Page 9 - AfrOil Week 24 2021

AfrOil POLICY AfrOil

Shell, Total reps urge Nigeria to pass PIB

NIGERIA TWO of the largest international oil companies obsolete the day it’s passed,” he was quoted as
(IOCs) operating in Nigeria have called on the saying by Bloomberg.
country’s government to pass the oil and gas law He was speaking around the same time that
now under discussion in the National Assembly. a representative of TotalEnergies (France) urged
According to a representative of Royal Dutch the National Assembly to pass the PIB by the end
Shell (UK/Netherlands), Nigeria has already lost of June. The proposed law is the country’s best
money because it has spent so much time trying option for creating a favourable investment cli-
and failing to overhaul the existing legal regime mate for oil and gas projects, said Mike Sangster,
governing crude oil and natural gas projects. the managing director of Total E&P Nigeria.
The long wait has convinced many investors to Sangster also described the pledges that
focus on projects in other countries, said Bayo Lawan and other Nigerian officials have made
Ojulari, the managing director of Shell Nigeria on this front as a positive sign. “Obviously, I’m
Exploration and Production Co. (SNEPCo), a very encouraged to hear what’s being said by the
subsidiary of Shell. Senate president, the speaker of the House and
“For every month and every week that we the GMD [group managing director] of NNPC
delay, investment [funding] is moving some- [Nigerian National Petroleum Corp.] on the
where else,” he said at the Nigeria International PIB,” he said at NIPS’ CEO Roundtable session.
Petroleum Summit (NIPS) in Abuja last week. “It is a good, strong, win-win, forward-looking
Ojulari further indicated that SNEPCo was PIB which encourages new investments in the
not convinced by Senate President Ahmad industry and again will help to develop local
Lawan’s recent statements promising that the content and bring it up to a higher level.”
National Assembly would pass the PIB in the In related news, the head of a local trade asso-
third reading and send it to President Muham- ciation, the Major Oil Marketers Association of
madu Buhari for signature before the end of Nigeria (MOMAN), said he hoped that passage
June. “We’ve got the commitment that it will of the PIB would lead to the full deregulation
come up in June. We’ve heard that before and of the country’s oil and gas sector. The sector’s
we are waiting to see,” he remarked. growth has been hampered by the existence of
If Nigeria continues to delay, he added, it pricing restrictions, said MOMAN chairman
may not have the opportunity to develop and Tunji Oyebanji.
profit from all of its oil resources. “It’s important “There are several opportunities that a truly
to pass the PIB, but all of us collectively need to open and free PIB will present if that is what will
think about how we implement to ensure that be made available to us at the end of the day,” he
the energy transition does not make the PIB remarked. ™

DPR head unveils micro-LNG initiative

BURKINA FASO NIGERIA’S government is sponsoring plans for
the establishment of hundreds of small-scale
LNG distribution centres across the country.
According to Sarki Auwalu, the director of
the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR),
Abuja wants to establish a total of 774 such cen-
tres, one for each of Nigeria’s local government
areas.
“DPR has developed a project we call Pro-
ject 774. The aim of this project is to ensure that
each and every [administrative division has]
a gas [regasification] and distribution centre
with a micro-distribution centre,” he said on the
sidelines of the Nigeria International Petroleum Trucks will be used to transport LNG to distribution centres (Image: Fosmax)
Summit (NIPS).
Trucks will be used to transport LNG to the the country that are not yet connected to any
distribution centres and also regasify it, Auwalu transportation or distribution pipelines, Auwalu
added. As such, they will be able to serve as vir- said, according to a statement published last
tual pipelines, bringing natural gas to areas of week by DPR.

Week 24 16•June•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P9