foreign investors to invest in the Oil and Gas Industry. 2020 is year of gas. Nigeria will deepen domestic gas use and monetization of our huge gas resources,” Mallam Kyari said.
On his part, the Managing Director of Total E & P, Mr. Mike Sangster said Total has remained a reliable partner to Nigeria in the 60 years of its operation in the country.
He noted that with 577 petrol service stations spread across the whole country, shareholder in NLNG, the company was playing significant role Nigeria’s development.
“In upstream, we have significantly increased our production with the startup of the deepwater Egina field with a production capacity of 200kb/d” he added.
He continued: “We are keen to continue to invest in Nigeria and to contribute constructively to the ongoing debate about the Petroleum Industry Bill. We welcome the efforts being made by the authorities to define a long term framework for the Oil and Gas Industry that provides clarity & certainty, provides competitive terms and a win/win solution for the country and investors.
“We support the desire of the Honourable Minister to modernise Petroleum Legislation, and welcome the opportunity to engage with the authorities. A progressive PIB could be the catalyst needed for a new wave of investment in Nigeria instead of other countries and hence contribute to the sustainability of the Oil & Gas Industry”, Sangster stated.
