The Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, Mr. Bayo Ojulari, has described the outlook for the deepwater space of the nation’s oil industry as promising.
Ojulari stated this at the fourth edition of the annual Global Nigeria Forum held in Aberdeen, Scotland with the theme, ‘Enabling competitive local content through sustainable partnerships’, according to a statement.
The forum, a brainchild of SNEPCo, the deepwater arm of Shell companies in Nigeria, aims to strengthen local content in offshore exploration by opening the opportunity space to Nigerian professionals in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom.
Ojulari, who was represented by SNEPCo’s Acting General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Mr. Austin Uzoka, said, “Nigeria’s deepwater outlook indicates a high volume of activity in the building of the FPSOs and drilling of new high performance wells with cutting edge sixth and seventh generation drilling rigs delivering unprecedented schedule optimisation.
“SNEPCo obviously has blazed the trail here and will continue its strive to be the best-in-class deepwater energy company generating top-end employment and boosting local capabilities. As a Nigerian engineer, nothing makes me happier than seeing indigenous vendors and service providers break new grounds and play up to the international stage in engineering and other seemingly complex jobs.”
He acknowledged the support of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, National Petroleum Investment Management Services, and its co-venture partners in the strides made by SNEPCo.
Ojulari called for continued support and collaboration to further unleash the country’s huge deepwater potential to build a better Nigeria with stronger economy for now and the future.
In his keynote address, the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Mr. Simbi Wabote, described the annual event as a huge success, saying, “I am happy to see growth in a partnership that has continued to build capacity without compromising standards.”
The Chairman, Local Content Committee of the House of Representatives, Mr. Emmanuel Ekong, who led some other members of the national assembly to the 2017 forum, proposed the takeover of the organisation of the forum by the NCDMB.
According to Ekong, saddling the local content agency with the ownership of the GNF will ensure ‘inclusion of other international oil companies for greater impact and access to support from the Nigerian parliament’.
“This forum is unique and germane particularly at this time of the low oil price regime, and it aligns with the recent NNPC policy to increase participation of the private sector while attracting the right people with the right technology into the Nigerian oil and gas industry,” said the Exploration Manager, NNPC, Mr. Marcel Amu, who represented the corporation.
