NNPC GMD, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu |
The
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and Group Managing Director
of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Ibe Kachikwu,
has said that the NNPC is to be unbundled into 30 profit-making
companies with separate Managing Directors in the weeks ahead as part of
the ongoing transformation of the national oil company.
Dr. Kachikwu made this disclosure at the 25th Oloibiri
Lecture Series and Energy Forum in Abuja with the theme: “Technological
Advances in Hydrocarbon Exploration and Exploitation: Solutions to
Global Oil Price Stability”.
The
Minister stated that the NNPC has been moved from a loss position of
N160 billion to some N3 billion by January 2016, adding that by year end
the Corporation should start making some profit.
“For
the first time, we are unbundling the subset of the NNPC to 30
independent companies with their own Managing Directors. Titles like
Group Executive Directors are going to disappear and in their place you
are going to have Chief Executive Officers and they are going to take
responsibilities for their titles. At the end of the day, the CEO of an
upstream company must deliver an upstream result,” Dr. Kachikwu stated.
He
also informed that as part of measures to stabilize crude oil prices,
some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) are scheduled to meet with Russia on 20th March, 2016, in Moscow to fine tune collaborative strategies.
The
Minister noted that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is
focusing on developing the nation’s gas resources in order to boost
revenue as part of the diversification policy of the Federal Government.
Dr.
Kachikwu said the petroleum sector, under his watch, would rapidly
review the contracting cycle of projects from two years to six months in
the upstream, stressing that efforts are in top gear to review the
existing Production Sharing Contracts which is long overdue.
The
Minister applauded the National Assembly on their efforts on the
Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) which he said would go a long way to
promote efficiency in the governance structure of the industry.
He
noted that for the Nigerian oil and gas industry to make remarkable
progress, there is need for all the stakeholders in the upstream,
midstream and downstream sectors to be on the same page on cost control,
contracting circle, technology and environmental issues.
He called on stakeholders to adopt integrated approach towards resolving some of the challenges of the industry in Nigeria.
In
his welcome remarks, the Chairman of the Society of Petroleum Engineers
(SPE), Engr. George Kalu, said the Oloibiri Lecture Series and Energy
Forum of this year coincides with 60 years of oil exploration and
production in Nigeria, adding that the low price of crude oil affords
Nigeria the opportunity to reduce cost through industry collaboration.
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