The Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, and major Key players in the oil and gas industry have called for the inclusion of Gas terms in the production sharing contracts entered into by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation with some oil producing companies operating in Nigeria.
They made the call separately in their opening remarks at a one-day Public Hearing organised by the House Joint Committee on Gas Resources, Petroleum Resources (Upstream), and Petroleum Resources (Downstream) on the Inclusion of Gas Terms in Production Sharing Contracts.
The Speaker had in November 2020 after House resolution in a motion mandated the joint committee to engage with major Key players in the oil and Gas Sector to undertake a holistic review of Gas terms in the production sharing contracts by Oil sector-major players.
The speaker stressed the importance of the Hearing, pointing out that Nigeria has not made effective utilization of its enormous gas resources to drive National development.
He called on his Colleagues to articulate the way forward to enable the nation to tap from Gas deposits, he also called on policymakers to ensure a review of the template for Gas pricing.
Similarly, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva also stressed on the benefits of a new price regime for Gas resources in the Country.
Sylva said the Ministry has set up a technical committee to review the Gas Pricing template and added that it should be made available and affordable.
Also in his opening speech, Chairman of the House joint Committee, Nicholas Mutu noted the need for a robust Gas policy in the drive to reform the oil sector.
Mutu added that the public hearing is going to provide opportunity to attract investors into the Oil and Gas sector of the Nation’s Economy.
Other key players, especially the Department of Petroleum Resources and the Oil Producers Trade Section lauded the initiative as a key reform initiative to help drive the reform in the oil industry.
DPR particularly noted that there are 26 Oil Prospecting Leases, OPL awarded and signed by oil companies in production sharing contracts.
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All the keynote speakers at the public hearing agreed that a review of Gas Pricing Templates is crucial in the NNPC and International Oil Companies’ production sharing contracts before the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB pending before the National Assembly.
(Editor: Abaje Usekwe)
