BY SALAU TAWAKALITU YEWANDE
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPC Ltd) says it will continue to invest in the development of huge oil and gas infrastructure to make it easy for operators and prospective investors to carry out their business in Nigeria.
The Executive Vice President of Upstream, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this at the ongoing Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), on Wednesday in Houston, Texas, United States of America.
Speaking at one of the panel sessions of a luncheon organised by the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), with the theme: “Sustainable Energy Solutions for Africa’s Future (Nigerian Perspective)”, Eyesan stated that NNPC Ltd.’s objective was to ensure that there is a healthy balance of energy sources in the country.
She explained that though the oil and gas sector is not where it ought to be, much progress had been made between last year’s edition of the OTC in terms of opening up the sector for investments and infrastructural development.
While she identified funding as the major challenge impeding the development of the sector, she listed some of the bright spots in the industry including the Executive Orders signed by the President to open up the sector, the imminent resolution of the assets divestment by the International Oil Companies, and the aggressive execution of gas infrastructure projects such as the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) Gas Pipeline, which she said would be completed in the next quarter.
Also speaking at the panel session, the Managing Director of SNEPCo, Elohor Aiboni, and the Managing Director of Chevron Nigeria Ltd, Mr Jim Swartz, stated that their companies’ divestment from onshore and shallow water assets was a general realignment of their portfolios across the globe and should not be misconstrued as an exit from Nigeria.
Speaking further on his company’s commitment to remain in Nigeria, Swartz said: “We are excited about what the government is doing to build confidence in investors. We are excited to work with NNPC Ltd.”
