Olu Verheijen, the special adviser on energy to President Bola Tinubu, has stated that the recent oil and gas reforms by President Bola Tinubu are geared towards revamping the economy and improving revenue generation from the sector.
Verheijen made this statement in Abuja on Friday while speaking at ministerial press briefings.
According to her, Nigeria is now emerging as a favoured destination for investments in the global oil and gas industry.
The presidential aide pointed to the president’s recent executive order as a measure to revitalize the oil and gas sector and attract more investment, boost revenue generation as well as stabilize the economy.
According to her, the Tinubu-led government plans to overturn the negative investment patterns in the sector.
- “To achieve these objectives, Mr. President has issued a presidential directive to streamline and clarify the scope of the two regulators in the petroleum sector to provide certainty and create a conducive business environment.
- “Directed the NSA and Special Adviser on Energy to coordinate enhanced security measures in the Niger Delta. Owing to this Directive, the TNP pipeline which had been repeatedly vandalized is now enjoying improved uptime; availability has practically doubled since these directives were implemented.
- “This has translated to increased liquids of over 200,000 barrels/day being transported over the last six months.
- “It has increased the availability of NLNG Trains 1-6 from 57% in 2023 to 70% in Q1 2024,” she said.
Fiscal Incentives to Boost Investment in CNG and LPG
Furthermore, Verheijen mentioned that the president has implemented fiscal measures to enhance the adoption of compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
She added that this move would mitigate the effects of petrol subsidy removal on transportation expenses and help stabilize cooking gas prices in the country.
- “Fiscal Incentives for Non-Associated Gas (NAG), Midstream and Deepwater Oil & Gas Developments: This Directive aims to facilitate the monetization of Nigeria’s extensive oil and gas resources.
- “For gas, 76% of our gas reserves remain undeveloped.
- “This explains why, despite possessing one of the largest gas reserves globally, we lack sufficient gas to meet our domestic needs for industry, for power and cooking,” she added.
What you should know
- President Bola Tinubu recently signed an executive order aimed at revamping the oil and gas sector in the country.
- The president issued this policy directive in Abuja following extensive engagements with major stakeholders in the sector.
- The directives entail the provision of financial incentives for the development of non-associated gas, midstream operations, and deepwater projects.
- In addition, the initiative focused on optimizing the contracting process to decrease the cycle time to six months, among others.