‘NIPS is a perfect platform for cross pollination of ideas at the highest levels for wider global energy community’

JAMES SHINDI is the Project Director of the Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), an African Petroleum Technology and Business Conference (APTC) with the first edition scheduled for ICC, Abuja from 19th to 23rd February 2018. In an interview with FRANK UZUEGBUNAM, Editor, West Africa Energy Intelligence, he talks about plans to showcase a flawless world class energy conference/exhibition. Excerpts;

What is the origin of Nigeria International Petroleum Summit, an Africa Petroleum Technology and Business Conference?

As part of the on-going reforms in the sector and as a contribution to the Nigerian and African oil and gas industry, the Federal Government took a formal position to stage an annual National Resource event with all the relevant government backing and which will create the perfect platform for cross pollination of ideas at the highest levels, networking, business and local content development, government to business, business to business, government to government and other linkages while promoting Nigeria as both a business and touristic destination to the wider global energy community.

The idea is that the event will be run on a PPP basis and be self-funding. Which is why the government undertook an International Competitive Bidding process to select a partner to work with on terms, which the government set out. These are very strict terms but they ensure that the partnership works and all parties deliver on their roles and responsibilities in both a timely and professional way.

Vice President Prof. Yemi Osibanjo endorsed NIPS in the presence of other Africa Ministers of Energy.  How much involvement have they promised for the show?

As you are aware, the whole process received Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval and as you rightly said, the event was later unveiled by the then acting President, in the presence of 19 Ministers of Petroleum Attending the extra-ordinary meeting of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) earlier in 2017.

The support from the government has been fantastic. There are regular planning meetings, which involve all the government agencies under the ministry, including the NNPC, DPR, PEF, NCDMB, PPPRA, PTDF and PTI. There are also wider consultations with other agencies outside the ministry of petroleum to ensure that the event goes well.

The government also officially invited other governments to attend, including National Oil Companies from both OPEC and non-OPEC member countries. The aim is to make this event a global reference point for energy related discuss globally.

Can you elaborate more on the essence of this summit and why Nigeria?

As Africa’s largest and most influential oil producer, Nigeria has continued to play a leading role in the global energy space and this event creates another outlet for Nigeria to lead the way in Africa’s response to the various challenges facing the oil and gas industry.

What will be of particular interest in the business conference side of the show?

Companies will get a unique opportunity to create business linkages, market their goods and services directly to decision makers from around the globe. It will also be an opportunity for companies to re-affirm their market presence and further demonstrate their commitment to the Nigerian and Africa’s oil and gas industry.

From the government’s point of view, this event will enable them glean ideas and feedback from operators in the Industry because the event is deliberately designed to be more than just another talk show. The aim is to discuss topical issue, offer recommendations which can be tracked so that in another 12 months when we gather again, it is easy to assess where we were back then, where are at present and where we could like to be over short, medium and long term.

On the exhibition of petroleum technology side, what would make this show different from existing ones?   

The global nature of the exhibition stands it out as unique in its own right. Furthermore, the oil and gas industry is facing unique challenges today. Some of which have not been seen before. A lot of this exhibition will focus on technological breakthroughs and how current and future technologies can be used to deal with some of these challenges.

How optimistic are you on the acceptability of this event to the upstream oil and gas players locally and global?

In every country where oil and gas is produced, success of the industry or its failure has always been down to how strong partnerships develop and is maintained between both the Public and Private Sectors.

This event has given both the Public and Private Sectors an even deeper sense of working together and this confidence will only grow over time. There is absolutely no doubt that going forward, these partnerships will only deepen.

What about the Mid-stream and Downstream oil and gas businesses, how responsive are they to the show?

The responses have been extremely positive and the feedback we are getting on a daily basis is very encouraging. Things can only get better now on.

What are the issues to be debated at NIPS 2018 and expected outcome?

NIPS is going to be more than just another talk show. Recommendations from this event will be fed straight back into the government mechanisms and be tracked over the short, medium and long terms.

Some of the key areas of focus will be the Niger Delta and Environment, present and future collaborations, current  and future trends in the industry, including global policy shifts, Nigeria and Africa as emerging gas producers and technological breakthroughs, both for cost reduction, efficiencies and for lower emissions.

NIPS is designed to have State Days during the event. How relevant are the oil bearing states of Nigeria to this event?

Each state has the opportunity to have a state day in which they are able to highlight the business and touristic opportunities in their various states. We are expecting a good turnout of states and this includes both oil bearing and prospecting states.

There will also be state booths and delegations from participating states. I think we will see the states at their finest during this event.

Tell us about Brevity Anderson Consortium and the organizing team of the NIPS 2018?

Staging a World Class event of this nature means that you have to pool the best local and international talent with years of experience in delivering similar events both in Nigeria and abroad and we are delighted that working as a consortium, we have this flexibility and this can only be to the benefit of this event.