The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, one of the two new regulators in the nation’s oil and gas industry, has told oil and companies operating in the country to pay their royalties as and when due.
The Commission Chief Executive, NUPRC, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, while addressing a group of indigenous producers on Friday, stressed the need to optimise oil and gas production and enhance government revenue.
He described as critical the stakeholders’ engagement session between the commission and the Indigenous Petroleum Producers Association, led by its Chairman, Mr Abdulrazaq Isa.
He said, “We will regulate with best practices and transparency; we will be very efficient in service delivery; there will be no bureaucracies. And all these we will do with your cooperation.
“So, in the same manner, we enjoin you to reciprocate all that by being very compliant with the provisions of the Act; pay your royalties as and when due. On our part, we will ensure a very good partnership between us.”
Komolafe said there was a need for the indigenous producers to come up with ideas and collaborate with the regulator to attract financing amid the push for global energy transition.
“We are all aware that the industry is facing a critical challenge of energy transition. We will not because of energy transition abandon our hydrocarbons. So, we really need to think out of the box and I want us to see how we can actually get international financing groups to commit to financing critical projects in our upstream sector,” he said.
He said with adequate financing, the indigenous producers would be able to leverage the divestment of onshore assets by the international oil companies operating in the country.
The IPPG chairman said the new wave of divestment of IOC divestment offered opportunities for greater participation of indigenous exploration and production companies.
He said producers were struggling with incidence of crude theft, which he said was becoming unsustainable, adding that security costs had also escalated significantly.
He stressed the need for an enhanced security for strategic installations and assets in the Niger Delta.
“Access to funding is critical to the survival and optimal performance of assets in the industry. As funding opportunities become limited due to global industry concerns regarding the climate, it is imperative to explore creative ways of funding operations/projects,” he added.
Culled from Punch NG
