Petroleum players demand congenial environment for sustainable NC utilization
Sopuruchi Onwuka
Investors and players in the Nigerian petroleum industry have challenged government to create more congenial business climate for full utilization of developed capacity.
They also urged Nigerians to see the prevailing divestment program by international oil companies in the onshore terrain of the industry as good opportunity for new investments by indigenous independent petroleum companies.
They also called on government to drive policies that guarantee uninterrupted academic programs and labour strikes at the nation’s learning institutions.
Predictable academic sessions, they noted, would enable Nigerian institutions fit into global industry partnership programs that equip graduates with requisite skills.
The calls capped the position of policy debaters in the first panel session at the ongoing Practical Nigerian Content (PNC) Conference in Yenegoa, Bayelsa State.
President of the Women in Energy Network (WIEN), Mrs Eyono Fatai-Williams, who led the discussion summarized that time has come for government to enable continuous flow of projects for sustainable utilization of available capacity.
Mrs Eyono Fatai-Williams
Discussants including Gbite Falade of Aradel PLC, Obi Imemba of TotalEnergies and other drawn from Chevron and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) agreed Nigeria has developed a strong workforce that must be sustainably engaged.
In moderating the panel session, Mrs Eyono Fatai-Williams called on the Nigerian professionals and service providers to take advantage of the Continental market and flood Africa with Nigerian goods and service.
She told delegates that Nigerian petroleum business holds endless opportunities, stressing that people must see the prevailing asset sales in the onshore terrain as investments by indigenous companies and not as divestments.
In delivering his opinion on the subject, Managing Director of Aradel, Mr Gbite Falade, declared that the company stands as symbol of opportunities available in the divestments in the industry.
He said Aradel which started as marginal oilfield player has since transformed in an independent petroleum company listed on the Nigerian bourse with market capitalization of over N2.4 trillion.
He described divestment in maturing terrain as normal in the industry, explaining that issues propelling the exit of the international oil companies from Nigeria Delta are too local for big portfolio players.
He said the divested assets now present Nigeria with the shortest route to the highly canvassed incremental production required to boost the country’s foreign exchange income and control inflation.
He lauded the NCDMB for phenomenal delivery of its mandate on grooming local capacity that now enables indigenous companies to acquire and operate assets in the industry.
He called on the NCDMB to extend the same level of support it provided service providers to indigenous operating companies.
“There should be closer collaboration between NCDMB and indigenous operators,” Mr Falade demanded, adding that “NCDMB should assist the operators as much as it helped service providers” in building capacity.
In outlining Aradel’s local content profile, Falade stated that all contractors working for the company are NCDMB certified. He also declared Aradel’s irrevocable commitment to use of indigenous contractors.
Mr Obi Imemba of TotalEnergies also stressed the need for government to facilitate more investment decisions and actual projects in the industry for sustainable engagement of developed capacity and deployment of more training graduates.
He pointed out that TotalEnergies has remained in the lead of Nigerian Content quotient in all it’s projects.
He pointed at 70 percent Nigerian Content score in the Egina deepwater field development, 94 percent for Ikike project, and 100 percent envisaged for upcoming Ubeta project.
He listed projects approved for TotalEnergies to include deepwater Porewei field development, Egina West development, and Ubeta.
He however pointed out that Nigerian investment climate must be globally competitive to make the projects happen.
Mr Imemba made it clear that all TotalEnergies’ projects must match global competitive conditions.
Speakers from other companies including Chevron also pledged commitment to utilization of Nigerian content in their operations.
In articulating the position of the panel, Mrs Fatai-Williams noted that utilization of local and community content in projects and operations would guarantee more peaceful environment for players.
She emphasized the need for creating systems that ensure sustainable consumption of local content in the industry, adding that the players must get more organized in their collaboration with the NCDMB to ensure smooth and rapid processes.