March 29, 2024

FG reaffirms plan to ramp up crude production to 4m barrel pd

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FG reaffirms plan to ramp up crude production to 4m barrel pd

FG reaffirms plan to ramp up crude production to 4m barrel pd

Omolara Ojekunle 

…as Senate President, Speaker promise  passage  of PIB this year 

The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to ramp up crude oil production to 4 million barrels per day and build a reserve of 40 billion barrels. 

This was contained in the opening address by President Muhammadu Buhari at the inauguration of the 4th Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS) held at the Banquet hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Monday, 7th June, 2021.

The President, who was represented at the occasion by the  Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Silva, stated that, “the ambitious goal of ramping up crude oil production to at least 4 million barrels per day and building a reserve of 40 billion barrels remains sacrosanct and guiding principle to our overall outlook for the industry”. 

By this declaration of intents, the Federal Government has  demonstrated a commitment to  overhaul Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. 

Giving his own perspective on the theme of NIPS 2021: “From Crisis to Opportunities: New Approaches to the Future of Hydrocarbons”,  Buhari stated that crisis is often an opportunity to re-define objectives and that provides the pathway for rediscovery. He noted that the crises plaguing the oil and gas industry today was necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him, addressing the crisis posed by the pandemic has presented both challenges and opportunities. The immediate challenge, he said,  is that the global agenda for energy transition has taken a back seat as governments across the world are now concerned about managing the pandemic and its impacts on economies than the quest for energy transition.

Going by Experts’ projections that about 80 percent of the world’s energy mix in 2040 will still come from hydrocarbons, the President stated that Nigeria with her vast hydrocarbon potential has an opportunity.

In his welcome address, Chief Timipre Sylva, in his capacity as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, said that the Nigeria International Petroleum Summit was conceived by the current administration around 2016 to be the pre-eminent oil and gas industry event by Nigeria for Africa and the global oil and gas industry.

Continuing, Sylva reiterated that Nigeria is on  right track in moving its economy to cleaner energy sources in the area of renewables, with gas currently serving as the bridge to achieving that.

With increasing oil price volatility,  and increased pressure for cost reduction, the Minister posited that our industry needs to re-invent itself so that we can fully utilize the dividends to set the country on the path of industrialization and prosperity.

 It is in this regard that the Minister sued for collaboration which he said should be the paradigm shift that need be emphasized at the summit.

In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Bitrus Bako Nabasu, said  the global pandemic has pushed stakeholders in the oil and gas sector to persevere and through innovative thinking and actions, created new mechanism toward sustaining the global oil and gas sector in  trying times.

Secretary General, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC),  Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo,  who joined virtually stated that that the COVID-19 pandemic  has negatively impacted the global oil demand .

 He commended President Buhari for channeling resources to the most productive sectors of the economy and for his support for the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) process.

Barkindo declared that OPEC will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Nigeria’s membership of the organization this year.

In his remarks, the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmed Lawan, said the National Assembly is committed to the revitalization of the nation’s hydrocarbon, while the legislative and executive arms are working together to ensure the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).
 He  stated that the Joint Committees of the National Assembly are about writing their reports for submission; while further deliberation will follow at the plenary. He added that as a legal framework , the PIB will bring about peace, sanity and stability in the oil and gas sector. Lawal expressed optimism that the PIB will be passed this year.

Similarly, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila declared that the National Assembly is more determined now than ever to ensure the passage of the PIB which has been on for 20 years.

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