Minister: Solution to Nigeria’s woes in petroleum sector

The Minister of Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, says the solution to the various challenges bewildering Nigeria is in the petroleum sector.

Lokpobiri said this while speaking at the sectoral retreat on the Ministerial Deliverables 2023-2027 organised by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources in Abuja on Tuesday, March 26, 2024.

The minister, who noted the ministry handles the highest percentage of foreign exchange transactions in the country, said despite divestments by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria, the Federal Government was able to attract over $5 million (N7.5 billion) in two months in the oil and gas sector.

The minister while noting that President Bola Tinubu was watching the sector keenly to see if it would meet the target of ramping up production, expressed optimism that the sector was poised to surpass the performance indicators set in line with the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ of the present administration.

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Lokpobiri, who noted he has signed licenses for some modular refineries without knowing the owners in order to promote fair participation, maintained that the petroleum sector would be able to meet and surpass the production target once production was ramped up.

He said: “If we ramp up production, we will be able to meet our targets in terms of increase in revenue.

“I’ve signed a couple of modular refineries without knowing who owns it and I have warned them I won’t want to know who owns it before I cancel the license. I’m trying to reduce mediocrity; nobody needs to know the minister to get any document signed.

“We are doing all we can to see how we can attract investments. This administration has been building confidence of investors who have left and they have promised to come back. I’m seeing us surpassing our investment target this year.

Also speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said gas remains a vital transition fuel with the potential to bridge the gap between traditional fossil fuels and renewable sources of energy.

Ekpo added that in pursuit of a low-carbon economy, gas often referred to as the “cleanest” fossil fuel, offers a number of noteworthy benefits.

The Star