Petroleum Ministry to set up oil, gas investment centre

The Nigerian Ministry of Petroleum Resources says it is setting up an Oil and Gas Investment centre which will act as a one-stop Oil and Gas Investment centre to spur Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs).

It said the centre would be reciprocated along all the MDAs to create an enabling business environment for would-be investors to attract all the available FDIs into the sector.

Mr Kamoru Busari, Director overseeing the office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, made this known on Wednesday in Abuja at the ongoing Nigerian Oil and Gas (NOG) Conference.

Busari spoke at the industry regulators session of the 2022 NOG conference which had its theme as “Funding the Nigerian Energy Mix for Sustainable Economic Growth”.

He said the development was in fulfilment of its mandate as enshrined in Section three (e) of the PIA to: “Promote an enabling environment for Investment in Nigerian Petroleum Industry”.

He said it became necessary because of the need to begin to create business models that would reduce the export of crude oil while increasing export of value-added petroleum products.

He said deliberate regulations and policies that would encourage investments and enhance private businesses in these streams needed to be formulated.

“The task before every one of us now is to breathe life to the flesh already built by the act to play our roles as regulator and opportunity enablers.

“This will be through direct collaboration with all relevant stakeholders in the operationalisation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to prevent impediments in operations and processes.

He said 2022 NOG was unique, being the first after the Nation succeeded to pass the age-long PIA which had been in contention for over two decades.

He urged all NOG participants to make contributions in line with the theme, to effectively transform the likely challenges or impediments from the new law to opportunities to grow Nigeria’s Oil and Gas sector.

NAN