President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan has advocated for a reduction in
\nthe cost of crude oil production by International Oil Companies (IOC\u2019s)
\noperating in Nigeria.<\/p>\n
Lawan made the call on Thursday in Abuja, while receiving a delegation
\nof Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) in Abuja.<\/p>\n
He said that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) at the National Assembly
\nwould make provisions for reduction in the cost of crude oil production.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe cost of production in Nigeria is a major concern in the oil
\nindustry, my colleagues in the committees that are oil and gas related
\nknow better.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut from the little I understand, while Saudi Arabia may spend 5
\ndollars to produce a barrel, we are spending about 30 dollars to produce
\nsame in some cases.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe time has come for us to ensure that the cost of production is
\nbeaten down to a more meaningful and profitable production cost.
\n\u201cWe must do everything possible together to ensure that the host
\ncommunities benefit from wherever they are supposed to benefit from.
\n\u201d Not only the host community development fund, but in the Niger Delta
\nDevelopment Commission (NDDC) and other areas of government
\nintervention,the Amnesty Programme and Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do the host communities benefit, because we need to stabilise those
\nareas so that we have cheaper production costs,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Lawan, while emphasising the importance of the PIB towards advancing
\nNigeria\u2019s economy, assured that the Senate would accommodate the
\ninterest of international investors in the bill.<\/p>\n
He, however, decried low inflow of business investors in Nigeria,
\nattributing it to absence of a legal framework which the PIB sought to
\naddress.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the last 20 years, investments coming into Nigeria and this industry
\nhave been so dismal and so small compared to the size of what we have
\nelsewhere, maybe due to lack of a legal framework \u2013 the PIB.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, we are very conscious of ensuring a balance and equilibrium between
\nour interest as a people and a country, that we should have all the
\nbenefits accruing from your operations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to help you by creating that kind of environment where you\u2019re
\nable to argue and get the investments flow into Nigeria, instead of
\nelsewhere. Let me also add, that at the end of the day, this is going to
\nbe a balanced legislation.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us as a country, we will not do anything that would jeopardise the
\nchances of our oil industry competing favourably with other climes.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, I want to assure you that we would look into those issues of
\nconcern to you, and we would do exactly what we think will be in the
\nbest interest of Nigeria and also in the interest of the OPTS,\u201d Lawan
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Earlier, leader of the delegation, Mr Mike Sangster of Total Nigeria,
\nsaid the visit was to engage the National Assembly on areas to modify in
\nthe PIB to ensure its success when signed into law.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn behalf of all of the industry and my colleagues, I want to say that
\nwe duly support the government\u2019s effort to drive through the Petroleum
\nIndustry Bill.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe think it is really important that there\u2019s an updated framework for
\nthe industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn our view, we are looking for something that will contribute to
\nNigeria, which will bring investment to the country and growth to the
\neconomy, and obviously jobs to the Nigerian people.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are looking for something that will protect our existing
\ninvestments, and also unlock opportunities so we can further grow our
\nbusinesses and production.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to find ways jointly to try and reduce what we see as the cost
\npremium of operating in Nigeria, so we are looking at ways where the PIB
\ncan help there,\u201d he said(NAN)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan has advocated for a reduction in the cost of crude oil production by International Oil Companies (IOC\u2019s) operating in Nigeria. Lawan made the call…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78009,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other-news"],"yoast_head":"\n