Standards, second to none.
An Integrity Intercontinental Group Company.
"Setting the pace in the Nigerian and Global Crude Oil, Gas and
Petrochemicals industry for over 15 years by educating, teaching, revealing deep truths,
connecting and providing turnkey solutions for Crude Oil, Gas and the
Petrochemicals industry's users globally.
Delivering Genuine Global Crude Oil, Gas
& Petrochemicals Solutions & Transactions To Our World.
NIGERIAN CRUDE OIL AND GAS.
2010 oil licensing round will be transparent –Alison-Madueke
The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, on
Monday in Houston, Texas, United States, assured international oil players
that the forthcoming 2010 oil block licensing round would be transparently
conducted.
Alison-Madueke, who was speaking to journalists and oil players at the
Offshore Technology Conference, said the licensing round, which was expected
to rake in about $880m into the government treasury, according to the 2010
budget, would be held as soon as possible.
“As you know, I came into office two weeks ago; I am already going over all
those aspects of the industry and the sector, but we will move very
aggressively because we have very little time in this dispensation. But we
will make sure that it is done right and transparently within the tenet of
due process,” she said.
The minister said that the Petroleum Industry Bill, which would soon be
passed into law, was the most comprehensive piece of petroleum legislation
in Africa.
She said, “Inherent within the Petroleum Industry Bill as well as the Gas
Master Plan, when they are actually promulgated into law, I intend that this
will be done within the next three months; it will blow up the phase of gas
exploration and production in Nigeria in a way that has never been seen
before.
”Nigeria will become a gas exploration and production company, and as you
all know, Nigeria has more gas reserves than it has crude.
“So, by this time, we should begin to focus on what we call the midstream
sector and ensure that we open up gas exploration and production in the
country, not just at the production end but also at the retail end.”
Alison-Madueke also acknowledged that the long contracting process in the
oil and gas industry had always been a major obstacle in the implementation
of projects in the sector.
According to her, the issue of reducing the contracting cycle in the
industry is one of the mandates given to the newly-inaugurated Nigerian
Content Monitoring Board and Council.
Also, the newly-enacted Nigerian Content Act, she added, was very holistic
and covered a broad spectrum of all that was needed to ensure that Nigerian
companies and indigenous service providers were given both the capabilities
and the legislative backing to operate.
“So, enshrined as well in this, is a complete re-look at those processes and
procedures and during this transitional period, we will look at that side
too, in conjunction with the other things we need to do within this
transitional period to ensure that the Nigerian Content Monitoring Board and
Council are actually up and running within the shortest possible time,” she
said.
Alison-Madueke noted that there was a lot to be done but assured that the
government would take every issue in that Act very seriously.
She expressed satisfaction at the level of participation of Nigerian
companies at the technology conference.
“I actually did not expect to see this level of developmental
infrastructure, regarding oil and gas, particularly with Nigerian companies.
This is particularly pleasing when you consider that we have just signed
into law the Nigerian Content Act,” she added.
Oil Companies Compete to Win Nigerian Oil Licenses
Despite challengers, Western companies are eager to stay in Nigeria. (image:
greenpeace.org.uk)
Somehow, Nigeria’s oil industry has somehow become even more complicated.
The race to control the world’s oil resources has heated up as China has
ambitiously entered the contest to win leases in Nigeria, putting Western
firms on notice. And, at the same time, the Nigerian government has
discussed imposing new taxes and fees on companies seeking to renew their
leases, according to an article in Sunday’s Wall Street Journal.
According to the Journal, China’s state-owned Cnooc oil company was
approached by a Nigerian “middleman” who inquired if the company was
interested in taking leases held by Western companies such as Chevron,
Shell, and Exxon once they expire. Cnooc has allegedly declined this offer,
fearing reprisals from the more established companies it may need to partner
with in the future. China does have a presence in Nigeria, as it co-owns an
offshore oil field with France’s Total SA.
China, due to its fast-growing economy, has a pressing need to obtain oil
reserves. Through its state- owned firms, China has been purchasing oil
assets from companies and other governments, as detailed here on
HeatingOil.com earlier in November.
This, along with proposed legislation that would increase the amount of
royalties the government would receive from oil production totals, has
pressured the major Western oil companies to sign renewal contracts before
the Nigerian oil business changes. Exxon has already done so, inking 20-year
extensions for three of its licenses. Shell and Chevron also hope to renew
and are currently in discussions with the Nigerian government to do so.
In addition to the political jockeying, oil firms in Nigeria have also had
to deal with security threats. Militants from the Niger Delta, home to the
country’s oil reserves, have waged battle against the government amid claims
that not enough money has gone back to the region. Militants associated with
MEND, the Movement for Emancipation of the Niger Delta, have kidnapped oil
company employees and have attacked oil pipelines and other key parts of the
industry’s infrastructure. As a result, Nigeria—long Africa’s oil leader—now
ranks behind Angola as Africa’s second leading producer.
In an attempt to mediate the situation, and very possibly to get in the good
graces of both the government and MEND as it negotiates its renewal deal,
Shell has launched a training and rehabilitation program for the area’s
militants who have laid down their arms in the tenuous ceasefire.
What happens in Nigeria can have a direct impact on the lives of heating oil
consumers. Threats to the country’s oil infrastructure often equates to
questions about the world’s oil supply. And most times there are worries
about the supply of oil, the market responds by hiking up prices.
