By Adaobi Rhema Oguejiofor
The Federal Government has said that, as part of measures to tackle the withdrawals by international oil companies out of Nigeria, it is removing all exploration and production restrictions in the oil sector.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, disclosed this while hosting the leadership of the Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG) and the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) at his office in Abuja.
According to a statement issued by the Minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communication, Nneamaka Okafor, both groups paid the minister an official visit in-line with his engagements with agencies, commissions and stakeholders in the sector.
Lokpobiri, in the statement, assured his guests of the Federal Government’s commitment towards removing all bottlenecks hindering the ease of exploration and production in the Nigerian energy sector.
Both IPPG and OPTS teams were made up of their senior management officials, as well as those from oil companies. The teams were led by the President and Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited, Abdulrazaq Isa, and the Executive Director (ED) of OPTS, Gwueke Ajaifia.