BoI, C&I launch 80tons vessel to boost local content

The Bank of Industry (BoI) and the C&I Leasing Plc have launched a new vessel to help boost local content in the oil and gas industry.

The vessel, MV Bello 2015, built in China will help increase indigenous participation in the oil and gas industry through the creation of employment for Nigerians.

“We are particularly glad to be part of this and we would like to commend C&I for this initiative.  In 2010 the Local Content Act was enacted and as a development finance institution, we need to play more roles in deepening the local content especially in the oil and gas sector,” said Joseph Babatunde, general manager, BoI, during the launch of the vessel in Lagos.

“To start with, the financing of this vessel is creating about 220 jobs and apart from that, if you look at all the other services that we render along the value chain, you will see that gradually we would contribute a lot. We see a very bright future in the oil and gas sector,” Babatunde said.

The 80 tons vessel will be used to support Shell Petroleum.

In his address, Andrew Otike-Odibi, managing director of C&I, said: “We are very excited about this because we have been waiting for it to happen for two years now. In the past this kind of job was done by foreigners, so being a Nigerian company that owns and operates a vessel means that we are developing capacity for our own people and also building financial capacity to grow the fleets. From this vessel we can bring in more vessels to support the oil and gas industry.”

“In terms of cost savings, it is definitely going to be cheaper than having a foreign ownership that manages vessels. So the impact on the industry is that it is going to be positive because it will reduce the cost of doing business in the oil and gas sector and it will impact our own people by providing them will more jobs. It was built in China and it is going to be used to support Shell Petroleum,” Otike-Odibi said.

Also addressing journalists during the launch, Adamu Nuhu, managing director of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), said, “It is a remarkable achievement for several reasons, firstly, it demonstrates the opportunities available in the industry, secondly, it demonstrate how local people in our environment can help support the industry largely dominated by foreign players. For us, this is a big achievement, having been an indigenous company and supporting another indigenous company to achieve this.”

“We are very excited about this because we have been waiting for it to happen for two years now. In the past, this kind of job was done by foreigners, so being a Nigerian company that owns and operate a vessel means that we are developing capacity for our own people and also building financial capacity to grow the fleets. From this vessel we can bring in more vessels to support the oil and gas industry,” Nuhu added.

Josephine Okojie