-By Teddy Nwanunobi
Conceived as a platform for exhibition of opportunities across the value chain of the Nigerian oil and gas industry-specific to the industry stakeholders and investors, the biennial Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF) has found a rhythm that blends well with the industry. As an indigenous oil and gas fair, it offers a wide range of opportunities for indigenous companies operating in the Nigerian oil and gas sector. The unique thing about the Fair is that it boasts of bringing together major players across the three popular streams of the Nigerian oil and gas industry, including government agencies, industry regulators and the lawmakers to showcase opportunities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry and present available in-country capacity.
The Fair is held every two years, which serves as a means of reviewing and updating the Nigerian Content five-year outlook of opportunities in the oil and gas industry.
With the maiden edition held in 2017 at the Le Meridien Hotel, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, the organisers chose ‘Advancing Indigenous Participation in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry for National Development’ as its theme. The second edition, with the theme ‘Maximising Investments in the Nigerian Oil and Gas for the Benefit of the Nigerian People’, was held in April, 2019 at the new 17 storeys corporate headquarters of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Bayelsa.
“The 2019 NOGOF was the first event held two years ago in our 1,000-seater Conference Centre in Yenagoa to test-run the newly installed facilities. It was an eye opener on the standard of organisation that could be brought to local events in Yenagoa,” the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote, said in his welcome remarks during the opening ceremony of this year’s edition, the third in series.
Considering the havoc the Coronavirus Pandemic has wreaked across the world, and the changes that have become the new normal, it was normal that the third edition, which was held on May 25 and 26, 2021 would be a virtual event. Proudly hosted and organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), and Jake Riley Ltd respectively.
This year’s theme is ‘Leveraging Opportunities & Synergies for Post Pandemic Recovery of the Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry’.
Wabote, in his welcome remarks, explained why NOGOF had to go on as planned but virtual.
“In line with the protocols in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have elected to go fully virtual, rather than postpone the event,” he said.
NOGOF is really an important event for investors and industry stakeholders to explore the project opportunities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. It provides the opportunities coming up in Nigeria for the next several years. He reassured the participants that more than ever before, the Federal Government has created an enabling environment for doing business more efficiently in Nigeria.
2019 review
Wabote provided the status of the opportunities his agency promised to work on during the last edition of NOGOF in 2019.
“At the last event in 2019, the Board made some commitments to the industry as part of its contribution to creation and/or realisation of industry opportunities. In line with our practice within NCDMB to provide status updates of commitments and actions from previous conferences, permit me to share the update of our actions from the 2019 NOGOF.
“In 2019, we promised to complete our 17-storey headquarters building. I am happy to report that we delivered on this promise with the commissioning and naming of the edifice as the Nigerian Content Tower by President Muhammadu (Buhari). We successfully relocated all our staff into the building in Q3 (Quarter Three) of 2020.
“In addition, power supply to the edifice is guaranteed from the fully commissioned and operational gas-fired 10 megawatts (MW) power plant at Elebele, thereby, cutting cost from the use of diesel by more than 70 per cent. As promised, we published the second edition of the NOGOF Compendium of Opportunities containing five-year outlook of projects in the upstream, mid-stream, and downstream sectors of the industry. A total of 33 companies were featured with over 81 major projects listed.
“We also promised to deliver on our investment policy on modular refineries. We have proven the concept with the commissioning of the 5,000bpd (barrels per day) Waltersmith Modular Refinery at Ibigwe, Imo State. Three other modular refineries are under construction under our commercial ventures programmes.
“In the last two years, we have commenced partnerships to deliver gas value-chain related projects as follows: partnership with NEDO Gas Processing Company in Kwale, Delta State for the establishment of 80MMscfd of Gas Processing Plant and a 300MMscfd Kwale Gas Gathering hub; partnership with Triansel Gas Limited in Koko, Delta State for the 5,000MT LPG Storage and Loading Terminal Facility; partnership with Duport Midstream for the construction of Energy Park inclusive of a modular refinery, power plant and 40MMscfd gas processing facility at Egbokor, Edo State; partnership with Brass Fertiliser for the development of a 10,000MT/day Methanol Plant and 500MMscfd gas processing plant at Odiama in Brass; partnership with Rungas Group for the manufacturing of 1.2million composite LPG cylinders every year in Bayelsa and Lagos states; and partnership with Butane Energy to deepen LPG utilisation in the North with the roll-out of LPG bottling plants and depots in ten Northern states of Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Bauchi, Nassarawa, Zamfara, Niger, Plateau, Gombe, Jigawa states and FCT Abuja.
“We have also implemented other actions contained in the 2019 NOGOF communique such as ascertaining the capacity of fabrication yards in Nigeria, gap closure of special skills such as Certification of Level-3 Non-Destructive Testing Practitioners and setting up of Diploma Program for Marine Quantity Surveyors at the Niger Delta University. These were done to replenish aging practitioners and scarcity of skills set,” he stated.
He highlighted the various aspects of the existing and emerging opportunities as the Board sees them.
“As we emerge from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, I wish to highlight the following opportunity areas to target within the next two to five years: policy driven opportunities, funds driven opportunities, infrastructure driven opportunities, people driven opportunities, and linkage driven opportunities.
“The roll-out of new policies and enactment of new laws typically open new vista of opportunities for discerning investors. The declaration of years 2021 to 2030 as the ‘Decade of Gas’ by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources provide a decade-long of opportunities for the monetisation of our huge gas reserves.
“The impending passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), the amendment of the NOGICD Act, the ratification of the AfCFTA agreement, and the recently approved and gazetted Ministerial Regulations are some of the policy and regulatory-driven opportunities we see in the coming years. The roll out of Executive Orders by the Federal Government to drive key aspects of the present administration’s goals have been very useful in raising the awareness about local content opportunities as well as demonstrating executive backing of the practice. Three out of the ten Executive Orders issued to date by President Muhammadu Buhari are specifically focused on local content and investment.
“Funding is one of the critical elements required to realise oil and gas opportunities. We have widened the options for accessing our intervention funds by increasing the size of our intervention funds from $200 million to $350 million, increasing the number of products from five to seven, and also increasing the number of managing banks from one to two.
“The USD50 million Nigerian Content Research and Development Fund has been approved by the NCDMB Governing Council to drive basic research, commercialisation of research breakthroughs, establishment of centres of excellence, and to sponsor university endowments. To date, we have committed a total of USD332 million to attract project developments valued at $3.7 billion under our commercial ventures partnership programme. The Federal Government is also implementing the N2.3 trillion Economic Sustainability Plan managed by the Office of the Vice President for public works, housing programme, solar home systems, agriculture, healthcare, and social investment.
“There is no gainsaying that the desired level of opportunities cannot be harnessed by Nigerian companies without the domiciliation of critical infrastructure such as roads, power, trunklines, railways, etc. The Nigerian Oil and Gas Park Scheme (NOGaPS) at Odukpani in Cross River state and the one at Emeyal-1 in Bayelsa state are at advanced stages of completion. There are opportunities in areas of manufacturing, logistics, security, facilities management, training, catering services, occupational health services, and many others.
“Just yesterday (Monday, May 24), I passed through the newly opened Bayelsa International Airport. The spanking new facility is beaming with opportunities and waiting for discerning investors to take steps to realize the first-mover advantage. The railways and the train stations, the Second Niger Bridge, the AKK Pipeline, and other infrastructure projects provide unique opportunities for investments and businesses to thrive.
“People, they say, are the most important resource of all the factors of production. There is a huge opportunity in Human capital development and manpower resourcing, which are two major areas of opportunities for local companies. We have a large number of youths that need to be trained. Some of the much needed skill sets are disappearing and must be replaced using local capabilities.
“We are excited that the Hon Minister of State has domiciled the Project 100 Project Management Office within the Board. It is an initiative we truly believe in as a way to develop human capacities for the industry. The linkage driven opportunities are the ancillary or support opportunities that are created alongside or come after the forerunner opportunities.
“The commencement of the operational phase of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is the next big evolution of the local content practice at the continental level. Although the COVID-19 pandemic dampened the momentum of the roll-out, the agreement represents a huge opportunity for African countries and businesses. I dare say this is the mother of all opportunities as goods and services could be exchanged across sectors and across borders without hindrance. With the world’s largest free trade area and a 1.2 billion-person market, AfCFTA opens up a new horizon for businesses for many decades to come,” he stated.
Wabote also shared the focus areas the Board plans to deliver within the next two years.
“These include: completion and commissioning of two additional modular refineries in Edo and Bayelsa states. This implies delivery of one modular refinery per year within a three-year period. We shall complete and commission composite LPG cylinder manufacturing plants with a combined capacity of 1.2 million cylinders per annum. We shall commission three other projects dedicated to gas processing, LPG bottling, and production of base oil.
“We shall commission and commence operations from our industrial parks at Odukpani and Emeyal-1. We shall commercialise, at least, one R&D project, and last, but not least, we shall close skills gaps in under-water welding and any other core skill required in the industry,” Wabote added.
In his keyote address, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, tasked oil and gas stakeholders to ensure the recovery and growth in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Sylva noted that COVID-19 prevented Nigeria from building on the gains of the 2019 edition.
“The COVID-19 pandemic militated against building upon the gains of the 2019 edition, disrupting lives, businesses and jobs in every sector, especially our oil and gas sector.
“Therefore, the theme this year represents an attempt to bounce back to reckoning, while highlighting the opportunity created by the new normal.
“Consequently, permit me to use this medium to urge all the players present here, and all the key stakeholders across the oil and gas value chain to use this fair as a platform to evaluate the opportunities, discuss strategies, as well as form synergies that will ensure recovery and growth in Nigeria oil and gas industry as we continue to emerge from the vagaries of a simply navigate forward opportunities,” Sylva said.
Earlier, in his opening address, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, wooed potential investors to take advantage of the opportunities that abound in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
“I believe synergies could be created between the NNPC and potential investors, towards assured value creation and a guaranteed fair share of Return on Investment (RoI).
“In the upstream, opportunities abound in the area of exploration of frontier basins, the development of upstream gas fields and the financing of greenfield/brownfield additional production on de-risked assets. In gas and power infrastructure development, there are opportunities in expanding our gas pipeline networks, development of gas-based industries, as well as the Integrated Power Plants (IPPs).
“In line with our aspiration towards becoming net exporter of petroleum products, opportunities abound in the rehabilitation of our existing refineries, as well as the construction of greenfield condensate refineries. As we strive to deepen domestic gas utilisation, it has created more opportunities in the downstream sector especially in LPG and CNG plants across the country. There are also opportunities in the pipeline and storage tank construction; as well as developing shipping capacity.
“In the Ventures & Business Development, we are ready to partner investors in the development of multi-specialist hospitals to strengthen healthcare service availability and support telecommunication infrastructure availability. Finally, let me, once again, re-assure you that, at NNPC, we are ready to collaborate with investors towards turning opportunities into real value, for the benefit of all, and especially towards taking our industry to even greater heights,” Kyari said.
NOGOF 2021 targeted over 1,500 registered participants to the event which promised to have over 1,000 opportunities to be presented by international oil companies, independents, and other major players. Attendees were drawn from government agencies, industry regulators, as well as oil producing communities. The manufacturing sector, foreign investors and the financial institutions were not left out either.
Delegates’ registration came with a fee of N25,000 which entitled the participant to connect with attendees online through the click of a button, to have a personal profile and to showcase one’s expertise, to network and promote projects and opportunities to potential investors, to virtually visit exhibition booths, and to instantly learn of current opportunities – all on the virtual platform.
In continuation with the Board’s practice to maintain an updated database of opportunities covering the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, the 2021 version of the Compendium of Opportunities was promised. Essentially, the compendium aimed at helping local, indigenous, and potential investors prepare, improve their capacities and capabilities to participate in available and upcoming contracts/projects. It is a case-bound compilation published by the NCDMB to be distributed in e-copies to all stakeholders after the event.