NNPC lists 4 key issues slowing investments in oil and gas sector at NOG 2018
…As conference ends today in Abuja
The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru has made public, current major challenges frustrating inflow of the much needed investments in the industry.
Baru, who spoke at the ongoing Nigeria Oil & Gas Conference & Exhibition (NOG) 2018 conference and exhibition in Abuja, recalled that “security and environment, high industry technical cost, funding of investments, among others, as well as low crude oil prices, remain key challenges in the oil and gas sector”.
The conference which is ending today has ‘Driving Nigeria’s Oil & Gas Industry Towards Sustained Economic Development and Growth’, as lead theme.
NNPC chief revealed that the corporation’s focus for 2018 and beyond was to increase crude oil reserves by one billion barrels year-on-year from the current 37 billion barrels to 40 billion barrels by 2020 and also increase national oil daily production to three million barrels per day.
NNPC disclosed that part of the government efforts to tame the challenges include issuing an updated oil and gas policy and initiated the process for enacting a new Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) that provides clarity on the government institutions and their roles in the industry.
He disclosed further that while domestic demand for gas in Nigeria remains unprecedented with a current daily realistic gas demand of 4,000 mmscfd, which is expected to grow exponentially to about 7,500 mmscfd in the next five years, within the next three years, the group would increase natural gas availability from the current 1.5 billion scf/d to about five billion scf/d in 2020.
