Stakeholders give conditions for growth and development in oil and gas

Stakeholders in Nigeria Oil and Gas industry have listed conditions that can make the country survive the current problems posed by the low crude oil prices and achieve economic growth.

According to them if the government improve its competiveness, restore investors confidence, ensure contract stability, simplify approval process ,ensure security in the Niger Delta, solving the joint venture funding challenges and pay back arrears, then the desire growth in the sector can be achieved.

The said in spite of the low prices of crude oil the country still has tremendous opportunities provided she create the right operating environment for the investors to in the oil and gas sector.

According to Clay Neff, managing director and chief executive of Chevron Nigeria Limited, he said, Nigeria has vast and commercial reserves of oil and gas which are great potentials through which she can develop gas based industries such as Agriculture, petrochemical industries, fertilizer and other allied industries that can jump start the economy.

He said the oil and gas sector is going to help to develop the growth that is expected , but it must improve it competitiveness and provide the right environment for investors to operate.

The Chevron boss who was one of the guest speakers at the Aret Adams annual lecture series which was titled “low oil prices : challenges and opportunities”, held in Lagos, said that investment dollar would always go to those areas where there are enabling environment for investments.

Speaking further, he said with 59.6 billion barrels of oil reserves, representing 62 percent in sub-Saharan Africa, gas reserves of 6.3 trillion cubic meters, Nigeria is positioned to be Africa’s power hub if the country adopts policies that will ensure those conditions listed above.

“For Nigeria to improve its position in the global oil and gas industry, the country needs to have as goal, enabling the local oil and gas industry to achieve its full potential.”

He noted that security challenges have hampered the growth of the industry and called for adequate engagement of the people.

Neff also enjoined the Nigerian government to provide globally competitive fiscal terms and grow capability in a cost competitive manner. This will restore investor confidence and attract capital investment needed to grow the oil and gas production in the long term.

Austin Avuru, managing director of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, who also gave a lecture on the occasion said that for Nigeria to cope with the current low oil prices, and the challenges it portends, she needs to embrace effective domestic utilization of fossil fuels and oil and gas should shift from just been a source of income to becoming a source of energy.

He said that the country can use the period to target future energy growth. He said with the right investments in ensuring domestic energy security, Nigeria’s power generating capacity can increase from the current 4 gigawatts level to 40 gigawatt.

Accordig to Avuru, long-term domestic gas supply will come from indigenous companies and with about $10 billion investments annually for the next ten years in the gas fired plants, Nigeria will have the capacity to meet its domestic power needs.

Olusola Bello & Isaac Anyaogu