The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Andrew Yakubu has described the participation of Indigenous oil and gas companies at the annual Offshore Technology Conference, OTC, in Houston Texas, USA as a big boost which has provided the platform for the acquisition of technology and diverse skills for local players.
Speaking after inspecting the pavilions of the various Nigerian oil and gas companies participating in the 2014 OTC with the theme:“Asset Divestment in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry: Opportunities and Challenges,” Yakubu noted that the exposure offered by the OTC has made the companies better organized and more efficient.
He explained that the fallout of the regular participation of Nigerian Oil and Gas Companies at the previous conferences has led to the massive acquisition of expertise in drilling, well testing, surface maintenance, drilling services and other contemporary technology that have taken the petroleum industry to its current level.
“From what you have seen in terms of showcasing the gains of the various outing in the OTCs, you have clearly seen that today, the level of expertise and technology that our indigenous companies have acquired is quite significant. They are able to participate in virtually the entire spectrum of the oil and gas services. These are expertise that were purely resident outside the country in the past, but from the fallout of our outings, there have been significant acquisition of technology that have enabled our indigenous players to work without importing these technologies,” Yakubu averred.
He informed that in the last few years, the country has ramped up gas supply from 300 million standard cubic feet per day to 1500 million standard cubic feet per day as a result of the current fiscal regime introduced by the present administration stressing that the growth by any global standard was quite impressive.
“As at today, the NNPC is the largest producer of gas for domestic use. The NNPC produces over 400 mscfpd and plans are underway to increase it by 250mscfpd before year end,” Yakubu stated.
The NNPC GMD commended President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke for their massive support, adding that a lot is going on to actualize the Federal Government Gas-to-Power initiative in the country.
Commenting on the scheduled Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of the state owned refineries, Engr. Yakubu submitted that already the NNPC has gone ahead to place order for some of the vital components of the Port Harcourt Refinery and that negotiations were still on to ensure that the TAM is carried out as scheduled.
The NNPC helmsman said the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, currently before the National Assembly is geared towards improving the business environment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry, adding that when finally passed it would improve government’s take from the petroleum industry.
The Offshore Technology Conference started 45 years ago with the aim of fostering offshore technologies and sharing of ideas on how to grow and develop the oil and gas industries of participating countries all around the world.
