The  Minister of State  Petroleum Resources (Oil), Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri has charged stakeholders and experts in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry to come up with home-grown solutions to address the myriad of problems bedeviling the country’s oil and gas sector.

The Minister gave the charge in his address at the 3rd Biennial International Conference on Hydrocarbon Science and Technology (ICHST) with the theme  “The Future of the Oil and Gas Industry: Opportunities, Challenges and Development” organized by the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) in Abuja.

Lokpobiri stated that, ‘’This conference that was made up of the experts and captains of the industry will be able to at the end of this two-day session come up with solutions to address our problems. That is the expectation from the conference’’.

He listed some of the problems plaguing the Industry to include pipeline vandalization, oil-theft, low productivity, and under-utilization of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) quota among others.

While commending  the organizers for selecting industry experts to be keynote speakers at the conference, Lokpobiri implored all the agencies under the ministry’s supervision to collaborate with a view to evolving the required technology in line with the theme of the conference for solving the problems associated with the country’s local oil and gas production.

The Minister expressed optimism that the conference would come up with actionable outcomes that would solve the peculiar problems facing the sector and promised that the tinistry would continue to provide the needed support to deliver on its mandates.

In his address at the event, the Minister of State  Petroleum Resources, (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo said, it was imperative to focus on tackling the issues of energy transition, sustainability and energy security, which will guarantee that Nigeria maximizes the value from her abundant gas resources, while ensuring access to affordable and sustainable energy for all Nigerians.

He remarked that, recent world events like the Russia-Ukraine conflict, had accentuated the fragile nature of the dynamics of energy demand and supply.

Ekpo noted that, ‘’With a particular reference to gas, Nigeria was inadequately prepared and did not fully seize the opportunities to cover the shortfall created by the increase in demand for alternative sources of gas supply to Europe and other parts of the world. On our home-front there is need to boost the domestic market for gas’’

He reiterated that Nigeria was famously known to be more of a gas-rich country than it is oil-rich, with an estimated reserve of over 208 trillion cubic feet of gas.

Ekpo  stated  that  “However, Local issues including inadequate infrastructure, an unclear regulatory environment for gas, sabotage of pipelines impinge country’s ability to optimize value from her abundant gas resources”.

He informed that, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources was working with the relevant regulatory agencies, namely, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMPDRA), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to ensure that the robust regulatory and fiscal incentives provided for by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 were seamlessly delivered.

He added that with respect to the immediate optimization of gas resources, all policy initiatives proposed by various stakeholders were being reviewed by his office to lend full ministerial support.

In his welcome address, the Principal and Chief Executive, Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Dr. Henry Adimula, stated,  “Our chosen theme, ‘The Future of the Oil and Gas Industry: Opportunities, Challenges, and Development,” couldn’t be more apt.

It embodies the essence of our purpose here – to explore, dissect, and contribute to a future teeming with possibilities. This future is not a distant horizon; it’s a realm of opportunities that we must collectively mould’’

Adimula declared that all through the conference, ‘’We will engage in vigorous panel discussions addressing crucial subjects such as the role of government policies and regulations in shaping the future of the oil and gas industry. Statistics unambiguously demonstrate the direct impact of the industry’s regulatory framework on its development and sustainability.

“Additionally, we will delve into the ever-evolving landscape of investment and financing in the oil and gas industry. This will provide sustainable and socially responsible investment opportunities in line with the global shift towards cleaner energy sources’’

In his keynote address, the Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization, APPO, Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim, said a major study conducted by APPO a couple of years ago revealed that, while the world was committed to a speedy energy transition, Africa owed its people a duty to utilize its abundant oil and gas resources to provide them energy, which is the most potent catalyst for socioeconomic development, saying that  “In other words Africa must create a future for the oil and gas industry”.

He noted that APPO had entered into partnership with Afreximbank to establish the Africa Energy Bank, (AEB), conceived as a public/private development finance institution, saying the AEB shall focus on project finance in oil and gas on the African continent. The objective, he said, was to fill the gap in oil and gas project financing.

Other speakers at the event included the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote while there are goodwill messages from the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL).

Part of highlights of the event was the presentation of an Award to the Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization, APPO, Farouk Ibrahim by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Amb. Gabriel Tanimu Aduda who was ably represented at the event by the Director General Services Department, Patricia Umo.

The Conference which held between  23rd and 24th October, 2023, attracted key players in the oil and gas sector, government  agencies, academia and organised private sector.