Majorwaves Energy Report November Edition by majorwavesenergyreport

MAJORWAVES ENERGY REPORT

LOCAL CONTENT

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SUSTAINABILITY

INFRASTRUCTURE

SEPTEMBER EDITION

FG Launches Nigerian-Made Barites, to Ban Impooation 2022 COP26: Europe Changes Course, Includes Natural Gas in Green Energy Future NNPC, Afreximbank, Sign $1.4bn Agreement for Trade Financing Shell Unveils New Energy Business in Nigeria Coral-Sul FLNG Ready to Sail away to Mozambique’s Rovuma Basin

11 Years of

Nigerian Content

Study: Electronic Waste (Maiden Edition)

in Practice

ENERGY WOMAN

Patricia Ochogbu

NAPE PRESIDENT (IMMEDIATE PAST)

“ I’m a firm believer in Creating Oppoounities for the Girl-Child ” Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

CONTENTS NOV 2 0 2 1

MAJORWAVES ENERGY REPORT

LOCAL CONTENT

VOL 4 NO 11

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SUSTAINABILITY

INFRASTRUCTURE

FG Launches Nigerian-Made Barites, to Ban Impooation 2022

NNPC, Afreximbank, Sign $1.4bn Agreement for Trade Financing

COP26: Europe Changes Course, Includes Natural Gas in Green Energy Future NNPC, Afreximbank, Sign $1.4bn Agreement for Trade Financing Shell Unveils New Energy Business in Nigeria Coral-Sul FLNG Ready to Sail away to Mozambique’s Rovuma Basin Study: Electronic Waste (Maiden Edition)

11 Years of

Nigerian Content in Practice

ENERGY WOMAN

Patricia Ochogbu

NAPE PRESIDENT (IMMEDIATE PAST)

“ I’m a firm believer in Creating Oppoounities for the Girl-Child ”

Energy Transition: Nigeria Should Optimise its resources - Shell MD, Okunbor

Nigeria’s Upstream Regulator Commits to Increasing Country’s Crude Reserves to 40 Billion Barrels

FG Launches Nigerian-Made Barites, to Ban Importation 2022

COP26: Europe Changes Course, Includes Natural Gas in Green Energy Future

Nigeria Pledge to Cut Its Emissions to Net Zero by 2060

Coleman Announces N50BN Bond Issuance

A Decade To Act: Mapping The Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Challenge To Entrepreneurship & The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

11 Years of Nigerian Content in Practice

“I’m a Firm Believer In Creating Opportunities For The Girl-Child” - Ochogbu

Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

Financing Africa’s Oil Resource

Isn’t China the answer as Europe and America look away from new oil projects? Recently, China seized the Entebbe International airport in Uganda over a 207 million dollar loan due to the country’s failure to honour the terms of agreement with China. Now, that’s coming after the seizure of several assets like the electricity company, ZESCO and broadcasting company, ZNBC, belonging to Zambia. This seemingly debt-trap diplomacy by Cbina is avoidable. As at 2019, cumulative FDI by China into Africa was put at 44 billion dollars, and that accounts for just 2 per cent of its total FDI into economies around the globe. On the contrary, total debt owed by Africa to China is 143 billion dollars which is close to 40 per cent of the 385 billion dollars cumulative debt owed China by all nations across the globe. Africa seems to be the hotspot for the loans and not the investments. Why? According to IMF data, Nigeria’s government revenue between 2015 and 2019 was a paltry 7.9 per cent of the GDP compared to a global average of 29.8 per cent. Now, beyond the revenue to be realized via duty payable by the ‘91 billionaires’ who own private jets in Nigeria, there’s still a yawing gap of 6.26 trillion Naira deficit in Nigeria’s 2022 budget. That’s different from the needs of the oil industry for new oil projects. Public Private Partnerships with these private individuals is the way forward. This approach can be explored in virtually all aspects of the economy, including the nation’s oil and gas sector. And if China must join the party, it should come to the table with equity, not debts.

Jerome Onoja

Publisher Joshua Bretz Managing Editor Jerome Onoja Editor Margaret Nongo-Okojokwu Senior Correspondents Ikenna Omeje Esther Mark Correspondents:Lagos Daniel Terungwa Abisoye Vincent Emeka Enunwah Port Harcourt Stella Odogu Arit Dan US Omaya Joko UK Kunle Kazeem Research Analyst Simon Olanipekun Production Solomon Obande Toma Stephen Business Development Stanley Etim Taiwo Olamilekan Amicable Aluu

Cheers!

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Editor’s Note

Majorwaves Energy Report is published by Majorwaves Communications, 25B, Adebayo Doherty Street, Lekki Phase 1. Lagos Phone: +2349035477966 Email: info@majorwavesenergyreport.com www.majorwavesenergyreport.com

Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

INDUSTRY NEWS

A.B.C. Orjiako to Step Down as Chairman of Seplat Energy in May 2022

eplat Energy Plc announces the decision of its Chairman, Dr. A.B.C. Orjiako to step down as Chairman and from the Board of Directors of Seplat Energy Plc. Orjiako notified the Board of Directors of his decision today, November 17, 2021. A statement by the company said that in order to facilitate an orderly transition Orjiako will remain as Chairman until the next Annual General Meeting in May 2022, when an Independent Chairperson will take over. Orjiako is the co-founder and pioneer of Seplat Energy. Since 2009, as Chairman of the Seplat Energy Group, Orjiako has taken the Company through a number of acquisitions and was the driving force behind Seplat Energy becoming the first and only Nigerian corporate to dual list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the Main Board of the London Stock Exchange in 2014. The Board of Seplat Energy thanked its Chairman for his strategic

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vision, drive and limitless energy to create Nigeria’s leading indigenous independent energy company. Orjiako, Chairman of Seplat Energy plc, commented: “The past twelve years at Seplat Energy have been exhilarating for me. As Chairman, I am proud that the Board, Management and entire Staff of Seplat Energy were able to achieve several enviable milestones and exceptional successes, notably the acquisition of eight oil and gas assets, expansion of the Oben and development of the ANOH gas plants and the dual listing on both the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges - a first by a Nigerian company”. “While there were challenges along the way, we overcame these by the special grace of God, the outstanding performance and professionalism of each member of the Board and Management, and the sterling efforts of our staff. I will continue to give my utmost energy and commitment to the Company until I step down from the Board at

the next AGM,” he said. M r. Basil O miyi , a S enio r Independent Director of Seplat Energy plc, commented: “On behalf of all members of the Board, I would like to thank Dr A.B.C. Orjiako for his immense contribution as a cofounder and Chair of Seplat Energy since inception.” “He has been Chairman during both exciting and challenging times, and his dedication has been constant throughout. The Board and Management look forward to working with him during the transition period and we will miss his insight, expertise and leadership when he finally steps down in May,” Omiyi said. The Seplat Energy Chairman’s decision to step down and be replaced by an Independent Chairperson is a testament to the strong corporate governance and best practices he instilled in the Board.

INDUSTRY NEWS

NNPC, Afreximbank, Sign $1.4bn Agreement for Trade Financing

he Nigerian National Petroleum Corp oration (NNPC) has raised its financial profile when it signed at the ongoing Intra-African Trade Fair in Durban, South Africa, a five-year agreement worth $ 1.4billion with the African Export–Import Bank (Afreximbank). The deal is specifically meant for trade financing according to sources close to the two parties, that is, for export of the crude produced by NNPC and the repayment process would not be through cash by the oil company but supply of crude oil to the bank to net off the loan. This An arrangement that is akin to what the NNPC has with some of the Joint venture companies in which crude oil is used to net off its cash call debt obligations. About 25,000bpd of crude oil produced by the NNPC would be used to net off the loan. During the signing of the loan agreement, the President of the bank, Benedict Oramah, stated that the deal would benefit Nigeria and promised that the bank would make fund available similar projects across

Africa Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director of NNPC was the quest of Bloomberg Television, where he raised doubts about the ability of the producers’ group to ramp up production in the short term as investment in the industry continues to wane. He said OPEC has continued to stick with its agreed plan since July, to release an additional supply of 400, 000 barrels every month to gradually return the cuts it embarked upon in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, despite promptings from the United States, India, Japan and other countries to supply more barrels. “Currently, the global oil market has a deficit of over 600,000 bpd, a development that has led to increase in oil and gas prices and bringing along attendant inflationary pressures.” Despite the over 1.6 million bpd allocated to Nigeria in September and October, the country was only to supply 1.399 million bpd and 1.354 million barrels in September and

October respectively on the back of weak infrastructure and sabotage. Speaking further, Kyari argued that the plan by the United States to release oil from its special reserves has to be very significant to make any long-term impact on global oil prices, explaining that although Nigeria has faltered in meeting its OPEC allocation, by the end of the year, the country may be able to hit 1.8 million bpd, excluding condensates. “It’s very obvious that by the close of the year, we will get back to the 1.7 barrels to 1.8 barrels per day of crude oil. When I mention this figure, I am only talking about crude oil because we also produce condensates and when you combine, we can easily hit 2.0 million barrels by the end of the year,” he stressed. He reiterated that Nigeria was hugely impacted by its inability to restart the oil facilities after the COVID-19-induced shutdowns, emphasising that with the fresh clarity around the fiscal environment with the introduction of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), more investments were being expected in the country’s oil and gas industry.

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INDUSTRY NEWS “The fact is very clear, during the covid-19 pandemic, we shut down some of these wells and they usually don’t come back as early as we want them.

NLNG Has Increased Volume of LPG to Satisfy Domestic Market- Mshelbila

“Right now, we do have some challenges around the facilities and these are being taken care of. There’s enormous work going on that will get us back before the end of the year. “There was some level of lack of clarity in our own fiscal environment and this is being sorted out by the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). And the meaning of this is that we are seeing very good traction with our key partners in the deep offshore asset development,” he He said the proposed release of the United States of oil from its special reserve could have some marginal impact on global oil prices, since supply is not matching demand, but added that the release has to be really significant to make any difference. “Of course, it’s going to dampen prices for a little while, but because demand is growing and several economies are recovering, it may not be enough or sufficient to create that change that we expect. That means that we still see a situation of $80 in time to come.” Kyari said. According to him, if a situation arises when the United States bans export of its crude, prices would likely remain in the $80s, but less than $100, adding that $100 was still within sight. “That is too ambitious. $200 is too ambitious. $100 looks like it, I don’t see a situation of $100 plus in the short term,” he stated. Kyari stated that a number of issues, including financing, inability to quickly fill the oil supply deficit were responsible for OPEC’s defiance of calls to raise output, saying that it may not be realisable in the short term to pump more oil and fix the existing spare capacity.

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anaging Director and Chief Executive Of ficer of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG),Dr. Philip Mshelbila, has that the gas company has prioritised domestic supplies of cooking gas otherwise known as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) by reducing its exports of the commodity. This is part of the efforts of the company to meet the needs of the local market. Mshelbila disclosed this while speaking at the 2021 Association of Energy Correspondent of Nigeria (also known as NAEC) Strategic International Annual Conference held in Lagos recently. Mshelbila stated further that the company has increased its committed volume to the market by consistently reducing its export LPG volumes in satisfaction of domestic demand, increasing domestic provision from 50,000MT in 2007 to 450,000MT from 2021. The NLNG MD, was represented at the NAEC conference by Dr. Sophia Horsfall, Manager, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, said: “NLNG provides a dedicated vessel for this purpose, LPG Vessel, Alfred Temile. NLNG has taken steps to diversify the supply base of the product by expanding its delivery point from the Lagos Terminals to include a Port Harcourt Terminal to ensure products are not concentrated in one region by infusing flexibility in supply base.” Mshelbila added that the benefits of gas to the country would increase on the back of the Train 7 project, which would expand NLNG’s capacity by 35 percent from 22 million metric tonnes per annum to 30MTPA.

Train 7 project, he said would add immense value to the country by stimulating inflow of about $10bn foreign direct investment to Nigeria as part of the project scope. “It would create more than12,000 direct jobs and additional 40,000 indirect construction jobs, adding, “This will be a massive boost to Federal Government’s commitment to create jobs and move the poverty index positively. The project would further the development of Nigerian local capacity and businesses through the 100 percent in-country execution of construction works, fabrications, and major procurements.” The NLNG boss said it would ultimately increase the company’s volume supply to the global market and keep the country on the top suppliers’ chart as world LNG demand grows. “This will mean more revenue, more dividends, and more taxes to the Federal Government of Nigeria. I believe that Train 7 will be an inspiration and catalyst for Trains 8, 9, 10, and even to Train 15 in line with the recent declaration of ‘Decade of Gas’ by Mr. President.” He noted that the company announced in June 2021 the signing of sales and purchase agreements with three Nigerian companies as counterparts for the domestic supply of LNG. This is a first for the company, as Total volume for these agreements is 1.1 million tonnes per annum. This is enough energy to power over three million homes. Delivery infrastructure are to be provided by the domestic counterparts.

INDUSTRY NEWS

ENERGY TRANSITION: NIGERIA SHOULD OPTIMISE ITS RESOURCES – SHELL MD, OKUNBOR Despite the efforts at decarbonisation, Okunbor said oil and gas would remain in the energy mix for some decades to come. “This is partly a consequence of the time needed for renewables to reach the necessary level of materiality. In part, it is also a consequence of the lack of substitution options in some parts of the economy. But the world will need to meet its energy needs at the same time as it tackles climate change.”

Mr. Osagie Okunbor

Country Chair of Shell Companies in Nigeria and Managing Director, The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) delivering the 51st Founders’ Day Lecture of the University of Benin titled: The Global Energy Transition and The Imperatives for Nigeria… on Tuesday

he Country Chair of Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Osagie Okunbor, has advised that Nigeria should adopt a two-pronged strategy for its energy transition programme in response to global call to reduce exploitation of fossil fuels and production of Green House Gases (GHG). Okunbor spoke last week while delivering the 51st Founders’ Day Lecture of the University of Benin titled: The Global Energy Transition and The Imperatives for Nigeria where he called for an urgent optimisation of Nigeria’s energy resources for a speedy economic and industrial development of the country. “Nigeria has gas in abundance around 202 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves and about 600 trillion cubic feet of unproven reserves. Harnessing these vast gas resources, and on time too, is key in the next decade of Nigeria’s existence,” Okunbor said. According to him, the second approach for Nigeria’s successful energy transition would be an intentional growth of the off-grid power and renewables industry taking advantage of foreign financial support and technology transfer.

He noted that to make the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas agenda a success, the country would need to unlock the domestic gas-to-power value chain; accelerating infrastructure development; drive gas-based industrialisation; and deepen domestic liquefied petroleum gas penetration.

In addition, he said there was a need to build a stable regulatory environment anchored on a willing-buyer-willing-seller pricing regime; grow the export and regional gas market; and “The ongoing energy transition is here build local capacity and content for contractors with us. As with other transitions, it and professionals in the gas sector. is a journey that will involve multiple approaches, collective action and undoubtedly present new challenges He said “A transformation of the global and opportunities. Nigeria is well economy is required, especially in the power positioned to ride the wave of the sector, transport, buildings, and industry – current energy transition with its four main areas where energy is consumed abundance of natural fossil fuels and and that produce a significant proportion of renewable solar energy. We need to energy-related emissions of CO2. move with a greater sense of urgency and a clear sense of direction,” he said. He also advocated a significant shift in the consumption of energy in power, Okunbor, who is also the Managing transportation, buildings and industry as Director of The Shell Petroleum key areas that will determine the long-term Development Company of Nigeria energy mix. “To tackle climate change, power Limited (SPDC), said, “Nigeria, as a generation, for example, must evolve to use country with abundant natural fossil a combination of more renewable sources of fuel resources, cannot afford for energy, as well as natural gas – the cleanestinternational and multilateral agencies burning of the hydrocarbon fuels.” to stop funding the development of fossil fuels, particularly gas projects.” “The transition is underway,” Okunbor said, “but it will move at different paces and produce different outcomes in different countries depending on local factors. Society, as a whole, faces a dual challenge to transition to a lowcarbon energy future, dealing with how to manage the risk of climate change, while also extending the benefits of energy to everyone on the planet. This is a challenge that requires changes in the way energy is produced, used and made accessible to people.”

On how Shell was responding to the challenge of access to energy and the global drive to grow the renewable energy sector, Okunbor said the global energy giant had made significant targeted investments on the platform of Shell’s Energy Access team and the Shell-seeded impact investing company, All On, to help close Nigeria’s energy gap. “So far, All On has invested over $21mln in 40 off-grid energy companies in Nigeria and has driven over 40,000 solar connections across Nigeria to date,” he said.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Nigerian Content Development: Chevron’s Success Story

role in building and sustaining the capacity of indigenous companies and contractors in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. We consistently demonstrate our commitment to empowering community contractors, service providers and suppliers through developing human and institutional capacity, creating local jobs, developing, and sourcing from local suppliers, employing local workforce, promoting local patronage, and reserving work scope to benefit local community contractors.

Richard Kennedy

he Nigerian oil and gas industry is strategic to the overall socio-economic development of the country. Nigerian Content (“NC”) development is critical for the nation as it progresses in its quest to acquire oil and gas technology and build indigenous capacity in the oil and gas industry. As an industry that thrives on partnership with key stakeholders, International Oil Companies and indigenous oil companies are expected to play an active role in the industry. Chevron companies in Nigeria had developed and imbibed the Local/ Nigerian Content development philosophy well before the April 2010 enactment of the Nigeran Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act (“NOGICD Act”). Chevron Nigeria Limited (“CNL”), operator of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (“NNPC”)/ CNL Joint Venture, is at the fore front of promoting Nigeria’s ideals of Nigerian Content development. Over the years, the company has continued to add value and partner with Nigeria, as it commits itself

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to the vision of being “the global energy company most admired for its people, partnership and performance”. The overall objective of CNL’s NC policy is to encourage the participation of Nigerian companies in the oil and gas industry through the deliberate creation of business opportunities for Nigerian service providers and suppliers. CNL’s NC policy is driven by the vision to be recognized as the petroleum company that works best to foster competence and competitiveness among Nigerian indigenous contractors and suppliers, by adopting the par ticipator ypartnership model. CNL has unwavering commitment to NC development. Over the years, the company has implemented strategies for training, capacity building and employment of Nigerians, as well as the provision of contracts and procurement opportunities to Nigerians on all projects in our operations. CNL continues to play a leading

Chevron works closely with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (“NCDMB”) and the Nigerian National Assembly in advocating NC matters. Chevron has a four-pronged approach to NC, inspired by the commitment to ensure Nigerian entrepreneurs (both at the local community and national levels) acquire the right competencies and capabilities to compete for business opportunities with their contemporaries at regional and international levels. The approach includes selection of qualified local contractors; facilitation of partnerships and alliances between indigenous companies and foreign firms; capacity building; and development of local competencies. The Chairman/Managing Director of CNL, Richard Kennedy, explains the company’s stance on Nigerian Content thus: “At Chevron Nigeria Limited, we demonstrate our commitment to the socio-economic development of Nigeria by building mutually-beneficial partnerships and supporting the policies of government on Nigerian Content Development. We have helped in building the capacities of several Nigerian businesses by providing contracts and procurement opportunities to Nigerians on all projects in our operations. Chevron is also helping to grow the Nigerian economy by contributing to the development of communities in the areas of our operation.

INDUSTRY NEWS We do all this, not just because it is required by the law, but because it is the right thing to do.” In the last 10 years, CNL has spent an estimated annual average of $1 billion on Nigerian suppliers and service providers. Chevron provides technical support, support for asset acquisition, and facilitates collaboration on research and development for local community contractors. This has helped Nigerians benefit from the oil and gas industry while developing Nigerian commerce. Chevron completed construction training for 161 Nigerians on welding, fabrication, and craft at the Nigerdock facility, Snake Island, Lagos for its Sonam Development Project. O n t h e A g b a mi P h a s e 3 Development Project, Chevron sponsored four Nigerian engineers for subsea engineering training in France, in partnership with NCDMB and Technip Offshore Nigeria Limited. The training also included visits to manufacturing plants in France and Norway. Chevron trained six young Nigerian Engineers in subsea engineering at the FMC Technologies Limited (“FMC”) facility, Federal Ocean Terminal (FOT) Onne, Rivers State. In addition, five Nigerian Engineering graduates sponsored by CNL, completed subsea training at Marine Platforms Limited in Port Harcourt. One of the trainees was offered full-time employment with Marine Platforms Limited (MPL) as a Marine Cadet. CNL’s accomplishments in human capital development include training 14 earth science graduates in two batches under the 12-month skills acquisition programme initiated by NCDMB. CNL offered scholarships to Nigerian seamen for dynamic positioning training at PEM Offshore Limited, a marine training facility with a contract worth $1 million and collaborated with the NCDMB to assist over 600 community graduates to register in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Joint Qualification System.

CNL awarded a contract to a local consulting firm, Lonadek Nigeria Limited, to develop and pilot an industry-first capacity building initiative for drilling and completion professionals. Chevron facilitated the assembly by FMC of the first assembledin-Nigeria Subsea Horizontal Christmas Tree and the fabrication in Nigeria of Agbami production manifolds for the Agbami Phase 3 Project by FMC /Aveon Offshore Nigeria Limited. Chevron ensured the safe, timely and successful installation of subsea equipment like flexible flowlines, umbilicals, and jumpers on the Agbami Phase 3 project by a Nigerian contractor – Marine Platforms Limited. Chevron also recently facilitated the fabrication and assembly of the complicated Single-Point Mooring (“SPM”) buoys structures by Fenog Nigeria Limited (“Fenog”), an indigenous independent engineering company. The two SPM buoys, being delivered by Fenog, are critical components of the Escravos Export System Project (“EESP”) scope, required to improve reliability of current JV offshore crude export facilities. It is on record that CNL facilitated the fabrication and load out of offshore platform topsides and bridge connection for the Sonam Non-Associated Gas Well Platform (“NWP”) by Nigerdock Plc.; the fabrication and loadout of the Okan PRP topsides; bridge fabrication of Okan PRP jacket by Globestar Company Limited, in partnership with Idmon Engineering and Construction Co. Limited; installation of 32km 24” Sonam to Okan NWP pipeline by West African Ventures Limited; and the coating of the pipes used for the Sonam Development Project and EESP by Pipe Coaters Nigeria Limited. Chevron has a long history of commitment to NC development. The Agbami project set industry standards by fabricating more than 10,000 tonnes of steel with Nigerian fabrication companies, the

highest ever recorded in Nigeria. Chevron also trained 105 Nigerian engineers from 21 engineering companies in South Korea. The Escravos Gas Project (EGP) has employed over 1,800 Nigerians and sourced millions of Dollars’ worth of services (engineering, procurement, fabrication, marine, etc.) locally. Also, the Escravos Gas-toLiquids (EGTL) project provided employment to more than 15,000 Nigerians during the construction phase of the project. In addition, the project awarded huge subcontracts to local community contractors, sent 234 Nigerians on a 30-month training program in South Africa at the synthetic fuel facilities of Sasol Limited and trained over 7,000 Nigerians in technical skill crafts, plant operation and maintenance, business and project management, l o g is tic s a n d s u p p l y c h ain management, as well as gas tungsten arc welding processes. CNL has demonstrated unprecedented support for the local barite mining industry by donating barite mining equipment worth $1.4 million and training to the Association of Miners and Producers of Barite to boost the supply and quality of local barite, reduce importation of barite and create jobs for the local communities. Chevron will continue to be committed to the NOGICD Act, as part of our support for local capacity building. We will continue to help build Nigerian businesses in general, to support the Nigerian Content policy of the Federal Government. CNL’s Chairman/Managing Director affirmed this when he said that: “We will continue to empower Nigerian service providers and suppliers through human and business capacity development; local patronage and work scope allocation; fostering of business partnerships and sponsorship of research and development programmes to enhance the capacity of indigenous companies to participate in the oil and gas industry.”

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Axxela Signs EPCC Contract for Its Mini-LNG Plant in Kogi

Shell Unveils New Energy Business in Nigeria

By Ikenna Omeje

xxela Limited Nigeria has officially signed Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Commissioning (EPCC) contract for its miniLNG plant in Ajaokuta, Kogi State. The parties to the contract are Transit Gas Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Axxela Limited Nigeria; Nigeria Gas Marketing Company (NGMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC); and Phoenix Development Limited. “This project is another timely boost for the provision of the critical infrastructure needed to enhance gas distribution and utilisation in Nigeria,” said the Association of Local Distributors of Gas in a congratulatory message to Axxela. TGNL is focused on the development of physical and virtual pipeline technology for gas distribution and supply. The project include a pipeline network between Abeokuta and Iwopin. The project will have an initial capacity of 20MMSCFD and is positioned to supply natural gas to industrial customers all over the country, particularly stranded customers in the North. When completed, the Abeokuta to Iwopin pipeline network, will span over 135km and will be able to deliver at over 45MMSCFD. Presently, TGNL has executed contracts with medium to largescale industrial customers including Apple & Pears Limited, Emzor Pharmaceuticals, West African Soy Industries Limited, Coleman Technical Industries Limited and Celplas Industries FZE. TGNL currently supplies natural gas to Rite Foods Limited, CT Manufacturing Limited and other surrounding factories in the Ibefun-Ososa axis, Ogun State, with ongoing plans to construct an 11.6km pipeline from the Sagamu interchange towards Odogbolu to serve Celplas Industries FZE and other industries on the Sagamu-Benin Expressway. 12

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lobal energy company, Shell, has announced a new business line in Nigeria to expand natural gas marketing and sales to meet the rapidly growing energy needs of wholesale customers and provide more and cleaner energy solutions in the country. Building on the success of Shell Nigeria Gas, Shell Energy Nigeria, aims to deliver competitive and reliable energy for power generation and industrial users and to develop gas distribution to serve people in new regions. “In line with the Federal Government’s ‘decade of gas’ initiative, Shell Energy Nigeria will strive to deliver gas-based energy solutions to a broad range of businesses across the country to help drive economic development and deliver greater value from the country’s natural resources,” said the General Manager of Shell Energy Nigeria, Markus Hector. Shell Energy Nigeria’s gas solutions are designed to partner with other sources of

energy – including renewables – to provide competitively priced and flexible energy, while helping the country to transition to a lower carbon energy system. The new business will draw on the capabilities and experience of Shell Energy, a leading global provider of reliable, integrated and innovative energy solutions from a portfolio of natural gas, power and environmental products. It offers a comprehensive selection of energy solutions available from a single supplier and made possible by one of the industry’s largest trading operations. Countr y Chair of Shell companies in Nigeria, Osagie Okunbor, said, “Shell Energy Nigeria demonstrates our ongoing commitment to p owe rin g p ro g re ss by providing more and cleaner energy solutions in the country. It brings to Nigeria Shell’s decades of marketing and trading experience, a wealth of market knowledge and its ability to integrate energy solutions to support economic development in Nigeria.”

INDUSTRY EVENT

Nigeria’s Upstream Regulator Commits to Increasing Country’s Crude Reserves to 40 Billion Barrels By Ikenna Omeje “More than ever before, the industry is plagued by investment skepticism, high level of competition, climate change, and clamour for clean environment. While oil and gas will remain relevant in the energy mix even in the next decades, the question arises of how it will remain profitable in the new order,” he noted. Komolafe explained that the newly assented Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has created investment opportunities, adding that the allocation of 30 percent of revenue to exploration in the frontier basins, as PIA states, will accelerate exploration activities.

h e N i g e r ia n U p s t r e a m Petroleum Regulator y Commission (NURC), the new oil and gas regulator in the country, has expressed commitment to increasing Nigeria’s crude oil reserves to 40 Billion barrels, and raise daily oil production to 3 million barrels. The Chief Executive of the c o m m i s s i o n , E n g r. G b e n g a Komolafe, stated this in his address at the 39th Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) Annual International Conference & Exhibition, which held in Lagos from November 14 - 18, with the theme, “Petroleum Exploration and Production in a New World: What Next After the Global Crisis?” He said that Nigeria’s 37 billion of cride oil reserves, and its over 206 Trillion Cubic Feet (TCF) of gas reserves, make the country a big player in the global petroleum industry, but bemoaned the current decline in daily production. “However, oil production in Nigeria has declined to an average of 1.6 million barrels per day as we speak. This decline in production could be attributed to theft, insecurity, aging facilities, decline in exploration and production, and enhancement initiatives. As the upstream technical

and commercial regulator (Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission), we are committed to addressing these issues to increase our reserves to 40 billion barrels and raise our production to 3 million barrels per day through a number of initiatives,” Komolafe said. He listed partnership with the security agencies to curb oil theft; collaboration with communities to monitor pipelines in remote areas, including plans to prevent leakage and cut down production cost, as some of the initiatives the Commission is taking to increase production. He noted that the regulatory focus of the Commission will be targeted towards enabling midstream and upstream development, adding that as a 21st century regulator, the Commission is positioned to provide initiatives that is aimed at entrenching transparency, efficiency, and accountability. According to Komolafe, with dwindling investment in the oil and gas industry, climate change, and clamour for clean energy, without a paradigm shift in the explanation and production, it will not be difficult for the industry to be destroyed.

He stated that NAPE A nnual International Conference has grown to become an important international event in the petroleum industry. And giving challenges confronting the industry, during and after the pandemic, this year’s theme is quite apt and timely. He said that NAPE has played key roles in in leading policy propositions, and urged the Association to take advantage of government incentives in the industry. “It is remarkable that Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) has played a key role in leading policy propositions in the upstream oil and gas value chain,” he said. “As an umbrella body of petroleum explorationists in Nigeria, NAPE is therefore enjoined to take advantage of government incentivized value-print to advise on policy initiatives that will add value to the upstream business.” Also speaking at the event, the Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, said that there should be a balance in the global push towards energy transition He noted that while energy transition is not a bad idea, there should be a balance between energy poverty and energy transition, citing

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INDUSTRY EVENT Nigeria as one of the countries with the challenge of energy poverty. On his part, the Chief Executive Officer, Seplat Energy, Roger Brown, said that the company has been part of NAPE’s history, and will continue to support the Association.

PCTS Advocates Balance between Energy Transition and Energy Poverty By Ikenna Omeje “A study showed that across the globe, nearly 80 0 million people live without any access to electricity – about 600 million of these people live in Africa” he quipped.

Brown who was represented by Seplat Operations Director, Effiong Okon, said that while access to capital is challenging, because of investment shift to renewables, global outlook on energy transition still show that oil and gas will remain strong till 2050. He noted that there is huge gas opportunities in Africa as a whole, adding that gas-fired plant can become key if the right environment is crrated for investors by governments across the continent. Brown informed that ANOH gas plant is 80 percent completed, noting that Seplat delivers about 30 percent of the gas that powers Nigeria. Earlier in her address, NAPE President, Patricia Ochogbu, said that the current challenges facing the industry have caused NAPE members to look more in-ward, create opportunities even bin the midst of these challenges. She said, “The past years and the preceding months have thrown up challenges and opportunities in various proportions. Covid-19; oil price fluctuations; climate change; migration cum energy transition to increase clean and more energy sources; crude changes, job layoffs/losses; and virtual working from homes; institutional digital adjustments; travel restrictions; vaccination; Black Lives Matter; EndSARS; and several other things that have continued to shape our position as a global industry. In all of these, the can-do spirit of NAPE members, and their creativity as well as the resilience they have shown in the various spheres of their endeavours continued to be showcased.”

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s the global push towards energy transition intensifies, the Petroleum Contractors Trade Section (PCTS), a trade section of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has advocated for a balance between energy transition and energy poverty. The Chairperson of PC TS , Tayo Akinkunmi stated this on a panel which focused on “Technology, Research & Development: What is the future of Gas in the New Energy World?” at the 3rd Energy Sustainability Conference (ESC) organized by Energy Institute Nigeria, recently. Gas is often considered a clean transition fuel and is believed it will play a dominant role in the future. However, some scientists describe gas as carbon-emitting because it produces CO2 on combustion. Climate change enthusiasts claim that the sooner gas is phased out, the better the world would be in mitigating carbon emissions and improving the environment. Tayo agrees that climate change is real, and at 2 degrees Celsius mankind will arrive at a point of no return. He however warned against the emotional campaign usually associated with the climate change push. Highlighting the reality of energy poverty, he craved for a balance between climate change advocates and the glaring need for basic energy supplies.

“I believe we should move away from the emotions and chart a path forward. We could invest more in research and development; explore carbon capture utilization and storage technologies (CCUS); even deploy on a large scale the direct air capture (DAC) technology; propagate carbon offsets using sinks and the continued deployment of novel technologies to decarbonize the environment. “For instance, all existing power generating plants should be converted to gas-powered plants. We have significantly untapped potential of gas reserves, and we have current energy deficiency that needs to be addressed as a continent. So gas will continue to be there for a very long time,” he said. Also lending her voice to the conversation as the moderator of the panel session, Rosario Osobase who is a senior manager at Tenaris, and doubles as the Executive Secretary of PCTS, noted the importance of gas in economic and social development of a nation. She said that Qatar was an underdeveloped country in 1997, but today the country has grown to become a leading net exporter of gas because of the vision of the country’s leaders. She recommended Qatari strategy for Nigeria, so that the country can move from being an energy poverty-stricken country to a gas-powered one. The 2021 Energ y Sustainabilit y Conference, which held in Lagos with the theme, ”Accelerating Sustainable Energy Solutions through Policy Implementation: Prospects and Limitations, gathered stakeholders from all spheres of the energy industry.

INDUSTRY EVENT

NIES 2022 to Put PIA on the Front Burner

he recently enacted Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 and its implementation so far, will face thorough scrutiny by industry professionals, policy makers and stakeholders at the 2022 Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES 2022), scheduled to take place in Abuja from February 27th to March 3rd, 2022. The Petroleum Industry Act 2021 was assented and signed into law by the President Muhammadu Buhari on August 16th, 2021 to repeal the extant Petroleum Act 2004.

can support the long-term challenges of declining investment and project development especially against the backdrop of the energy transition”, says James Shindi, Managing Director, Brevity Anderson, event producers of NIES2022.

The Petroleum Industry Act was enacted to provide for the legal, governance, the regulator y, and fiscal framework for the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, the establishment, and development of host communities and other related matters in the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors of the petroleum industry.

According to an Ernst & Young publication, the PIA seeks to ensure “an increased level of transparency and accountability in the sector by strengthening the governing institutions to attract investment capital through changes to the governance, administrative, regulatory and fiscal framework of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.”

“The passing of the PIA has delivered the much-needed stability for the industry in settling the applicable regulatory and fiscal terms. It is now time for industry experts and stakeholders to sit down and assess whether it creates a framework that

It should be noted that from the inception of the summit in 2018, discussions around the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) took the centre stage, often tilting to heated debates at the conference with the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan

“The PIA is a historic move. It is a major feat by the Buhari presidency and we want to use the NIES platform to ensure that its implementation turns out to be a win-win for government, industry and the Nigerian people”, Shindi said.

and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, making definitive statements on the passage of the bill which happened few months after. The Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) formerly known as the Nigerian International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), is the official oil and gas meeting of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. With the full backing of the Federal Government of Nigeria, NIES has over the years witnessed the highest level of attendance by top decision makers, industry leaders and all stakeholders from both the public and private sectors. NIES is a federal government of Nigeria official petroleum industry event with the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and all its parastatals including the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( N N P C ), N i g e r ia n C o n te n t Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF), Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) and Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) are joint hosts.

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LOCAL CONTENT

Executive Secretary NCDMB Commissions PE Energy’s Centre of Excellence

he Executive Secretar y Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote recently commissioned PE Energy’s ultra-modern Centre of Excellence in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, which would provide services in Automation, Process & Systems Integration as well as Valve Assembly, Valve Actuation, Metering Systems, Pump and Compressor Solutions. The facility would also offer services in Instrument Fitting Manufacturing and Service Lines, Training and Competence A ssessment, in addition to assembling Early Production Facilities (EPF’s) and Mobile Production Units (MOPU’s) which are essential in the nation’s aspiration to increase oil and gas production. Speaking at the event attended by senior government officials, members of the diplomatic corps, representatives of international and local operating oil and gas companies, the Executive Secretary commended PE Energy for contributing to the growth of the Nigerian Oil & Gas sector and Nigerian Content. He hinted that the company’s 16

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area of speciality in Automation, Process and System Integration is of special interest to the Board, especially as the oil and gas industry prepares itself to fully tap into the opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He stated that the industry is going into an era where massive adoption of technology and innovation will become the norm, adding that “from unmanned FPSO’s to carbon capture technologies to achieve net-zero emissions, from Big Data Analytics for seismic surveys to the use of Augmented Realities for Human Capacity Development, the Board is delighted that Nigerian industry players are keen to adopt and deploy these new innovations.” Wabote described PE’s Centre of Excellence as an excellent addition to top-notch facilities that showcases the success of Local Content in Nigeria and enhances the journey to the actualization of the 10-year strategic roadmap targeted to achieve 70 percent Nigerian Content in the Oil & Gas sector by the year 2027. He also lauded PE Energ y’s partnership with global brands in the automation and instrumentation

in dus tr y, a dding that such partnerships will enhance the acquisition of skills by the employees of PE Energy Ltd. He stated that “the quality of the facility guarantees that none of the international operating companies would have any doubt that if given an assignment to PE Energy, it would produce the same quality you will see outside Nigeria.” While commending the international oil companies for their continuous s u p p o r t in t h e s u c c e s s f ul implementation of Nigerian Content, the Executive Secretary noted that PE Energy’s Centre of Excellence will lead to cost reduction and enhancement of the reliability and availability of oil companies’ production facilities. In his welcome address, the Managing Director of PE Energy Limited, Engr. Daere Akobo indicated that the facility is 100 percent local driven, from administration to technology, adding that the stateof-the-art facility spreads across an area of 10,820 sqm. He noted that the multimillion-dollar investment had positioned the

LOCAL CONTENT company as an automation process and system integration company in the service of critical process value chain in the Oil and Gas industry, offering innovative solutions for the exploration, extraction, processing, transportation, and distribution sectors.

Asset Ownership Key to Nigerian Content Development -Wabote Magaret Nongo-Okojokwu

Reeling out the company’s capacities, the Managing Director informed that the firm had delivered projects across sub-Saharan Africa, including Kenya and Ghana and had also acquired a seismic detection technology and got approval from President Muhammadu Buhari to fly the northern basin of the country. Akobo announced that the Centre of Excellence would consolidate the partnership between NCDMB and the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) and focus on material substitution, which entails research and development in the use of raw materials for the formulation of drilling and completion fluids and additives. He added that Center of Excellence would provide linkage between the industry and academia and serve as a Competence Assessment Center and contribute towards the creation of highly competent manpower through hands-on training in collaboration with Original Equipment Manufacturers. In his goodwill message, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Gabriel Tanimu underscored the Ministry’s contributions to the promotion of Nigerian businesses and partnerships. He added that “once a business has the blessings of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they achieve better results, rather than just going out to engage international partners on their own.” He hinted that the Ministry promotes the Nigerian Content Policy and was canvasses for international companies to set up facilities in Nigeria and take advantage of the large market. He charged operators of the oil industry to patronise PE Energy to ensure return on investment and encourage other investors in the sector.

Engr. Simbi K. Wabote E.S NCDMB

ndigenous service companies in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry have been advised to invest in asset ownership because it is a major yardstick used by the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act to define Nigerian companies and confer advantages on them. The Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote gave the advice recently in Port Harcourt, Rivers State while commissioning PIMO Services Ltd’s new facilities and equipment. He explained that the acquisition of important assets defined genuine Nigerian businesses who are not middlemen or commission agents but are positioned to offer top-notch services in-country.

are taking up the challenge to grow their outfits and contribute to incountry capacities and capabilities. Assets commissioned by the Executive Secretary included Operational Bases I & II of PIMO Services and their newly acquired equipment, which included Hydro Hammer with the capacity of 200 kilo Joules, Internal Lifting Tools with the capacity of 250 tons, up to 42-inch diameter Conductors and Casing Running Tools, and many other state of the art tools to service the oil and gas industry. He expressed delight that the acquisition of the modern tools and equipment afforded the company’s engineers and technicians the opportunity to develop requisite skills and competence to handle various jobs thereby enhancing engineering capabilities within the country.

He added that investment in assets also proves that Nigerian businesses

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LOCAL CONTENT While commending the management of the company for investing and contributing significantly to the growth of the Nigerian Oil and Gas sector, Wabote added that the investments also supported the Board’s 10-year strategic roadmap aimed at increasing the level of Nigerian Content in the Oil and Gas sector to 70 percent by 2027.

Duport Modular Refinery to be Completed December 2021

He noted that PIMO Services was the second facility he was commissioning in Port Harcourt since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, describing it as signs that better days were gradually returning to the oil and gas industry. He called on other oil and gas service providers to emulate PIMO Services in their focus and dedication, adding that growth of oil and gas facilities needs to be worked on steadily till full rewards are realized. In his remarks, the Managing Director of PIMO Services, Mr. Pius Uwhubetiyi stated that some of the equipment and tools it acquired were the only ones in Nigeria. He noted that the company’s investment in Hydro Hammer would save project promoters about 90 days that are normally spent importing and exporting the equipment for projects, while another major equipment saved Total Energies about US$600,000 when it was deployed on Ikike Field Development Project. He added that the company was working to become the first firm to produce casing accessories in Nigeria, adding that it had the capacity, competence, and character to deliver on areas of expertise. PIMO Services Limited is a wholly owned Nigerian Company and it had developed skills in the provision of quality engineering services such as Mechanical, Civil & Structural, Electrical Installation/Maintenance, Fire and Gas Systems, and other services to the oil and gas industry. c.

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Chief Executive Officer, Duport Midstream Company Limited, Dr. Akintoye Akindele explaining the status of the project to Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Wabote and Engr. Kashim Ali, member of the NCDMB Governing Council during a recent inspection visit to Duport Energy Park at Egbokor in Edo state.

he Executive Secretar y of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Wabote has said that the Duport Modular Refinery is on track to be completed before the end of December 2021. He made this statement recently during an inspection visit to Duport Energy Park situated at Egbokor in Edo state. The project is being developed with equity contribution from the NCDMB in line with the Federal Government’s policy of catalyzing modular refining, which is geared towards increasing in-country refining of petroleum products, adding value to crude oil resources, and creating jobs from oil and gas operations. The Executive Secretary indicated that the installations and civil works at the plant as well as all mechanical works would be concluded before the 23rd of December 2021, noting that by first quarter of 2022, the gas gathering facility will also be

completed. Speaking further, the NCDMB boss hinted that local content opportunities on the project are numerous, noting that 100 percent of the total workforce are all Nigerians from the clearing of the site to the civil works. He further stated that all the contracting and sub-contracting phase of the project went through local businesses. Wabote explained that one of the key benefits of the Board’s partnerships for the establishment of modular refineries is the steady rebuilding of local skills in refinery operations especially amongst the nation’s teeming young workforce. The Executive Secretary while giving his impression over the progress of work done at the project site said: “I am impressed. It is part of what we try to do at NCDMB when we take up any project, we follow it through end to

LOCAL CONTENT end to see that it is delivered, and we are very optimistic this will also be delivered at the right time with the right quality”. Also speaking, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Duport Midstream Company Limited, Dr. Akintoye Akindele appreciated the Board for its continuous partnership. He mentioned that NCDMB support

has been invaluable and goes beyond the capital support to include catalyzing the new project. He reiterated that Duport Energy Park is the first SMART energy park in the world that comprises of a 10,000 barrels per day modular refinery, a 60 million standard cubic feet per day gas gathering facility, a 50MW power plant and a data

analysis centre. Also speaking, Engr. Kashim Ali, member of the NCDMB Governing Council expressed delight at the progress of work executed on site and the steps taking by the Board to invest in the project. He assured that the Council will continue to support indigenous businesses in delivery of their scope.

NCDMB Lauds TotalEnergies Local Content Achievements on Ikike Project

L-R: Director, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr. Hassan Gambo; Chief Executive Officer TotalEnergies Nigeria, Mr. Mike Sangster; Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote and General Manager, Joint Venture Operations, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Mrs. Martina Atuchi’ cutting the tape for the load-out of the topsides of TotalEnergies Ikike Development Project at the Saipem Yard in Port Harcourt, Rivers State recently.

otalEnergies has been described as the only international operating company in Nigeria that has been taking key financial investment decisions (FIDs) on major projects in the last ten years and kept faith with Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote gave the commendation at the loadout ceremony of the topsides of the Ikike Development Project at the Saipem Yard in Port Harcourt recently. He said NCDMB is also delighted with TotalEnergies’ commitment to sustained investment in the gas

sector, with due considerations for renewable energy. “It is no surprise that within the last six months, President Muhammadu Buhari has twice given audience to the global chief executive of the company, Mr. Patrick Pouyanne, and Nigeria is keen to have strategic partners like TotalEnergies to enable us realize our targets especially in consideration of the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA”, he added. H e reiterated the Board’s confidence in Total to keep its project funnel active through a robust portfolio of projects required to sustain utilization of established capacities and grow Nigerian Content as well as working

collaboratively to earmark high local content commitments and targets. “As this Topsides sail to location for further work scope completions, you can be assured that NCDMB has also set out local content targets that must be met to sustain the job creation drive of the Federal Government”, he stated. The Executive Secretary confirmed that the signed Nigerian Content Compliance Certificate provided that the hook-up engineering and tie-in services, inspections and integrity works, pre-commissioning and commissioning, and marine services would be executed with over 95

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LOCAL CONTENT percent Nigerian personnel with locally owned equipment and assets. He commended Saipem Contracting Nigeria Limited (SCNL) and its subcontractors for delivering the scope on schedule regardless of challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. He also hailed the technical and non-technical staff that worked on the project and ensured its delivery within a fabrication yard in-country. “Our mandate is to ensure that this is the case across all the various projects including NLNG Train-7”, the Nigerian Content chieftain mentioned. He reassured industry stakeholders that the Board shall continue to remain its foremost partner in the development and industrialization of Nigeria. In his speech, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of TotalEnergies Nigeria, Mr. Mike Sangster declared that the Ikike Field Development Project is a further commitment of TotalEnergies to Nigeria and the growth of the oil and gas sector, after the Egina Project. He stated that aside from meeting the incremental 32,000 barrels per day, the project also

aims to capitalize on lessons learnt from previous projects such as the OFON2, OML 58 Upgrade to assure a development with strategic fit for context, maximize local content at sustainable cost, simplified design, economic, and consistent progress towards first oil. He asserted that Ikike is a testament of cooperation and teamwork of all parties, and regulators namely Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, National Petroleum Investment Services and NCDMB. He added that the project has contributed immensely to the Nigerian Content development initiatives of the company through the construction of jacket modules, topsides, and risers in Nigerian yards, offshore campaign with vessels domiciled in Nigeria, and drilling with Nigerian companies which boosted local employment with about 3,000 direct and indirect jobs hence increasing local capacity and technical skills acquisition. Speaking earlier, the Managing Director of SCNL, Mr. Walter Peviani, thanked TotalEnergies for entrusting the project in their capacity to deliver

on time without Lost Time Injury (LTI) or incident amidst industry challenges and uncertainties including COVID-19. He said that the Topsides fabricated by Sapiem in collaboration with local companies and other sub-contractors was an in-country platform designed to be fully unmanned and remotely operated, heralding the extension of innovation and technology towards the new normal in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, having remarkable opportunities in technology transfer. Present at the ceremony were the Director and Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr. Gbenga Komolafe represented by Mr. Hassan Gambo, a Director in the Commission and the Group G en eral Manager, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Mr. Bala Wunti, who was represented by the General Manager, Joint Venture Operations, Mrs. Martina Atuchi. The regulators both commended TotalEnergies for achieving the project one hundred percent incountry.

FG Launches Nigerian-Made Barites, to Ban Importation 2022 He also announced that imported barites would no longer be allowed for use by the Nigerian oil and gas industry from 2022. He expressed delight at the alignment of objectives by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and Ministry of Mines and Steel Development in supporting the attainment of the aspirations of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.

he Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development has officially launched made in Nigerian Barites that has met specifications for use in the oil and gas industry, mostly in drilling operations.

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The Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote performed the launch in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, recently in company with the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Arc Olamilekan Adegbite, Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Uche Sampson Ogah.

He hinted that the utilization of locally produced Barites and Drilling Fluids in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry was in line with the Federal Government’s commitments towards maximum optimization of local content and diversification of the Nigerian economy and would create huge

LOCAL CONTENT value addition and opportunities to drive the sustainable and competitive growth of the Nigerian economy.

financing for equipment and working capital and Patronage and utilization of Nigerian barites by Oil and gas operators and service companies.

He recalled that the Board had issued a Guideline in May 2021 where it approved four firms for the supply of Barites required for any drilling project or contract in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The Board also listed 10 other companies that would be upgraded to Category A NCEC, as soon as they meet the requirements of the Guideline for the Utilization of Locally Produced Barite and Drilling Fluids in Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry.

He stated that improvements in these areas will positively impact the sustainable development of the Nigerian Barite value chain.

The Executive Secretary charged the ministry and barite miners to focus on the improvement of the Health and Safety Practices at the Mines, Optimal Barite Production in volumes and to the required specification and Availability of accurate geological data. He also emphasised the need to address Host Community issues and Environmental Practices leading to land degradation, Provision of adequate infrastructure and logistics, Improved access to

He assured that the Board will continue to collaborate and protect investors in the entire value chain of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry, adding that first and exclusive consideration will always be given to locally produced goods and services in line with the provisions of the NOGICD Act. In his remarks, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development stated that the launch would end decades of importation of barites, affirming that the barites being launched met the API standards, which is the global specifications demanded by the oil industry. He stated that Nigeria was blessed with 47 solid minerals deposited across the country and barites was among the seven strategic minerals designated by the ministry for top priority development.

He said that barites occur within the Benue trough- Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa, Plateau, Gombe and Cross River and Zamfara in Northwestern part of the country. Adegbite also announced that the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development would set up a marketplace portal that would connect all stakeholders along the barites value chain to a hub that allows easy coordination, stocking, effective costing and seamless sale of barites. He added that the ministry would coordinate the process and ensure that appropriate revenues from the process are remitted to Government. He explained that the launch of made in Nigerian barites would increase revenue to Government through royalty payment and conserve foreign exchange spent previously in importing barites. He added that the development would also create jobs, especially in local communities where barites are mined and processed and earn Nigeria some foreign exchange when the mineral gets exported.

NCDMB Collaborates With Schlumberger to Engage Academia on Software Solutions

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has set up an NSTEP programme in partnership with Schlumberger Nogeria Limited, to engage the academia in the development of oil and gas software solutions.

S chlumb erger on the implementation of science and technology enhancement programme (d e v e l o p m e n t o f plugins/software), the NCDMB was represented by the Director Planning, Research & Statistics, Patrick Obah, and the General Manager, Research, Statistics Development Department, Abdulmalik Halilu. This is in line with Nigerian Content Implementation framework for research, innovation and technology transfer.

The programme is built on the back of Schlumberger’s well-tested Ocean Software development and Microsoft Visual Studio framework, designed to nurture a pool of indigenous talents with the capacity to develop and deploy software applications for exploration and production applications. NCDMB has been making frentic effort to connect the academia to oil and gas industry, and experts think that this collaboration is apt and timely, as Nigeria strives to build local capay to drive its oil and gas industry. Schlumberger is a well known technology innovator that provides leading digital solutions and deploy ground-breaking technologies to enable performance and sustainability that are crucial for the global energy industry.

At the kick- of f meeting with

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POWER

NERC Announces Increase in Meters Unit Cost by 31.53 Percent representing 30.66 per cent increase. The NERC also hiked the cost of a Three Phase Meter from N82.855.19 to N109, 684.36, representing 32.38 percent.

he Nigerian Elec tricit y Regulator y Commission (NERC) has announced an average of 31.53 per cent increase in the unit cost of meters. The new prices will take effect from 15th November 2021. According to a document that The Nation obtained, the commission raised the cost of a single Phase Meter from N44, 896.17 to N58, 662.69,

On average, it was an upward review of 31.53 per cent. According to the document, all the costs are exclusive of Value Added Tax (VAT). NERC conveyed the message in a circular dated 11th November, 2021, which its chairman, Sanusi Garba signed. The document which was titled “Review of the unit price of end-

user meters under the Meter Asset Provider and National Mass Metering Regulations,” was addressed to the Managing Directors of all Electricity Distribution Companies and the Managing Directors of all Meter Asset Providers. The NERC based the approval of the upward review on the “the recent changes in the macro-economic parameters.” It explained: “In arriving at the approved unit price, the Commission had, in particular, only considered changes in foreign exchange and inflation since the last review of June 2020.” NERC said: “This price review is subject to change upon the conclusion of the procurement process under phase 1 of the National Mass Metering Program. This price is effective from 15th November, 2021.”

TCN Begins Rehabilitation of Old Circuit Breakers in It’s Substations Nationwide

he Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has commenced the rehabilitation and replacement of old Circuit Breakers in the nation’s transmission network. The project is geared towards improving bulk power transmission to distribution load centers nationwide. The rehabilitation and replacement work which were officially flagged off at the thirty-seven (37) years old 330/132kV Ajaokuta Substation, Kogi State, marks TCN’s determination to ensure that all circuit breakers in its network are certified healthy and performs optimally. A statement by the General Manager (Public Affairs), Ndidi Mbah, said that the decision to start with the circuit breakers in Ajaokuta Substation was due to the strategic role the substation plays in transmitting bulk electricity to distribution load centers of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) and Benin Electricity Distribution

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Company (BEDC), covering areas such as; Abuja, Lokoja, Ayangba, Okene, Okpila, and Benin among others. “TCN’s efforts at rehabilitating the circuit breakers despite routine maintenance undertaken by in-house engineers is to ensure that they continue to perform optimally and eliminate any incident of sudden breakdown due to age. The exercise will be extended to all substations in the country whose circuit breakers are 20 years and above. “In line with TCN’s quest to further improve the capacity of its workforce, it assigned its engineers to work directly with the contractors to ensure handson training and practical skills transfer. Proper retrofitting or replacement of the circuit breakers will ensure that they operate optimally for the next 15 to 20 years. “Circuit Breakers protect power transformers from any abnormal

conditions or fault that may occur within or from outside the network. They also provide power supply flexibility in the substations’ switchyard when maintenance work is ongoing, without interrupting bulk power supply to distribution load centers in the grid. “TCN will not relent in its efforts to maintain, repair, and replace power transmission equipment, as well as install new ones to ensure a more stable and efficient transmission of bulk power to the distribution substations nationwide,” the statement read partly.

POWER

Power Sector: Stakeholders set to Develop Action Plan By MW Web

takeholders from private and public sectors are to converge on Abuja on December 6, 2021 to develop a plan of action for resolving the many challenges facing the Nigerian power sector. The event with the theme: “Consolidating the Privatisation of the Power Sector: Issues and challenges”, is to be chaired by the Minister of Power, Engr Abubakar Aliyu, while the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Nigeria Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed and the Minister of Water Resources, Engr Suleiman Hussein Adamu, will also address the gathering. Tagged 1st Abuja Electric Power Conference, those billed to address the seminar include the Bureau of Public Enterprises, the Association of Electricity Generators of Nigeria, the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors, the Meters Manufacturers Association

of Nigeria, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the Electricity Consumers Group as well as each of the parastatals of the Federal Ministry of Power. Also expected are power sector professionals, past and present operators of the sector alongside related Ministries such as the Federal Ministr y of Water Resources on dams and power generation, Federal Ministry of Justice on power contracts controversy and Federal Ministry of Finance on government position on the 40 percent shareholding in the privatised generation and distribution companies. Speaking on the forthcoming event organised by the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the chairman of the planning committee, Mr Olawale Rasheed said, the conference was designed to review and refocus on the consolidation of the ongoing privatisation and commercialisation of the Nigerian Power Sector.

He said Nigeria had taken and was still pursuing giant steps in the reform of the power sector adding that many issues hadcropped up since the commencement of the privatisation exercise even as it has recorded successes and setbacks. According to him, some of the objectives of the conference included: reviewing the privatisation outcomes; analysing the gains of the exercise, focussing on continuation of the exercise; assessing private sector’s role in the privatization process and proffering consolidated solutions to challenges of the privatization process. “The gathering is a solution providing platform. We hope to generate a plan of action with timelines for deliverables which will be submitted to the Minister of Power. The Chamber is organising this event because power sector affects to a large extent the ease of operations of our members within and outside Abuja,” he said.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Nigeria Needs 1.5 Trillion Dollars In Ten Years To Bridge The Infrastructure Gap – Buhari By Ikenna Omeje Infrastructure Stock was estimated at 35% of our Gross Domestic Product.‘‘In solving these problems, we embarked on a massive infrastructure expansion programme in the areas of Health care, Education, Transportation, Manufacturing, Energy, Housing, Agriculture, and Water Resources. ‘‘ We provided more financial resources for these policies, charted new international partnerships and pursued liberalization policies to allow private sector participation.‘‘We introduced the revised National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan – a policy document that ensures our infrastructure expansion projects is cross-sectorally integrated and environmentally friendly, ’’ he said.

resident Muhammadu Buhari says 1.5 trillion dollars is the cumulative estimated amount needed by Nigeria over a ten-year period, to achieve an appreciable level of the National Infrastructure Stock. A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity), Garba Shehu, said that Buhari gave the figure recently in Glasgow at a COP 26 high-level side event on improving global infrastructure hosted by President Joe Biden of the United States, EU Commission President, Von Der Leyen and the UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson. ‘‘Nigeria is ready for your investments in infrastructural development in the country.‘‘My administration has established a clear legal and regulatory framework for private financing of infrastructure to establish a standard process, especially on the monitoring and evaluation process.

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‘‘We look forward to working with you in this regard,’’ he told world leaders at the high level meeting on the margins of the climate change conference. Buhari also declared that his a dminis tration ha d taken infrastructure expansion in Nigeria seriously, conscious of the fact that new investments in critical sectors of the economy would aid lifting 100 million Nigerians from poverty by 2030. ‘‘There is a nexus bet ween infrastructural development and the overall economic development of a nation. My administration identified this early enough as a major enabler of sustainable economic development and the realization of other continental and global development aspirations particularly the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. ‘‘On my assumption of office in 2015, Nigeria faced a huge infrastructure deficit and the total National

The President welcomed the G7 countries for its ground-breaking plan to mobilize hundreds of billions of dollars of infrastructure investment for low – and middle-income countries. He noted that the “Build Back Better World” plan, an initiative of the G7 countries, is expected to be a valuesdriven, high-standard, and transparent infrastructure partnership. ‘‘It is our fervent hope and expectations that this plan will be pursued to its logical conclusion in order to bridge the infrastructural gap between the North and South,’’ he said. Buhari also used the occasion to outline the principles, values and standards Nigeria would like to see from infrastructure initiatives and the challenges the country has faced in partnering with donors on infrastructure development.‘ ‘ The aim of pursuing qualit y infrastructure investment is to maximize the positive economic, environmental, social, and development impact of infrastructure and create a virtuous circle of economic activities, while ensuring sound public finances.‘‘This virtuous circle can take various forms in stimulating the economy,” he said.

SUSTAINABILITY The Nigerian leader noted that infrastructure investment sh o ul d , t h e re f o re , t a ke into a cco unt e co n o mic , environmental and social, and governance aspects, guided by a sense of shared, longterm responsibility for the planet, consistent with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

COP26: Europe Changes Course, Includes Natural Gas in Green Energy Future By Jerome Onoja

He added that the positive and negative impacts of infrastructure projects on ecosystems, biodiversit y, climate, weather and the use of resources should be internalized b y in c o r p o r a t in g t h e s e environmental considerations over the entire process of infrastructure investment. ‘‘Domestic resource mobilization is critical to addressing the infrastructure financing gap. Assistance for capacity building, including for project preparation, should be provided to developing countries with the participation of international organizations. ‘ ‘Q u a li t y i n f r a s t r u c t u r e investment also needs to be tailored to individual country conditions and consistent with local laws and regulations. ‘‘Furthermore, Infrastructure projects should align with national strategies and nationally determined contributions for those countries determined to implement them, and with transitioning to long-term low emissions strategies, while being mindful of country circumstances,’’ he said. The President also called for the environmental impact of infrastructure investment to be made transparent to all stakeholders, noting that this will enhance the appreciation of sustainable infrastructure projects and increase awareness of related risks.

uring the just concluded COP 26 conference Frans Timmermans, the ser ving European Commission’s Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal released a shocking information signifying that the European Commission was going to reconsider its previous decision, backtrack and start investing in Natural Gas again. The European Commission brass said: “We will also have to invest in natural gas infrastructure. As long as we do it with an eye of only doing this for a period, then I think this is a justified investment.” On the eve of COP26 EU energy ministers were in a dif ficult conversation because of angry consumers who were furious about the hike in prices for energy and food. Even European supermajor BP is saying different things today. At a recent conference in Abu Dhabi Oilprice. com reports BP CEO Bernard Looney said, “It may not be popular to say that oil and gas is going to be in the energy system for decades to come but that is the reality.”

against Climate Change. European banks were the first to withdraw funding for oil and gas projects, as well as coal. International oil companies based in Europe were among the first to change their business models by endorsing Net Zero and swiftly complying. European countries also went on to invest heavily in wind and solar power through direct subsidies and various supply arrangements to encourage players in the budding industry. Ignoring declining gas supplies from the North Sea, they even looked away from major fields like Groningen. Increasing demands in the face of winter has put extra pressure on the new gas pipeline from Russia and Nordstream 2 as the stored gas reserve has largely depleted. Despite the obvious role of natural gas in providing backup power for intermittent renewables, classifying gas as “green” was not acceptable until now. Beyond gas, Europe is also contemplating adopting nuclear energy.

Recall that European States have been in the forefront of global pursuits

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SUSTAINABILITY

ExxonMobil to Invest $15 Billion in Lower-Carbon Future By Ikenna Omeje

he United States energy giant, ExxonMobil, has disclosed its plans to invest more than $15 billion on lower green house gas emissions. And on track to meet its 2025 emission-intensity reduction goals by the end of this year – four years earlier than was expected. “Over the next six years, ExxonMobil plans to invest more than $15 billion on lower greenhouse gas emission initiatives. This significant increase in spending will further accelerate efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our operated facilities. To that point, we are on track to meet our 2025 emissionintensity reduction goals by the end of this year – four years earlier than anticipated. As a result of our progress, we’re working on even more aggressive reduction plans that are consistent with our support for the goals of the Paris Agreement, the U.S. and European Union’s Global Methane Pledge, as well as the U.S. Methane Emissions

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Reduction Action Plan announced last week,” the company said in a statement. According to the company, a significant share of the spending will be directed toward its Low Carbon Solutions business, which it said, is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from hard-to-decarbonize sectors such as heavy industry, commercial transportation and power generation, which together account for more than 80 percent of the world’s energy-related emissions. “We see tremendous opportunities to use our technology and expertise in carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, and biofuels to support meaningful reductions in global emissions. We expect those opportunities to grow as policy support for low-carbon solutions increases,” the company noted. Noting the important roles

technologies play in carbon reduction, ExxonMobil said that carbon capture and storage is a proven way to collect CO2 emissions and securely store them deep underground. It explained that Carbon capture and storage is critical to reaching net zero by 2050, according to independent experts like the International Energy Agency and the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Commenting on the new initiative, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Darren W. Woods, said, “At ExxonMobil, we develop and deploy solutions that meet society’s needs. Today, that means taking a leading role in providing the products that enable modern life, reducing carbon emissions and developing needed technologies to advance a lowercarbon emissions future.”

SUSTAINABILITY

Nigeria Pledge to Cut Its Emissions to Net Zero by 2060 By Ikenna Omeje

President Muhammadu Buhari; Prince Charles; and President Emmanuel Macron

igerian President Muhammadu Buhari in Glasgow, Scotland, pledged that Nigeria would cut its emissions to net zero by 2060.

need for urgent action on the environment.‘‘Desertification in the North, floods in the centre, pollution and erosion on the coast are enough evidence.

Delivering his national statement at COP26 Leaders’ Summit, the President said that attaining national and global climate change goals will require adequate and sustained technical and financial support to developing countries.

“For Nigeria, climate change is not about the perils of tomorrow but what is happening today. Nigeria is committed to net zero by 2060.”

He said greater effort should be channelled towards assisting developing nations to meet their ‘‘Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) commitments through the pledges made by the developed countries to provide at least $100 billion yearly.’

Making a case for gas-based energy transition in Nigeria, Buhari requested international partners to finance projects using transition fuels such as gas in Nigeria. ‘‘Parties to the Paris Agreement are expected to transit from fossil fuel to clean energy and reach a Net Zero ambition for greenhouse gases emission.‘

President Buhari noted that easier access to climate finance had become imperative in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, which really battered the economies of developing countries.

‘Nigeria is actually more of a gas than an oil producing country.‘‘Consequently, I am requesting for financing of projects using transition fuels, such as gas.

“I do not think anyone in Nigeria needs persuading of the

‘‘Nigeria has energy challenges for which, we believe, gas can be used to balance a renewable energy-based

system, be it wind or sun. ‘‘This would enable us launch the long-term renewable energy infrastructure procurements and investments needed to have a sustainable energy supply.” Acknowledging that net zero ambition can lead to economic transformation across all sectors, the Nigerian leader said it would require critical infrastructure to be in place. Buhari also told the COP26 Leaders’ Summit that Nigeria has developed a detailed energy transition plan and roadmap based on data and evidence.He explained that the plan has highlighted some key facts that forces the difficult conversations. ‘‘Our transition plan also highlights the key role that gas will play in transitioning our economy across sectors, and the data and evidence show that Nigeria can continue to use gas until 2040 without detracting from the goals of the Paris Agreement.

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SUSTAINABILITY

‘‘Gas will be key for addressing the clean cooking challenge, which is also a challenge of deforestation, and for giving our electric grid the stability and flexibility to integrate renewables at scale. Nigeria will need to integrate an unprecedented 7GW additional renewable capacity each year to achieve net-zero,’’ he said.

Buhari Signs Nigeria’s Climate Change Bill into Law

On energy access, Buhari declared that Nigeria’s commitment to a just transition is reflected in ‘‘our ambitious Energy Compact, which includes the Government’s flagship project to electrify 5million households and 25 million people using decentralized solar energy solutions.’’ He described the project as a major first step towards closing energy access deficit in the country by 2030.On green projects in the county, the President declared that Federal Government agencies have been directed to ensure the inclusion of projects with Climate Change credentials in the budget. ‘‘I am happy to state that the 2022 budget, which I recently submitted to our National Assembly, is the first cross-sectoral, gender and climateresponsive budget ever prepared in the annals of our history. Buhari announced that the National Assembly has also passed the Climate Change Bill, which provides a framework for achieving low greenhouse gas emissions, inclusive green growth and sustainable economic development. He concluded his address with a note of caution, saying:‘‘The outcome of this Conference must result in quick resolution of all outstanding issues pertaining to the finalization of the Paris Agreement Rulebook, Adaptation, Mitigation, Finance, Article 6 and Loss and Damage.’’

igeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari Thursday signed the Climate Change bill into law. This was made public by the president’s spokesperson, Garba Shehu. According to Mr Shehu, the Climate Change Act owes its origin to a bill sponsored by a member of the House of Representatives, Sam Onuigbo, and provides for, among other things, the mainstreaming of climate change actions and the establishment of a National Council on Climate Change. The Act also also paves the way for environmental and economic accounting and a push for a net zero emission deadline plan in the country. The president had earlier made a commitment during the world leaders summit of the just concluded

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United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP26, in Glasgow, UK that Nigeria will cut its carbon emission to net-zero by 2060. On Thursday, the president also signed the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (Amendment) Act into law. The AMCOM Act provides for the extension of the tenor of the Resolution Cost Fund and grants access to the Special Tribunal established by the Banks and other Financial Institutions Act 2020, which confers on the corporation the power “to take possession, manage, foreclose or sell, transfer, assign or otherwise deal with the asset or property used as security for eligible bank assets and related matters.’’ “This, in effect, will help AMCON make recoveries and for debtors to fulfil their commitments to banks,” Mr Shehu concluded.

SUSTAINABILITY

Expert Suggests New Charter for African Capitalism Jerome Onoja

“In that regard, Africapitalism is a call for the private sector in Africa, especially the Multinational Enterprises, to contribute to the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals, by taking into considerations the unique circumstances of the continent.” For the Afrochampions initiative to effectively implement Africapitalism, Amaeshi stated, “Drawing from the extant management and organisation literature, empirical evidence suggests that the translation of any discourse into practice tends to follow some similar pathways.

Professor of Sustainable Finance at the University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom, Kenneth Amaeshi, has urged the AfroChampions Initiative of the African Union (AU) to embrace a unique approach to growing the continental economy. Amaeshi, who is also the Chair in Business and S ustainable Development and Director of the Sustainable Business Initiative at the university described this approach as Africapitalism. The AfroChampions Initiative was created by the AU with the aim of mobilising investment funds — about US$1trn by 2030 — to scale the more indigenous African businesses into multinationals, in the wake of a slowlypicking up African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA). This, according to the AU, would make them “AfroChampions.” Amaeshi quoted a research work by himself and Uwafiokun Idemudia in 2015 defining Africapitalism as, “An idea and a discourse underpinned by values which reflect the spirit of longtermism and inclusion such as; sense of progress and prosperity, sense of parity and inclusion, sense of peace and harmony, and the sense of place and belonging. “As an idea, Africapitalism is arguably an imaginative articulation of a

possible face of capitalism in Africa, which could be extended to other parts of the world. It is a discourse to galvanise a movement, which will ultimately change the practice of capitalism in Africa. “Positioned as such, Africapitalism becomes an aspiration for Africa’s renaissance — a force for change. It challenges the status quo — capitalism in Africa — which has not transformed Africa. “The problem here is not necessarily the spirit of capitalism, as the harbinger of human freedom and economic emancipation, but the inherited form of capitalism practised in Africa, which is often at variance with the socio-economic development of the continent.” Amaeshi noted that the misalignment between the capitalism currently practiced in Africa and the socioeconomic development of the continent created lopsided outcomes such as corruption, inequality, amongst others. “In that regard, Africapitalism is a call for the private sector in Africa, especially the Multinational Enterprises, to contribute to the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals, by taking into considerations the unique circumstances of the continent.”

“A discourse is likely to be adopted by actors (a) whose purpose of being aligns with the discourse (b) who can see value in exploring the discourse (i.e. potentials) and (c) have the power to protect and explore the identified potentials enabled by the discourse. “In addition, alignment with purpose, identification of potentials, and the power to protect and exploit the potentials are not sufficient. They are all strengthened with (d) the right policies and processes, which in in turn inform (e) the appropriate organisational practices.” The professor explained that once an Afrochampions’ purpose is shaped, it could explore potentials in that lens. He said that once an its potentials are explored and considered, the next step would be to ensure that it has the capability to protect harness such potentials. “These in turn should be stabilised through appropriate policies and processes,” he advised. “The policies and processes will in turn inform and shape everyday organisational practices and routines.” Amaeshi concluded that the emphasis on AfroChampions was a good idea but needed a grounded and contextualised business philosophy to immensely benefit the continent. “Africapitalism provides this,” he opined.

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SPOTLIGHT

Geoplex Drillteq Restates Commitment to Brand Quality, Service Delivery

leading indigenous drilling services company, Geoplex Drillteq Limited has once again proven to its clients its commitment to quality service delivery and brand consistency. The local content champion’s performance in one of its recent well optimisation projects asserts its positioning as a major player at a time when marginal field operators require indigenous capacities to mine their hydrocarbon. A statement from Geoplex Drillteq describing its first-class execution said, “In the bid to optimize the flow rate of a dual completion well, we were recently contacted by one of our clients to carry out a perforation job. “After proper analysis of the well schematics and other well information, it was critical that the

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adjacent tubing of the well be on opposite face of the zero phased gun assembly. Hence we proposed that our Magnetic orienting tool (MOT) be deployed along with the gun to ascertain the orientation of the gun downhole. “Prior to mobilisation of our personnel/equipment for the job, primary and backup equipment’s were function-checked, job simulations diligently done, and the charge selection optimized. All this pre-job planning was to ensure we live up to our expectations of zero NPT by our team on the field.

met.” The company’s accomplishment on the project and its history of excellent implementation further restates its unique approach to problem solving and value creation with its services. This displayed local content capacity boosts confidence in the system and would help marginal field operators as it increases the potential of marginal fields to uplift Nigeria’s production.

“

This displayed local content capacity boosts confidence in the system and would help marginal field operators as engineers reported back to base it increases the potential of that the gun was marginal fields to uplift Nigeria’s production fully spent, adjacent tubing was “It was not much of a surprise when our team of

unaffected and client expectations

SPOTLIGHT

Coleman Announces N50BN Bond Issuance By Ikenna Omeje

igerian cable manufacturer, C o l e m a n Te c h n i c a l Industries Limited, has announced a N50 billion bond issuance as part of the company’s commitment to delivering value to its key stakeholders. By this, the company is now positioned to deliver value to its key stakeholders in terms of quality, pricing, and timely delivery. “The investment for everybody that is looking into Coleman today is a game-changer to see a first time rated company, familyrun business. We are secondgeneration, and it is a journey that we believe we will make Nigeria proud,” said Managing Director, Coleman Technical Industries Limited, George Onafowokan at

the signing ceremony with the company’s partners. Early last year, the company announced that it was going to kick start the production of marine and transmission cables. The simultaneous projects, together with the company’s new production plant, will increase its production output by 24,000 tonnes. Its fibre optic cable manufacturing plant, which is 90 per cent complete, happens to be the only one in West Africa. The company draws from its partnership with Corning, the largest fibre optics cable manufacturing company in the world.

cables production in Nigeria since the launch of its Sagamu factory. Due to its significant contribution, Nigeria produces 70 percent of wires, cables in West Africa. Coleman as of last year, does 48,000 metric tonnes of copper. Through Coleman, Nigeria is the only producer of high-voltage cables in West Africa and the sixth country to adopt the technology in Africa. The company attributes its growth in the sector to many factors, including strategic planning, commitment, perseverance, training, skilled workforce, Nigerian Content Act, and support of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB)

Coleman has been responsible for 80 percent of installed wire and

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SPOTLIGHT

Local Content: GPPSL Wins Forbes Best of Africa Energy and Oil Services Award 2021 By Ikenna Omeje

“As we look forward to other strategic opportunities this new accolade and recognition of our brand, globally would accompany, it is imperative to note that our core values, mission, and vision statement solidly remain undisrupted while working efficiently to exceed our commitments to all esteemed local and international customers on safety, reliability, professionalism, and efficiency. “We would like to express our gratitude to all our valued customers and all GPPS team, without whom we would not have received the coveted ‘Forbes Best of Africa Energy and Oil Services Award’ today. Thank you for trusting our brand, and we appreciate your continued confidence in GPPS. “ It would be recalled that GPPSL emerged the best pipeline services company in Africa’s oil and gas industry for the second time in a row during the industry dinner and awards night, at the 2020 Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), which held in Abuja in February. Early in 2019, the company had won the same award at NIPS 2019.

igeria’s frontline oil services company, Global Process and Pipeline Services Ltd (GPPSL) has been awarded the Forbes Best of Africa Energy and Oil Services Award 2021. Receiving the award in Dubai, United Arab Emirate (UAE), the Managing Director of GPPSL, Engr. Obidike Uzu, dedicated the award to the company’s clients who he said have been very supportive.

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“We are excited to announce that Global Process and Pipeline Services Limited (GPPSL) has been awarded the prestigious ‘Forbes Best of Africa Energy and Oil Services Award 2021’ at the Burj Al Arab Hotel Dubai award reception on the 21st of November 2021,” GPPSL said in a post on LinkedIn. “This Global recognition is a testament to our assiduous dedication, commitment, and efficient service quality delivery to all esteemed customers in Nigeria.

African Business Review listed GPPSL among the top 10 fastest growing companies in Africa as at March 2014. GPPSL was incorporated in 2002 but commenced operations in 2010 as a frontline oil services company, showcasing Nigerian indigenous capability on land, swamp and offshore terrains. Over the years, the company has experienced exponential growth and currently has the largest in-country pumping, process and pipeline services equipment fleet, capacity and competency.

STUDY

A Decade To Act: Mapping The Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Challenge To Entrepreneurship & The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) E-waste Is An Alarming Global Sustainability Challenge - Derefaka, J.O (2013) E-waste is in the Eye of the Beholder - (Seaber, 2014)

INTRODUCTION

he ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was endorsed by the United Nations and all Member States in September 2015. This new agenda identified 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets to end poverty, safeguard the environment, and promote prosperity for all. The environment, human health, and the attainment of the SDGs are all threatened by rising volumes of e-waste, incorrect and unsafe treatment, and disposal through incineration and/or landfills. A better understanding of e-waste, as well as more data, will help to accomplish various goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It will contribute to achieving the SDGs for environmental

protection and health. It will also address employment and economic growth, since environmentally sound e-waste handling can lead to new job opportunities and entrepreneurship. E-waste management and its indepth understanding are inextricably related to Goal 3 (Good health and Well-being), Goal 6 (Clean water and Sanitation), Goal 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), Goal 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), Goal 14 (Life Below Water), and Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). That said, it is also worth contemplating the impact of electronic goods on global warming. Every technology ever built has a carbon footprint and contributes to global warming caused by humans. Produce a tonne of laptops and up to ten tonnes of CO2 is emitted. When considering the carbon dioxide released across

a device’s lifetime, the majority of it occurs during production before users purchase a product. As a result, reduced carbon production procedures and inputs (such as the use of recycled raw materials) and product lifetime are major factors of overall environmental impact. Elec tronic waste (commonly referred to as “e-waste”) streams are currently threatening environmental sustainability, and the primary drivers of this phenomena are rapid socioeconomic development, cuttingedge technological improvement, and the insatiable human nature. The reason is not far-fetched, as a large part of the driving force has to do with customer aesthetics, business profit margins, and high-tech change, which has created a “use-and-throw” culture in which people now believe that the latest is always better

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STUDY

Figure 1.0: How the world managed e-waste in 2019. UNU/UNITAR SCYCLE©/Nienke Haccoû (Source: The Conversation)

than the older product, alluding to the quote “e-waste is in the eye of the beholder.” As a result, outmoded items should be discarded as soon as possible, and “ever-shortening product lifespans and rapid turnover of secondhand electronic equipment by consumers are among the forces contributing to the increasing volume of e-waste,”. E-waste has now become a “global, interregional, and domestic concern” as a result of the shift. This calls into question the value of the widely advertised green economy as a solution to the current issues facing sustainable development at the Rio+20 meeting. In essence, this suggests that the e-waste problem is chronic and must be treated with the seriousness it deserves. WEEE (waste electrical and electronic equipment), e-scrap and end-oflife electronics or electronic waste (“e-waste”) is a generic term for a variety of electrical and electronic goods that have reached the end of their useful lives and have been discarded by their owners. There is no commonly accepted definition of e-waste; however, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (“OECD”) defines e-waste as “any appliance that uses an electric power source and has reached the end of its useful life. The UN defines e-waste as any discarded products with a battery or plug, and features toxic and hazardous substances such as mercury, that can pose severe risk to human and environmental health. Between 2014 and 2019, global electronic waste increased by 21%, with the industry on course to generate 74 million tonnes of waste per year by 2030. 34

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Higher electrical consumption rates, which have been increasing at a pace of 3% per year, shorter product life spans, and restricted repair choices have all contributed to the problem’s growth. According to the 2020 UN Global E-waste Monitor, e-waste is the world’s largest waste stream globally, often contains materials that are conflict-ridden and toxic to human health and the environment, and very little is recycled. E-waste also contains valuable materials, such as cobalt, lithium, palladium, copper, and gold, whose value is lost when not recovered through recycling channels. The world generated 53.6 million metric tons of e-waste in 2019 an amount greater than the weight of the Great Wall of China - Earth’s heaviest artificial object. That is about 7.3 kilograms per person and equivalent in weight to 350 cruise ships. Asia produced the lion’s share – 24.9 million tonnes – followed by the Americas (13.1 million tonnes) and Europe (12 million tonnes), while Africa and Oceania generated 2.9 and 0.7 million tonnes respectively. From the generated e-waste in 2019, Only 17.4% of that was recycled. The fraction not recycled (82.6%) represents $47 billion in lost value from materials that could have been recovered, including cobalt, palladium, copper, and other conflict minerals. The world’s electronic waste has a material value of $62.5 billion, a number that exceeds the GDP of most countries, according to a 2019 report by the World Economic Forum. What this means is that one

can turn the e-waste challenge into a business advantage just as for every 1 million cell phones that are recycled, 35,274 lbs of copper, 772 lbs of silver, 75 lbs of gold, and 33 lbs of palladium can be recovered. Do you know that it takes 530 lbs of fossil fuel, 48 lbs of chemicals, and 1.5 tons of water to manufacture one computer and monitor? According to a World Health Organization assessment, effective and binding action is needed to protect millions of children, adolescents, and expecting mothers whose health is jeopardized by the informal processing of discarded electrical or electronic equipment (WHO). ’Children and Digital Dumpsites,’ research published in June 2021, claims that millions of tonnes of dangerous electronic waste are dumped each year, putting children’s health at risk. According to the report, over 18 million children and adolescents, some as young as five years old, work in the informal industrial sector, which includes garbage processing as a sub-sector. Because children’s hands are more dexterous than adults’, they are frequently involved in e-waste recycling. Others live, attend to school, and play in close proximity to e-waste recycling plants, where high levels of lead and mercury might harm their cognitive capacities. Workers also risk exposure to over 1,000 hazardous compounds, including lead, mercury, nickel, brominated flame retardants, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, while attempting to recover commodities such as copper and gold.

STUDY

Figure 1.2: Discarded e-waste isn’t just an environmental problem, it’s also an economic opportunity. UNU/UNITAR SCYCLE©/Yassyn Sidki (Source: The Conversation)

A BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF THE NIGERIAN CONTEXT The movie “The digital dump,” about e-waste importation and unrestricted dumping, drew a lot of attention in Nigeria. The film, produced by the Basel Action Network (BAN), provides personal accounts of the rapidly growing trade in old and obsolete electrical and electronic items from affluent countries to maritime towns such as Lagos State, Nigeria. The study of 176 containers of unused electrical and electronic equipment (UEEE) shipped into Lagos, Nigeria, between March and July 2010 revealed that approximately 75% of the cargoes arrived from Europe, 15% from Asia, 5% from African ports (mostly Morocco), and 5% from North America. The United Kingdom leads the way in new and UEEE exports to Africa, followed by Germany and France. E-waste made headlines in April 2010 after Nigeria’s National Environmental Standard Regulatory and Enforcement Agency (NESREA) received notification of an e-waste ship arriving in Lagos, Nigeria. The ship was intercepted and returned to its home port. Despite the fact that this attempt made front-page news, many other incidents of old

equipment making their way into Nigeria are never reported. An unexpected visit to Lagos’ renowned computer village is all it takes to grasp the magnitude of e-waste importation into the country. Increased transnational business in UEEE, as well as far-reaching socioeconomic benefits, have emerged from e-waste infiltration in Lagos, Nigeria. 80 percent of e-waste sent for recycling in affluent countries ends up being exported (sometimes illegally) to developing countries like China, India, Ghana, and Nigeria for recycling. For a variety of reasons, developed countries sending e-waste to developing countries has become widespread — “expensive labor costs and stringent environmental procedures for hazardous waste clearance inspire the exportation of e-waste to less developed and less regulated countries” like Nigeria. The reason for this is that “exporting is simple, labor rules are loose, and communities are destitute, with widespread hunger.” Current e-waste legislation have loopholes that allow for the transport of e-waste from developed to developing countries

under the pretense of “donation” and “recycling.” Furthermore, developed countries blatantly violate the worldwide Basel Convention as well as regional conventions such as the EU e-waste shipment legislation, the Bamako Convention, and others. The breach is due to a gap, as near-end-of-life (EoL) UEEE are not included in the current resolutions and agreements signed by Nigeria, making it difficult to regulate and control near-endof-life equipment and devices. As a result, “addressing e-waste management, particularly in underdeveloped nations” is critical. Nigeria, a developing economy with a limited capacity to manufacture information technology, is no exception when it comes to the e-waste crisis, since it has recently emerged as one of the world’s most up-to-date destinations and main dumping grounds from developed nations. Nigeria is the most prominent African importing country for new and UEEE closely followed by Ghana,” according to a 2011 United Nations Basel Report. As a result, Lagos, Nigeria, has emerged as the epicenter of Africa’s e-waste crisis, highlighting the importance of this piece.

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STUDY The environmental contamination and human health risks posed by improper e-waste recycling and treatment have become a major source of worry in Nigeria. This is mostly caused by the burning of wires and the release of hazardous byproducts as a result of the activities of informal e-waste recycling businesses. ‘’High amounts of copper, nickel, zinc, and lead in some of the soils were established significantly more than European Union standards,” according to a study conducted in Lagos. The term “informal sector” is used to describe those in the e-waste industry who are neither taxed or regulated by any governing/legislative and/ or regulatory framework. In the informal economy, state-of-theart modern industrial instruments are used infrequently, if at all. As a result, worker safety is frequently insufficient and jeopardized. Figures 1.3 and 1.4 depict a typical scenario in which teens engage in crude e-waste burning to extract valuables in order to make ends meet. Figure 1.1 shows how a “fifteen-year-old Santana Alhassan Suidu burns a bundle of cords to expose the valuable copper wires to sell and barely makes $3.35 for 225 pounds of wire burned.” He sends the majority of his earnings to his family for their upkeep.

Over the years, Europe, the United States, and a number of Asian countries have continued to improve their e-waste management systems. The ways to managing the collection, recycling, reuse, and funding of these systems have been explored in case studies. In Nigeria, on the other hand, paucity of effective regulatory framework at the local, state, and national levels; illegal imports, lack of infrastructure, and low knowledge in the public have increased such developing concern. Worse, Nigeria lacks a well-established infrastructure for waste separation, storage, collection, transportation, and removal, making the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) principle and the efficient implementation of rules relating to harmful waste management ineffective. Surprisingly, this article contradicts a recent statement by one of Africa’s leading e-waste experts, who claimed that Nigeria and other developing countries must prepare to pay a “hidden cost for improper e-waste disposal, which has resulted in disruption to endocrine systems; damage to both male and female reproduc tive systems, DNA damage in lymphocytes, and other

consequences.” The author believes that industrialized countries should be held accountable for exporting their e-waste to developing countries who take advantage of lax regulatory and enforcement frameworks in developing nations. First and foremost, how does society see environmentally sound management (ESM) of e-waste and the informal sector? The “informal sector” because majority of recycling is done informally by low marginalized social groups who rely on scavenging and rubbish picking for revenue and survival. Aside from that, it appears that the informal sector is more prominent than the formal sector. According to available evidence, the informal sector “collected and processed around 360,000 tonnes of e-waste from illegal e-waste imports and from private households in 2010, recovering roughly 52 percent of the materials contained in the collected waste,” according to Ogungbuyi and co-researchers. According to another study, about 80% of the 24 million people who labor in recycling operations work in the informal economy.

Figure 1.3: A 15-year-old teenager – “burning a bundle of cords to expose the precious copper wires to sell” (Source: Dopefreshbrah, 2013; Photo by: Michael Ciaglo)

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STUDY

Figure 1.4: Scavengers working on Europe’s dump. (Source: Swingler, 2015) & Nigeria fears e-waste ‘toxic legacy ‘By Liz Carney, BBC World Service’s Dirty Business

The motivation for this article is inspired, first by the author’s role as the head of department in charge of waste and materials management discipline for Shell Exploration and Production (Shell E&P) companies in Nigeria and Gabon way back in 2013, secondly, his long-standing concern in socio-economic impact assessment, health, safety and environmental issues, thirdly as a thought leader in the wider climate change discourse, particularly with regard to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Basel Convention – suggesting that many of the most attractive technological solutions to climate change, such as solar energy and electric car batteries, will likely add to the rapidly growing stream of electronic waste (“e-waste”), and finally as one of the first e-waste laurel (EWA laurel) of the first (1st) E-waste Academy organized by the

United Nations University, Institute for Sustainability and Peace (UNUISP) (See author in figure 1.5 below during a practical session organized by UN E-waste Academy in Accra Ghana). One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure (Seaber, 2014) A co n sid e ra b l e a m o unt of literature has been published on waste and e-waste. Therefore, in conceptualizing the subject of e-waste, it is imperative to come up with wide-ranging understanding into the much broader concept of waste. This is critical because the perception of “waste” is difficult to conceptualize. It is even more challenging to try to achieve a common definition of the term “waste”. The generic perception of the term “waste” is largely

synonymous to the material contents that are of no value and has been rendered worthless, to be discarded. As a result, the concept of waste is comparative in two key areas. Firstly, a product ends up as waste when it loses its prime purpose for the end-user; hence someone’s waste output is often someone else’s raw material input more like “One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure”. Secondly, the idea of waste is also comparative to the hi-tech phase of the “art and to the location of its generation – making waste a very dynamic concept. Drawing from the quote above, it will be seen later in this article, that in most cases it is not the design of an item that necessarily regulates if it is waste; the attitude of the holder may be the determining factor, which makes waste a socially constructed phenomenon on the grounds of who generates the waste, where it was generated and when.

Figure 1.5: Researcher in long white sleeve folded shirt at an informal e-waste recycling/dismantling facility/exercise. 2013)

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STUDY S U S TA I N A B L E MANAGEMENT

E-WA S T E

E-waste is expensive to treat in an environmentally sound manner, and globally, there is a general lack of legislation or enforcement surrounding it. Worthy of mention is the main characteristic of e-waste content on valuable materials that would be wasted if not properly retrieved. Drawing from that assertion, this article believes that the e-waste challenge also has an opportunity, i.e., if it is resourcefully mined for material reuse. The e-waste business seems promising as a ton of old circuit boards are said to contain more gold, silver, platinum than from a ton of and/or mined ore extraction, especially when recycled with the proper technology and not the improvised and unregulated informal approach. Functional UEEE is of great economic importance in Nigeria and other emerging nations. They are exchanged as used goods. The high demand for these e-waste streams in Nigeria arises from the fact that a greater portion of the populace can barely afford newer EEE. With caution, one could say the international trade in UEEE tend to make cheap EEE accessible to low salary Nigerians and in return, the high demand has led to a flourishing global trade, even in other neighboring African countries.

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In Nigeria, the e-waste toxic material is improperly disposed and consequently poses a risk to human health, contamination to soil biota, soil quality and soil water resources including surface and underground water. A typical example can be seen in figure 1.6 below

This article agrees with Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that indeed EPR is a unique waste management strategy intended to support in advancing recycling and minimize landfilling of goods and resources with the basic feature where manufacturers are accountable for taking care of the waste produced by their goods placed on the marketplace. The emergence of EPR has generated various environmental policy-making trends. These trends highlight preventive measures over curative approaches, enhance life cycle thinking and changes the narrative on the “commandand-control” approach to a nonprescriptive, and goal-oriented mechanism.

Figure 1.6: Burning of e-waste ‘cables at Agbogbloshie Metal Scrap Yard, Accra, Ghana” (Source: Öko-Institut 2010)

One of the many ways out of the e-waste quagmire is to implement the extended producer responsibility (EPR) strategies for appropriate e-waste management in emerging countries, to solve environmental pollution due to informal recycling practices. THE EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY (EPR)

On the flip side, though, one of the main drawbacks to adopting and using this principle is that whilst EPR is a better framework to addressing e-waste challenges, scholars have posited that the optimum e-waste management requires a blend of other management strategies like Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Material Flow Analysis (MFA), Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) alongside EPR as no silver bullet and/or no single tool is adequate but together they can complement each other to solve this issue.

STUDY This article therefore agrees with the recommendations offered by researchers to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs’) to practice EPR and assume the liabilities associated with the final fate of their goods irrespective of where the EoL activity occurred; as well as assist with value-added recovery of EoL electronics through remanufacturing and component reuse; establish a market for recovered components and parts, support with technology and funding for the proper “recycling of e-waste and the disposal of hazardous components” using appropriate disposal technology. R E L E V A N C E O F ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND M A N AG E M E N T ( E S M ) O F E-WASTE TO SUSTAINABILITY The philosophy behind sustainability is for one to consider long term impacts of our activities to sustain finite resources for future generation. Therefore, an important task in moving toward sustainability is to alter manufacture and consumer behaviors. Hence, the quantity of environmental policies and legislations has increased in recent times to concentrate on reducing products’ environmental impacts throughout their life cycle stages - raw material extraction, design, manufacturing, consumption and EoL management. The latter from the e-waste and research perspective has attracted more attention in the last few decades because of environmental concerns an d legislative cons traint s . Previously, producers were mostly focused on the quality and price of their products, and environmental problems were considered only in ‘end-of-pipe’ actions to meet

e nv i r o n m e n t a l r e g u la t i o n s . Nevertheless, overlooking the future consequences of end-product design during its life cycle made most EoL management programs inefficient. Thus, sustainable EEE product design, which lay emphasis on evaluating the future impacts of the goods at the design stage, is a vital component for the accomplishment of sustainability goals. A product’s designer has substantial freedom at the strategy stage, so EoL considerations can be factored in at the EoL stage. As earlier highlighted, another disturbing phenomenon in e-waste management is the prevalence and use of child labor. Studies have shown that the employment of children (mostly boys, sometimes as young as 5 and mostly between 11 and 18 years old) occurs in e-waste informal sector – the children are largely engaged “in burning activities and manual dismantling as well as young girls aged between 9 and 12 seen working as collectors”. Separate studies reported that e-waste workers are often children and that children are considered ideal e-waste workers because they have small, nimble-fingered hands that enable them effortlessly to rip to pieces disused EEE. The exploitation and risk of children within the e-waste recycling industry is appalling especially concerning the physiological attributes that contribute to a child’s vulnerability. From a behavioral perspective, this article agrees with studies that young children typically exhibit hand-tomouth behavior and crawl on the ground, which predictably leads to the direct ingestion of potentially harmful substances. Therefore, this article aligns and totally agrees with

the International Labor Organization mandate that such practice “...be prohibited and eliminated as a matter of urgency, as stipulated in the Worst Forms of Child Labor Convention, 1999 (No. 182)”. THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTIC OF E-WASTE BUSINESS IN NIGERIA Due largely to the paucity of formal waste collection, disposal and recycling facilities in Nigeria, the informal e-waste sector has leapt up providing employment to the poor masses in the urban area and providing crude waste management services. In terms of working conditions especially in Lagos, there is a clear difference between the ‘refurbishing sector’ that buys and repairs/refurbishes used EEE and the assemblage and recycling business: This is because “working in the refurbishing sector requires a certain level of technical skills, workers are normally paid between US$ 2.22 and 3.36 per day, which is mostly better than the average income of e-waste collectors and recyclers, who earn between” US$ 0.22 and 3.36 per day. Conceding the differences seem to be of minor importance, a view on social security systems and job perspectives alters this valuation. The flip side of the issue is that, while refurbishers typically receive a fixed salary, scavengers are usually selfemployed, and therefore experience large day-to-day income variations. Moreover, persons “working in the refurbishing sector often have the possibility to set-up their own small business, which often increases their daily income to around US$ 6.72 to US$22.2.

The ABC of e-waste. Creator: Andrew McConnell Credit: Andrew McConnell/ Panos Pictures. Copyright: Panos Pictures and Computer Recycling in Africa | Free Computer Recycling Creator: Andrew McConnell, Credit: Photograph: Andrew McConnell/Ala Copyright: Alamy

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STUDY

WRAPPING UP The resolve of this piece is to offer a clearer picture and insight to Nigerians on ESM of e-waste as well as the entrepreneurial cum socioeconomics, political and cultural viewpoints particularly for the informal sector. The informal sector because most of the recycling is done informally by the vulnerable poor and marginalized people who resort to scavenging and waste picking to generate income for survival. This article espoused that informal e-waste recycling approaches predominantly have negative consequences on the workforce (including children and women) and the surrounding community. *Informal e-waste recycling aids in cushioning poverty by offering employment, protecting livelihoods, and playing a fundamental role in socio-economic development *It also lends a voice for a renewed situational awareness campaign across a broad spectrum of multistakeholders because of the observed low-level awareness in the Country.

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*The article posits that to guarantee sustainability, present crude practices should be done in an environment-friendly approach by including occupational-health and safety procedures into informal practices. Author recommends as follows: Government to ensure a unified approach concerning all stakeholders – government agencies/policy makers, businesses, NGOs’/ environmental organizations, the academia, and other key players within the vanguard of ESM and EPR of e-waste to satisfactorily address the broad spectrum of issues raised. Government should not ignore the informal sector who have a competitive edge and well-known customer base otherwise, if sidelined they will continue to make the formal sector face a shortage in e-waste supply in Nigeria which will be at variance with the EPR and ESM philosophy. also recommended for government t o p a r t n e r w i t h O E M s ’/ manufacturers to build modest low-cost e-waste recycling facilities and use the opportunity to train the

informal sector with the intent to incorporate them into the formal sector. This piece also suggest that the informal sector should be assured that government aspiration is to as much as possible drastically decrease the damaging effects of crude e-waste management in the country, to uplift the labor standards and protection of the scavengers and complement in boosting the e-waste business. Overall, the provision of a clear enabling business environment is crucial to improvements in this field. And as seen from prevailing evidence espoused from experimental data, it is almost prospective that this will come to fruition via a steady progression provided the right thinking and e-waste management winning ways of working (EM3W) are embedded. Engr. Justice O. Derefaka is the Technical Adviser (TA) on Gas Business & Policy Implementation to the Honorable Minister of State, Petroleum Resources.

ACROSS AFRICA

Angola Has Room for More Investors in Oil Sector was implemented, a partnership among Sonangol, Chevron, BP, Eni and Total , aiming for the production of liquefied natural gas.

ngolan President, João Lourenço, has informed that in Angola, there is room for investors, mainly in free areas and in new exploration zones in sedimentary basins, where it is necessary to quantify the potential of hydrocarbon resources. Speaking in the videoconference on the first day of the plenary session of the IV International Forum “Russian Energy Week”, which took place in Moscow, Russian Federation in October, João Lourenço recalled that Angola has restructured its oil sector. In this regard, he said that the National Agency of Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels (ANPG) was created, as a concessionaire and regulator of the “upstream”, and the Regulatory Institute of Petroleum Byproducts (IRDP), with the function of regulator of the “mid-downstream”. President Lourenço said that Sonangol now focuses on activities in the oil sector value chain, that is, prospecting, research, evaluation, development and production of crude oil and natural gas, refining, transport, storage, distribution and marketing of oil derivatives products Angola currently produces around 1.3 billion barrels of oil per day and 2.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day. João Lourenço stated that the activity of exploration and production of hydrocarbons has been essentially limited to crude oil. He also referred that, given the need to economically explore the country’s natural gas potential, as well as the elimination of the respective flaring, the project to build the Angola LNG factory

The project, according to the Angolan President, aims at the efficient use of gaseous hydrocarbon deposits, as well as promoting the diversification of the Angolan economy. President Lourenço said that actions are underway to implement the New Gas Consortium, which aims to develop nonassociated gas with a view to allowing the continuous supply of gas to the Angola LNG plant and, consequently, the supply of gas to Combined- Cycle Power Plant in Soyo and the fertilizer industry, within the scope of the diversification of the Angolan economy. The President considered that the development of the gas sector is an opportunity for Russian companies, taking into account the experience they have in this field, to contribute to the creation of steel mills, fertilizer factories, power generation and others. “To complement and reinforce this strategy, the Government also approved the Regime of Permanent Offer of (oil exploration) blocks, an instrument aimed at the promotion and permanent negotiation of non-awarded blocks, free areas of concession blocks and concessions awarded to the national concessionaire, opening up here too, an opportunity for Russian companies,” he clarified. He underlined that with the aim of guaranteeing self-sufficiency in refined products, the Government is promoting the implementation of construction projects for three refineries, namely in Cabinda, Soyo and Lobito. With the construction of these refineries, he said, “Angola will have a refining capacity of around 425,000 barrels of crude oil per day”.

for Russian companies, in the construction of the Lobito refinery, since the international public tender for partnership is still taking place, which ends in October of this year”, he said. After noting that the oil industry is likely to generate greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming, he advocated that the Angolan Government advises that all parties involved in the oil exploration and production activity adopt mitigation and compensation measures, such as improving the energy efficiency, the creation of forests or reforestation. João Lourenço highlighted the progress of the phenomenon of climate change and the growing concern for the environment, the energy transition to a low-carbon economy, which is currently a theme that configures the agenda of several countries. He stressed that Angola, like other countries, should develop a national strategy, aimed at the sustainable exploitation of its fossil energy resources, and gradually change the national energy matrix in the medium to long term. “With all these projects, the country will be able to create opportunities for the development of new renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, biomass and others”, he noted. The Head of State emphasized the contribution that the Russian Federation has made in the technical training of Angolan staff for the oil sector, an area of cooperation whose continuity is essential for the economic and social development of Angola. To him, Angola is committed to strengthening cooperation with the Russian Federation different areas and open to all companies that want to participate with their investments in the diversification and development of the Angolan economy. The IV International Forum “Russian Energy Week”, which is ending on Friday (15), addresses relevant topics on the production of oil and gas in Russia and in countries producing hydrocarbons and fossil energy sources.

“Here is an investment opportunity

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ACROSS AFRICA

Coral-Sul FLNG Ready to Sail Away to Mozambique’s Rovuma basin, in Area 4 First Development

ni has held the naming and sail away ceremony of the Coral-Sul FLNG, the first floating LNG facility ever to be deployed in the deep waters of the African continent. The event took place at Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Geoje, South Korea, in the presence of Filipe Jacinto Nyusi, President of the Republic of Mozambique, and Moon Jae-in, President of the Republic of Korea. Eni is the Delegated Operator of FLNG on behalf of its Area 4 Partners (ExxonMobil, CNPC, GALP, KOGAS and ENH). The FLNG, which is part of the Coral South Project, will be now towed and moored at its operating site in the Rovuma basin offshore Mozambique. Production startup is expected in the second half of 2022, and it will contribute to increase gas availability in a tight market. Coral South Project achieved Final Investment Decision in 2017, only 36 months after the last appraisal well. FLNG fabrication and construction activities started in 2018 and were completed on cost and on time, despite the pandemic. While performing the 42

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construction activities in Korea, several significant activities were undertaken in Mozambique, with full support from the Mozambican Authorities, including the ultradeep water (2000m wd) drilling and completion campaign that involved the highest technological and operational skills and equipment.

include among others, zero flaring during normal operations, use of thermal efficient aero-derivative gas turbines for refrigerant compressors and power generation, use of Dry Low NOx technology to reduce NOx emission and waste heat recovery systems for gas processing.

The Coral South Project will generate significant Government take for the Country while creating more than 800 new jobs during the operation period.

The Coral Sul FLNG is 432 meters long and 66 meters wide, weighs around 220,000 tons and has the capacity to accommodate up to 350 people in its eight-story Living Quarter module. Once the FLNG facility will be in place, the installation campaign will begin, including mooring and hook-up operations at a water-depth of around 2,000 meters by means of 20 mooring lines that totally weight 9,000 tons.

Ste f a n o M aio n e , D ire c to r Development, Operations & Energy Efficiency at Eni, said: “The Coral Sul FLNG is a world-class feat of engineering, construction know-how and technology, suited to kick-off the development of Mozambique’s world-class resources. The project fits integrally with and within the Eni’s energy transition strategy, as we move towards a decarbonised energy future, in which gas is playing an essential and transitional role”. Coral-Sul FLNG has implemented an energy optimization approach, integrated in the design via a systematic analysis of energy efficiency improvements. These

FLNG treatment and liquefaction installation has a gas liquefaction capacity of 3.4 million tons per year (MTPA) and will put in production 450 billion cubic meters of gas from the giant Coral reservoir, located in the offshore Rovuma Basin

MARITIME

NPA Remits N89.9bn to FG as Revenue Rises to 20%

espite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global trade and the supply chain, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) between January and September 2021 increased by about 20%, even as it remitted the sum of N89.9 billion into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) account of the Federal Government. The Acting Managing Director of NPA, Mohammed Bello Koko, in a presentation to the House of Representatives Committee on Ports and Habours recently, said the authority has also significantly reduced its operating expenses. Koko said as at the end of September 2021, NPA earned N256.28 billion in IGR as against the projected revenue of N214.65 billion for the same period, representing an increase of 19.4%. The revenue is the highest nine months revenue in the history of NPA. For operating expenses, as at the end of September 2021, actual spending stood at N55.1 billion as against the budgeted figure of N65.49 billion, comprising employees’ benefits, pension costs, towage services, supplies, repairs/maintenance and other administrative overheads. This indicates a savings of N10.39 billion or 16% of the budgeted sum. Koko also said that as at the end of October 2021, NPA had remitted an

operating surplus of N62.66 billion into the Consolidated Revenue Fund account in line with the provisions of the Finance Act 2020, “while a cumulative sum of N89.9bn has been transferred to the CRF in the last six months”. He said at the current state of increased revenue drive, NPA will exceed its 2021 revenue projections and the projected transfer to the CRF for the year. The NPA helmsman informed the House Committee that contrary to reports insinuating that Nigerian ports are the most expensive in the sub-region, a study commissioned by the Authority with the support of UKAid in 2019 indicated that it is cheaper for general and container vessels to berth in Nigeria than in Ghana or Togo. He said aside the towage dues, which were reviewed in 2015; port tariffs in Nigeria have remained the same since 1993. Koko said following his assumption of office in May this year, the NPA management has taken deliberate steps to reposition the agency to focus on cost-optimization and quality service delivery, while maximizing business value for port operators and users. He said to support the economic diversification agenda of the Federal

Government through the promotion of non-oil exports, the authority has partnered with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) for the establishment of third party dedicated export terminals or export parks to be located in Lagos and Ogun states. The initiative is aimed at the processing, packaging and certification of exports under a single platform that houses all relevant agencies responsible for quality control and regulatory validation of exports before shipment. The objective is to enhance and fast-track Nigerian export cargo for shipment at the export parks without any further port clearance protocol. A pilot project has been established at the Lillypond truck terminal in Ijora, Lagos, while 10 other exports terminals are in the process of being certified to begin operations by the first quarter of 2022. NPA is also in the process of consolidating its various electronic platforms under a unified port community system. The various digital platforms being used by NPA at present include Oracle Financials and Human Resources Planning, Enterprise Resource Planning, Revenue & Invoicing Management System (RIMS), e-Ship Entry Notice (e-SEN), Customs portal for online submission of bills, hyperion budgeting, 3CI, Eto (for port truck access control), and a harbours control system linked with 3CI for harmonization of vessel operations.

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MARITIME

Marine Accident: Inter Agency Collaboration key to Solution -NIMASA DG Daniel Terungwa In his address at the event, NIMASA DG Dr Bashir Jamoh noted that the majority of accidents in the maritime sector were caused as a result of human errors and that understanding the basic factors concerning the human element was an essential step toward mitigating such accidents. “As the Maritime Safety Administration for Nigeria and in line with its mandate to ensure safety of navigation and the protection of the Nigerian marine environment and its resources, NIMASA has continued to initiate and promote safety culture to reduce or possibly prevent accidents in our water ways. You would all agree with me that prevention is better and cheaper than cure”, the DG said.

irector General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Bashir Jamoh, says inter-agency collaboration is key to sustainable resolution of the problem of accidents in the Nigerian inland waterways, which has led to avoidable loss of lives and property. Jamoh made the assertion recently, at an awareness forum in Lagos organised by the NIMASA in collaboration with the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), and Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA). The NIMASA Director General, who was represented by the Head of Marine Accident Investigation Unit, Captain Abayomi Coker, stated that the Agency was committed to the search for a lasting solution to the loss of lives and property in the country’s maritime domain. “NIMASA established the Marine Accident investigation Unit to conduct investigations to establish

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the circumstances, and causes of accidents in the Nigerian maritime domain. We then identify the inadequacies in maintenance of vessels and their equipment, the competence of all shipboard staff and their operational practices and procedures. We seek measures which can be implemented to avoid reoccurrence of such accidents in future and inter Agency collaboration has been identified to play a major role”. He said. Officials of the MWUN, NIWA, NPA and LASWA joined their colleagues from NIMASA to engage non convention boat operators on boat maintenance, boarding and disembarking procedures, marine accident reporting procedures, f iref ighting an d p revention procedures and protection of the marine environment amongst other issues. In a related development graduating students from the Federal College of Fisheries and Marine Research were drilled on safety measures onboard seagoing vessels by NIMASA.

The DG further stated that the lecture series was initiated for seafarers/cadets in approved maritime institutions, with the objective of educating them on lessons learnt from accidents that occurred within the Nigerian maritime domain and accidents that affected vessels of Nigerian interest outside the country. According to Jamoh, “Various issues caused accidents within our marine environment, and as an Agency, we have taken note and have a history of them. We are not only being reactive, but are poised to continue to take proactive measures in addressing them. Therefore, it is our intention to build on our efforts to ensure sustainability in this regard because NIMASA believes that this will enhance and promote safety culture in our work environment and guard against re-occurrence” The International Maritime Organization IMO’s casualty Investigation Code of 2008 which seeks to promote a common approach to safety investigation of marine casualties and incidents has placed an obligation on all member states to carry out an impartial investigation with the sole purpose of learning safety lessons from marine accidents without apportioning blames or liabilities.

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Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

11 Years of Nigerian Content in Practice By Ikenna Omeje, Jerome Onoja

ccording to a 2010 report by Accenture, “The golden era of easy oil is over.” The report noted that “Today the rules of the game have changed: developing local economies, stimulating industrial development, increasing local capability, building a skilled workforce and creating a competitive supplier base—also referred to as local content —are minimum requirements for doing business with host countries and national oil companies.” This report underscores the importance of building local capacities in an oil economy. In the past 11 years following the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Ac t, numerous opportunities have been created

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for Nigerians in the oil and gas space, resulting in increase of human capacity development, retention of capital in-country and job creation, especially for the teeming youth population in the country; all thanks to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). Before the enactment of the Act in 2010, the Nigerian oil industry was dominated by foreign companies and their local agents in areas ranging from exploration and production, trading as well as service operations. According to reports in 2008, despite the fact that the oil and gas industry accounted for 90 percent of Nigeria’s revenue, it’s contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was less than 38

percent. This was because of the absence of local capacity in the industry, which made it difficult for the country to retain a significant percentage of about $18 billion, as of then, yearly average industry spend. Expatriates largely dominated most of the local strategic positions. As a result, most of the contracts that would have been beneficial to the country in terms of job creation were carried out in foreign fabrication yards, which had negative effects on the growth of the domestic economy. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) 2011 Annual Report of Sectoral Contribution to Growth Rates of GDP at 1990 Constant Basic Prices, shows that crude oil contributed -0.1, -0.9, 0.1, 0.8 and -0.1 to the GDP in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 respectively.

COVER STORY of US$380 billion and over two million jobs lost in 50 years of our hydrocarbon history. Our vigorous implementation of the Act has reversed the trend: from less than five percent in-country value retention in 2010 to 28 percent, marked by a seismic shift from negligible local content activity in earlier deepwater projects to over 60 percent domestication and domiciliation of work and services in Egina.” In a space of 11 years, NCDMB has redefined the role of a regulatory agency in shaping the economy of a nation positively, with remarkable achievements. The unwavering efforts of NCDMB to ensure regimented compliance to the Act by companies through rigorous implementation of the Act, has in no small measure led to economic revolution in the Nigeria’s oil and gas industry; as retention of annual industry spend has risen from less than 5 percent at the inception of the Board to over 30 percent.

The at tempt s by various administrations in the past to introduce local content policies had challenges owing to the absence of an appropriate legal framework to drive such policies. It was in a bid to address these challenges that the 2010 NOGICD Act was signed into law on April 22nd 2010, with the aim to increase indigenous participation in the oil and gas industry through the prescription of minimum thresholds for the use of local services and materials. The Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote captures it this way: “Before the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, all fabrication, engineering, and procurement were done abroad, resulting in estimated capital flight

To achieve 70 percent local content in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, the Board in 2017 developed a 10-year roadmap to grow the Nigerian Content, which will elapse in 2027. The 10 - year road map is based on five pillars and four enablers. The pillars are: Technical Capability Development; Compliance and Enforcement; Enabling Business Environment; Organization Capability; and Sectoral and Regional Market Linkage. The four enablers includes: Funding; Regulatory; Environment and Collaboration; Stakeholder Engagement and; Research and Statistics.

“

it’s contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was less than 38 percent.

The Board has also commenced the construction of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks (NOGaPS) in Odukpani, Cross Rivers State; and Emeyal-1, Bayelsa State. The aim is to create industrial hubs for oil and gas and linking industries. As part of the creative strategy to build the capacity of indigenous companies, the Board launched Project 100 to provide institutional and financial support to 100 Indigenous oil and gas service companies. The project targets indigenous companies offering seismic, marine, engineering and drilling services and provides financial and non-financial as well as technical support and access to market for the beneficiary companies. Some of the beneficiary companies include Anzor Nigeria Ltd, B2 Oil and Gas Project Ltd, Energeria Ltd, Gemstone Energy Services Ltd, Jite Projekts Ltd and Mafuta Energy Services Ltd. The Board has also taken measures to improve its level of operations efficiency with the development and deployment of the Service Level Agreements between the Board and the Nigeria LNG, Oil Producers Trade Section and Indigenous Petroleum Producers Group, which has reduced the tendering cycle time to six months and fast tracks the development of new projects.

“

Enr. Simbi Wabote

Our vigorous implementation of the Act has reversed the trend: from less than five percent in-country value retention in 2010 to 28 percent, marked by a seismic shift from negligible local content activity in earlier deepwater projects to over 60 percent domestication and domiciliation of work and services in Egina.” Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

COVER STORY NCDMB catalyzed the successful integration of one of the largest Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) in-country at the SHI-MCI yard in the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) Free Trade Zone and facilitated incountry integration of six modules on the Egina FPSO, the first time in the entire Gulf of Guinea. This is in addition to the introduction of key industry events into the oil and gas industry calendar such as the biennial Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF), the annual Practical Nigeria Content (PNC); which provides a platform for indigenous companies to showcase their capabilities and the Nigerian Research and Development Fair (R&D Fair) to showcase the oil industr y ’s oppor tunities for investment and galvanize research capabilities, respectively. PNC is recognized as the leading platform to engage government and industry players from across the value chain to maximize business opportunities and increase Nigerian Content implementation. Convene with senior government representatives and the entire oil and gas value chain to discuss the keys to unlocking the industry’s potential through Nigerian Content. Intervention Fund In 2017, the Board in partnership with Bank of Industry (BOI), launched $200m Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF) to provide low cost and accessible credit to service companies. According to Wabote in a recent interview, almost 85 percent of the fund has been accessed by Nigerian companies. The fund has about five products: equipment financing, contract financing, manufacturing, loan refinancing and community contractor refinancing. The loan interest rate, which is fixed at 8 percent with five years span for repayment and one year moratorium, has enabled most Nigerian companies to refinance their loans. The Governing Council of the Board at its meeting in June last year approved the expansion of the NCIF from $200 million to $350 million.

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The Council chaired by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, approved that $100 million from the additional funds would be deployed to boost the five existing loan products of the NCI Fund. Similarly, the Council also approved that $20 million and $30 million respectively should be deployed to two newly developed loan product types – the Intervention Fund for Women in Oil & Gas and PETAN/OGTAN Products, which include Working Capital loans and Capacity Building loans for member companies of these associations. As part of the Board’s response to ameliorate the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Governing Council approved reduction of the interest rate from 8 to 6 percent per annum for all four of the loan products in April 2020. The Board also extended the moratorium for all loan products.

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The Board has also commenced the construction of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks (NOGaPS) in Odukpani, Cross Rivers State; and Emeyal-1, Bayelsa State.

So far, the Board has committed a total of US$332million under its commercial ventures partnership programme, and targeting to attract more project developments in-country valued at US$3.7bn, according to Wabote while speaking at the biennial Nigerian Oil & Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF) 2021. Some of the partnerships undertaken by the Board include the 5,000 barrels per day Waltersmith Modular Refinery at Ibigwe, Imo State; Azikel Refinery in Bayelsa State; and NEDO Gas Processing Company in Kwale, Delta State for the establishment of 80 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd) gas processing plant and a 300MMscfd Kwale Gas Gathering hub. Other investments include the development of 5,000 metric tons LPG Storage and loading terminal facility by Triansel Gas Limited in Koko, Delta State and construction of Energy Park, inclusive of a modular refinery, power plant and 40MMscfd gas processing facility at Egbokor, Edo State by Duport Midstream. Also, the Board, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and ZED Energy Limited recently signed shareholders agreement on the construction of Brass Petroleum Products Terminal Limited (BPPT), to be located at Okpoama, Brass Local Government Area, Bayelsa State. The NCDMB and NNPC own 30 percent respectively while ZED Energy – a private firm holds 40 percent. ZED would operate the terminal, which is estimated to cost N10.5 billion upon completion. Some of the benefits of the terminal when it becomes operational, is that it

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Chief Timipre Sylva

Venture Partnership Programme

the Board launched Project 100 to provide institutional and financial support to 100 Indigenous oil and gas service companies.

COVER STORY would make refined petroleum products available at riverine communities of the Niger Delta at the standard prices, discourage the operations of illegal refineries and create job opportunities for citizens of the Niger Delta and other Nigerians.

policies and laws at the inception of exploration and production of oil in their countries, that of Nigeria began as a policy of the NNPC, which was not backed by law and had no national scope until 2010. The most obtainable at the time happened based on best endeavour.

Underscoring the economic benefits of co-locating the BPPT with the Energy Infrastructure Park being developed at Okpoama and the Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical Company Ltd (BFPCL), at Odioma, Brass, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Wabote said: “If you go to developed economies, there are parks for manufacturing and industrialization. When you have the Brass Fertilizer, the BPPT and the refinery that is being built in the same area, you get the benefits of being within a Free Trade Zone. It will bring down the costs of developing those products simultaneously because the raw materials are just behind them. There is no reason to take the investments to distant locations where costs would increase.”

For instance, exploration for offshore oil and gas in Norway began in the mid-1960s and from the 1970s onwards ministers started implementing policies to protect the interests of communities and the economy. To start with, just like the current practice in Nigeria, the Norwegian government aimed to award contracts to Norwegian bidders when they proved to be competitive in terms of price, quality, delivery time and service, as part of its strategic plans to domiciliate local content. The rationale behind this was to promote the establishment

of local industry and this was achieved through cooperation with international oil companies. When foreign operators started entering the Norwegian industry in the late 1970s, they were strongly encouraged to form research and development (R&D) partnerships and joint development programmes with Norwegian companies and institutions, thus engaging in local content growth. Overseas firms’ commitment to strategies for technology transfers were made a crucial and determining factor in the licensing process by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, once again putting local content programmes at the heart of investments.

Another milestone that the Board has made is the completion of the 17-storey headquarters for the board, comprising 1,000-seater auditorium, and multi-level car par, situated in Yenogoa, the capital of Bayelsa State. These, among other strategic capacity development initiatives, the Board is engaging in, in the hydrocarbon value-chain, in line with its vision to serve as a catalyst for the industrialisation of the Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. Comparing Local Content Policies in Developed and Emerging Economies with that of Nigeria’s The successes that Nigeria has recorded in the implementation of local content in the oil and gas industry may not have gotten to the level at which Norway, Malaysia and Brazil operate, but it is obvious that the country is on the right track in its efforts to domicile and domesticate local content in the industry. NCDMB should be commended for what it has done in 11 years. Unlike Norway, Malaysia and Brazil, which began with a robust local content national

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COVER STORY Governmental policy meant that Norwegian oil and gas supply companies developed leading class, state-of-the-art technologies and, as a result, many international companies have located part of their R&D chain in the country. Fast for ward to 2021 , the competencies and technological exper tise developed as a consequence of Norway’s local content policy has strengthened its position within the international oil industry. Local supply and service providers to oil activities have proved truly competitive by global standards. This Norwegian practice is also obtainable in Malaysia and Brazil.

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Research & Development To achieve its R&D mandate, NCDMB developed the R&D framework anchored on seven (7) policy thrust, including focus on market-driven research, establishment of world class Research and Development (R&D) Centers of Excellence, establishment of Research and Development Council and provision of sustainable funding to support Research and Development. Other areas of focus include development of stakeholder collaboration matrix for Research and Development (R&D), provision of enablers for commercialization of research breakthrough and facilitation of acceptance and utilization of products of research by end users. The NCDMB in 2017 organised

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its maiden edition of R&D Fair and Conference to engender stakeholders’ participation. The Board in its commitment to change the narrative in R&D activities in the Nigeria’s oil and gas industry with the implementation of the R&D Framework, in 2020 launched a $50 million R&D intervention fund to enhance the role of R&D in developing local content and for other stakeholders to contribute to the fund as most countries who have invested in R&D are optimal in their GDP. In November 2020, the Board partnered with Enactus Nigeria for the implementation of its local content development program – the Nigerian Content Science and Technology Innovation Challenge (STIC).

The Nigerian Content STIC is an enterprise development program designed to challenge students of all accredited Nigerian tertiary institutions to stretch their ingenuity and apply science & technology, to create home-grown, innovative, and technologically driven business solutions that address some of our pressing everyday problems, accelerate reverse-innovation and create wealth, while also providing job opportunities for the growing numbers of the unemployed people in Nigeria. The STIC is also structured to provide opportunity for the successful applicants to experience top-ofthe-range personal and professional development through a mentorship program integrated into the project implementation.

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taken measures to improve its level of operations efficiency with the development and deployment of the Service Level Agreements between the Board and the Nigeria LNG, Oil Producers Trade Section and Indigenous Petroleum Producers Group, which has reduced the tendering cycle time to six months The successful applicants are made to apply themselves to the rigors of market research, critical thinking, ideation, product development & marketing, implementation, performance control, and proof of concept as they attempt to create their unique business solutions consistent with the winning ideas for the STIC. Also, through the Nigerian Oil and Gas Technology (NOGTECH), the Board earlier in July 2020, opened hackathon applications for startups with innovative solutions that could practically tackle challenges facing the Oil & Gas Industry. At the end of the applications, about 630 startups pitched their various solutions, but out of this number, only 15 finalists were selected from the pool. After a 3-day hackathon where their solutions were examined, five key solutions were selected as winners. The winners were Gricd Mote, Fuel Intellisense, Home Fort, AirsynQ and Kiakia Gas 360. E a c h o f t h e f i ve w in n in g teams was given a cheque of US$10,000 equity-free grant and proceeded to participate in a 3-month incubation programme during which they got workspace, expert mentors, global partners and market access to the nation’s oil and gas industry, ensuring they become commercial and investor-ready.

successes through the NCDMB in its implementation of local content policy, other African countries are struggling to catch up with Nigeria. A significant example is Angola. According to Babafemi Oyewole in his “Overview of Local Content Regulatory Frameworks in Selected ECCAS Countries”, a research paper, which was commissioned by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), stated that ,”In the early years of the oil and gas industry in Angola, citizens did not derive many benefits from the exploitation of the resources due in part to limited employment opportunities, capacity limitations and very low national industry participation. This was basically a result of the country’s structural problems including high poverty rates, inequality in income distribution, highly unskilled labour force, lack of infrastructure, high bureaucracy and corruption. These challenges were the driving force behind the implementation of a local content policy to achieve positive development outcomes using the oil and gas resources. The Angolanisation policy framework was developed on the back of the Petroleum Decree – Law 20/80 promulgated in 2002. It stipulates that oil companies operating in the country are required to develop their Angolan workforce from 70 percent to 90 percent as well as develop the local supplier market by 2010.”

Babafemi Oyewole

Nigeria as a Local Content Model in Africa While Nigeria has recorded

He noted that the country has made important progress in the

implementation of the local content policy and regulatory framework, but added that the policy would have had more impact on the economy if it was accompanied by a dedicated and functional institutional mechanism for monitoring, evaluation and measuring outcomes as well as a more favourable business environment. This could be the reason the country’s oil firm, Sonagol, was unbundled not too long ago.

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successful integration of one of the largest Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) in-country at the SHI-MCI yard in the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) Free Trade Zone and facilitated in-country integration of six modules on the Egina FPSO, the first time in the entire Gulf of Guinea.

In the last 11 years, NCDMB has built a reputation embellished with innovation and excellence, which has earned it not just respect, but has made it a model for other oil producing countries in Africa. In June 2016, a delegation from Uganda visited the NCDMB in a quest to model the development of their local content policies after the Nigeria’s NOGICD Act, which has achieved immense benefits for the Nigerian economy and attracted commendations from local and international stakeholders. The East African country was about investing $20bn in the development of 15 oil fields, construction of a refinery, and an export pipe lineprojects which were expected to be completed within five years. The country at the time, was determined to retain a substantial part of the $20bn spend within the country and hence their mission to share Nigeria’s experience in local content which would help their country succeed in that regard.

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COVER STORY

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the Board in partnership with Bank of Industry (BOI), launched $200m Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF) to provide low cost and accessible credit to service companies.

At the 2020 Sub Saharan Africa International Exhibition and Conference (SAIPEC), organized by the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) in Lagos, Benin Republic, Ghana, Liberia, Mozambique and Uganda, did not hide their admiration for the successes NCDMB has recorded in local content in Nigeria, and sought the Board’s expertise to help them develop theirs. At the same conference, the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO) applauded the NCDMB for its effective promotion of local content within the Africa continent. The organization described Nigeria’s Local Content policy as a model worthy of emulation by other African nations and eulogized NCDMB for propelling the development of infrastructure and human capacities, which is aiding the operations of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

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the Council also approved that $20 million and $30 million respectively should be deployed to two newly developed loan product types – the Intervention Fund for Women in Oil & Gas and PETAN/OGTAN Products,

skills and capacities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. NCDMB has not only increased indigenous capacities in the country’s oil industry, but has positioned Nigeria at a higher advantage in the African oil industry. Today, Nigerian companies are playing key roles in exploration and production of oil in various countries across the continent.

Conference (PCN) held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, the Chairman, Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), Engr. BankAnthony Okoroafor gave some compelling statistics to point out how impactful the implementation of the Act has been on the services sector of the industry. “Before the Nigerian Content Act, we had 27 service companies operating in Nigeria. At Last count, there were 287 service companies operating in Nigeria,” he said. He noted that the implementation of the Act has led to a remarkable growth in the number of goods sourced in-country and has contributed to an increase in the training of Nigerians on the back of major oil and gas projects.

Conclusion Going forward, the Board must not rest in its oars, but remain focused on its core objective, which is domiciliation and domestication of

NCDMB’s effectiveness and efficiency in carrying out its responsibilities, has made it become an excellence to behold. The Board

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If you go to developed economies, there are parks for manufacturing and industrialization. When you have the Brass Fertilizer, the BPPT and the refinery that is being built in the same area, you get the benefits of being within Giving his perspective on NOGICD a Free Trade Zone. Act at the 2018 Practical Nigerian With the signing of African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA) – which took effect in January this year, and encourages African countries to trade and cooperate among themselves, Nigeria is in to dominate in the oil and gas space on the continent.

“When Usan deep water project was done, in-country training was 150,000 man-hours. With Egina, it was 450,000 man-hours. In Engineering, Usan recorded 40,000 man-hours but Egina had 1.167 million man-hours and we saw collaborations between Nigerian companies – NETCO, IESL and Delta Afrik,” he said.

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has demystified the stereotype that government agencies cannot be ran effectively in Nigeria. The exemplary role that NCDMB has played in the development of the oil industry in the last 11 years is legendary and should be emulated by other agencies in the country.

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ENERGY WOMAN

“I’m a Firm Believer In Creating Opportunities For The Girl-Child” - Ochogbu

for shallow water and deep-water fields and has worked on various Exploration, Development & Production assets in the Chad, Niger Delta and Angola basins.

She started her now 36+ active career years as a Special Projects Geologist at NNPC (E&P Division), was Exploration Geologist at DES and Deputy Manager Geology at NAPIMS before she joined Mobil Producing Nigeria. She has rich expertise across integrated opportunity generation

Patricia is a graduate of Geology from the Obafemi Awolowo University, certified by the Council of Nigerian Mining Engineers and Geoscientists (COMEG), a member of the Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society (NMGS) as well as the American Association of Petroleum Explorationists (AAPG). She is passionate about mentoring students/young geoscientists for successful careers.

rs. Patricia Ochogbu, FNAPE a distinguished fellow of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) and the immediate past President (2nd female) of the association. She currently works as the PSC Interface Manager at ExxonMobil.

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In this interview with Majorwaves Energy Report Editor, Margaret Nongo-Okojokwu, the second female president of the Nigerian Association Petroleum Exploeationists (NAPE) takes us through her journey into the Oil and Gas industry, her career progress as she navigates the ship of one the strongest associations in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. She also speaks on the trending discourse on energy transition and the place of gas in Nigeria’s economy. Excerpts

ENERGY WOMAN Can you take us through your journey into STEM? How was it like from high school to the university? So in primary school and even high school, I just found that my niche was actually like the sciences, the social sciences like geography. At my secondary school (Idia college) my Geography teacher taught with so much passion that I fell in love with geography. I mistakenly thought that geography and geology were twins but they’re not (I know that now). They have a relationship in the geomorphology area and I had no prior encounters with geoscientists. The love of geo, which is the love of the earth and that made me choose geology on my JAMB form, even though my family didn’t want me to do that; they wanted me to read Pharmacy, but I eventually convinced them that I wanted to study geology. And you managed to convince them? Oh, Yes. My mom was a reasonable woman. You just needed to have your arguments and supporting facts to convince her. Somebody in my church gave me a letter to a Professor in Ife (University of Ife) to help me in changing my course to Pharmacy, because at the time, they hadn’t heard of any successful geologist, either male or female. However, when I met Professor Eyo Okon in Ife, and spoke with him, he listened to me, saw and understood my passion that I was really interested in geology, and so he gave me a letter to my Mom and this helped to convince her to let me follow my passion and study Geology. It wasn’t easy studying geology at that time, but because that was what I wanted to do, I stuck to my goals through thick and thin and today, here we are! That must have been an amazing journey. As you progressed in your careerr, what would you describe as your most challenging period and how did you navigate that? That would be when I was drilling wells in one of the Exxon blocks. I drilled and ran into a technical dry hole, meaning that there’s supposed to be oil there but it was not sand

bearing. We couldn’t find the oil and that was very unsettling. I had to reevaluate my data and found that there were some micro faults in that area that I did not initially recognize. So, I proposed a sidetrack and I’m happy to say that the sidetrack found my initial prediction. This taught me a valuable lesson, to always consider all possible outcomes before recommending a drilling location. What is your regular activity like, maybe like a past time? I love reading books as it offers an escape from reality. I also love to travel. I have never been to Hong Kong but from reading books, I have a picture in my mind what Hong Kong looks like, including the roads. It’s now on my bucket list of where to go whenever I am able. How do you create work-life balance? How does that work for you? I have to say that my husband is also my professional colleague, so he knows the pressure of work on me; and with that said, We have help in our family, a great support system, and and so create schedules that fit everybody’s purpose per time; and that has helped me a lot.

child. So many times these there are sponsorship opportunities, maybe NAPE training for example. I usually skew my giving more to the girl child. I do give to the boys too, but more to the girls because in this profession, they have to overcome a lot of challenges to succeed. We have an organization called WIGE (Women In Geosciences and Engineering), which also organises programmes to encourage the girl-child. In the past, I’ve spoken to school children through organisations like Soroptimist and co, who talk about STEM and try to show females other possible career paths they can venture into rather than sticking to a streamlined career path that our parents encouraged in the past, like Lawyers, Doctors, engineers, etc. Using my life as an example, my mom stopped schooling in Primary four; but had seen people go to college to become Lawyers, Doctors, etc and this sort of helped them buy into my vision of being a geologist. This is why I, through my role, help these young girls to see the vision of being a geologist beyond the known factors. I believe that by encouraging them to participate in some of these training programmes, we are creating awareness that there are other career paths that they can explore.

Lets talk about the COVID-19 global pandemic, How has this changed your life and your activities? The global pandemic changed my orientation a lot because it helped me define what is important and to value my relationships. You find out that quite a lot of people didn’t make it, other people went through a lot of stress, so at the end of the day you think like if this person was alive, what would I have done, what would I have told this person? It helped me to value my relationships more. So looking at mentorship and giving back, how have you been able to achieve this for the girl-child, especially, looking at where you’re coming from? So personally, I’m a firm believer in creating opportunities for the girl

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ENERGY WOMAN Interesting! So If you weren’t a geologist , what else would you have ventured into seeing your passion for geology?

perhaps in Balogun Market (laughs).

I would have been a spy. (laughs). Because I read a lot, and as a teenager, I was into detective stories like the famous James Hardly Chase, James Bond, Nick Carter, etc. I read their books to look at clues not to shoot people; but to get a convincing story

I don’t know about that o (laughs)!

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I met Professor Eyo Okon in Ife, and spoke with him, he listened to me, saw and understood my passion that I was really interested in geology, and so he gave me a letter to my Mom and this helped to convince and now even as a geologist, I make judgement calls and sell them to my bosses. If I am persuasive enough, my bosses will get around them. So yes, I would have been a spy and if this career path was not open, then I would have been a market woman

I believe you’d have been a successful one too ma’am.

So coming to your professional life, starting with NAPE; what was the major thrust of your NAPE leadership? How would you rate yourself that you’ve fared? My key goal was to empower NAPE members, especially the YPs (Young Professionals) through training and retraining, so we came up with different programs, webinars, financial empowerment training, technical training, to make sure that people are exposed to the various opportunities that one could get in our industry. Also I believe that giving NAPE members a platform, particularly with all the discussions around the PIB/PIA, lending our voices in the discourse, as a professional body, we were able to do that also through webinars and focus groups. So I’ll like to think of what I accomplished in this this light. As for Rating myself that will be difficult for me. Other people should

rate and judge my performance because the Bible says that they judging themselves by themselves are are not wise. So I would leave that to members to decide.

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That would be when I was drilling wells in one of the Exxon blocks. I drilled and ran into a technical dry hole, So how do you see the place of technology in improving drilling activities in Nigeria’s marginal field operations? Yes, there’s a place for technology, though not in marginal fields only but the general operations. Artificial intelligence and Machine learning are here and there are lots of new technologies springing up. When you look at machines, you still need people to validate results from the various softwares. Otherwise, the saying “garbage in, garbage out” will hold true. So I see the place of technology and I see the place for people, they must work together. Do you think Nigeria is ready for such kind of technology? Yes, we have always been ready, it doesn’t have to be homegrown. That’s why many organizations provide training and many employers also train their staff . So where there is a will, there is a way even if we do not have it, I believe we can access it. Lets talk about the trending energy transition move that’s ongoing globally, even in Nigeria, how would you advise developing nations to go forward with no approvals of new projects funding as regards energy transition? Everyone who is a player in the oil and gas sector, as well as business people will have to evaluate the costs of bringing their products to the market and the appetite of the market to take it. There will still be some products that will come on definitely due to demand.

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ENERGY WOMAN As you have seen in Europe recently and even in parts of America, there has been scarcity of heating oils and gas. In Europe, there have been issues about gas, even in the UK, with the uncertainty around Russia’s supply. Meanwhile, we all know that oil and gas is a depleting asset, so if you are producing, you have to bring more online if not it will definitely finish. I believe that new projects will come on if they are viable and if no new projects are coming on, then there has to be work to extend the lifespan of the existing projects. The International Energy Agency says that based on net-zero targets in Europe, European and American nations will not be funding projects if it’s not on zero fossil. In that situation where funding is not coming from outside based on the net-zero target, how can we survive and what would you advise our indigenous contractors or operators to do? My advice will be that organizations, even Nigeria as a nation should start looking inwards to other ways of fundraising, and then we should consciously give priority to things that are important to us. There has to be a way that the government will source for funds , perhaps, the much talked about energy bank could be one way to go about it. When we talk about this net zero, we are not saying keep on polluting the environment, there are many things we can do, even right now, that would protect the environment, so companies operating in Nigeria should have this in their plans. I think what net zero is saying is don’t just go on spreading carbon dioxide and other pollutants, have a plan. So there’s a new field of study now called carbon capture and sequestration. It would take investments and it would take efforts also but I think it is doable. Looking at the discussions at COP 26 pointing towards this same sustainability trend and the deliberations that could arise from it, what would you make out of that? I think for the environment, it is a

good initiative because we live on this planet and it has to be comfortable for us if not we will all go extinct just like the dinosaurs, but then there should be a balance between the G20s, developed and developing nations. There should be a balance of the needs of the people, because If you look at countries like China,

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my husband is also my professional colleague, so he knows the pressure of work on me; and with that said, We have help in our family, Russia who contribute a lot to the pollution of this planet, relative to a country like Nigeria or other countries in Africa, there’s nothing to compare, we are not so much on the offenders’list, thus they cannot apply same rules; we need this energy for our own development too. These nations are already advanced, they have already caused a lot of havoc and now we have to pay the same price? I think that is unfair, and I know the Nigerian government has made statements in that direction. I think that there should be some proportionality to the bill that every nation get to pay for this global clean up. Lets talk about NAPE and its position on gas development and potentials in Nigeria? NAPE thinks there’s a massive opportunity in the gas world. Most of the gas we have found to date in Nigeria was found on the way to prospecting for oil. Now we have to consciously explore for gas! Early in my career, if you drill a well and found only gas, it would be seen more or less as a dry hole because you could not sell it at that time. But now, if we go looking for gas, I think the opportunities are massive, but then we need to have the infrastructure to be able to take it to the market. And I believe that Nigeria’s population being more than 200 million people gives an edge, we have the markets, and if we are willing to invest, then I think the sky is the limit. Nigeria is

a huge market. And is NAPE well positioned to tap into the government’s Decade of Gas Initiative? Of course, NAPE members are explorationists, we like to look for oil and gas. Though there are so many discussions that have not yet matured, but I am sure that in a very short time, all the pronouncements by the government through the minister, who also declared this decade as the ‘Decade of Gas’, will come to fruition. I believe that there will be initiatives and incentives to go with this, for example in the PIA, there’s more clarity now on the deepwater gas aspect. I believe that we’ll see some motion in this direction. What’s your assessment of Nigerian content development and where would you point to for improvements like grey areas, for instance? I believe that the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) is doing a fantastic job. If I were to advise the Executive Secretary it would be that they do frequent assessments; assess the system, see what worked and what did not work, get feedback from all stakeholders - the indigenous operators, local contractors, as well as the International Oil Companies (IOCs) , you know, have more interactions and engagements, and this exercise will actually make the Board see the areas that still needs to be addressed. I see this as a great opportunity for Nigerians. How would you rate women participation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry then and now? We have come a very long way. When I went to IFE in 1979, in my set we were about 30 in the class and there were 3 girls, 3 girls to 27 boys. However in the workplace, the ratio has improved, we do not have the 9:1 anymore, so in that case I would say we have done well. Recently, I was in Awka for the NAPE mini-conference and the proportion was about 50:50,

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ENERGY WOMAN so I think we have come a long way. But of course, the sky is the limit, there’s room for improvement and you know that the guys are not going to sit and wait for us to overtake them, they will also strive to balance that 50-50, 45: 55, 49:61, that kind of ratio is a good place to be, but where I see more room for women to grow is in the corporate suite. I think SNEPCo has already blazed the trail by naming Elohor Aiboni as the first female chief executive. There are still more opportunities for other organizations to follow suit. There are more opportunities for women to be directors as well, I know that in my company we’ve always had female directors, they just haven’t been geoscientists; that in itself is an opportunity. We’ve had a female ministers of petroleum and there’s still room to have more.

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We have an organization called WIGE (Women In Geosciences and Engineering), which also organises programmes to encourage the girl-child. That’s a good analysis. So what’s the Nigeria of your dream? Nigeria is a great nation with great potentials. Yes we do need to play catchup on some things and there’s a lot of room for improvement. I am a proud Nigerian and a strong believer in this great nation. I believe that with all of us working together as one, we will get to that same destination of

the land that everyone feels valued and everyone knows that they have something to contribute and they are doing so. Any last words? Do you have something else you want to add? My last words will be that I am optimistic that the oil and gas industry in Nigeria has a bright future ahead of it with the correct enablement from the government. The PIA is a good start, the energy bank will be another great step and we just look have to look inwards and realise that we are also a huge market, a market of over 200 million people is not a small market, what if we start buying and consuming what we produce, I believe that we will go a long way as a nation.

gas development:

our

success story is

Nigeria's success story...

Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), has an aggressive gas development strategy that builds a profitable gas business through a portfolio of domestic, regional and export supply projects that fulﬁll the NNPC/CNL Joint Venture Domestic Gas Supply Obligation and support the Nigerian Government’s Gas Master Plan. We have been the highest supplier of high quality domestic gas in Nigeria since 2015 and will continue to explore opportunities to maintain this position. We have since 2008 also reduced continuous gas ﬂaring in our operations in Nigeria by over 90%. We led the development of the West African Gas Pipeline project through which Nigeria supplies gas to Benin Republic, Togo, and Ghana. All these prove that in the area of natural gas development, Chevron's success story is Nigeria's success story.

Majorwaves Energy Report NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11

Majorwaves Energy Report

NOVEMBER 2021, Vol 4 No 11