The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has commended Total Exploration and Production (Total E & P) for its confidence in the Nigerian economy.

Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote, made the commendation in a statement issued on Sunday by Mr Naboth Onyesoh, Manager, Corporate Communications at NCDMB.

Wabote said the Final Investment Decision (FID) by the French oil firm on the Ikike Offshore Project, despite delays in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), showed that Nigeria remains a preferred investment destination.

The Executive Secretary urged international oil firms to emulate Total E&P in sponsoring new projects and stop being deterred by the delayed passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

According to the statement, Wabote spoke when he received the Managing Director of Total E&P, Mr. Mike Sangster, at the Nigerian Content Tower, headquarters of the NCDMB in Yenagoa, Bayelsa.

He commended the Managing Director for his emergence as the chairman of the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Sangster’s appointment, Wabote said, was deserving because Total E&P was the only international operating company that had taken Final Investment Decisions on major oil and gas projects in recent times in Nigeria despite the delayed PIB.

While expressing confidence in the determination of the 9th National Assembly to pass the PIB after it had been delayed for over 15 years, Wabote encouraged other IOCs to forge ahead with their new projects.

He explained that new projects were needed to grow Local Content and create opportunities for local fabrication and manufacturing yards, many of which have been idle since the conclusion of the Total’s Egina deep water project in 2018.

He also charged Total E&P to lend its full support to the ongoing NLNG Train 7 project, adding that the project held great prospects for the local oil and gas industry and host communities.

Wabote also solicited the support of the chairman of the Oil Producers Trade Section towards the conclusion of the categorization of in-country oil and gas capacities and capabilities.

The categorisation covers engineering, fabrication yards, testing facilities and training facilities.

Wabote said another area of collaboration with OPTS is in the study for local gaskets manufacturing: study, to determine what it will take to produce all the gasket requirements in-country.

He also asked OPTS companies to provide crude feedstock for newly established modular refineries to increase value addition, local refining, discourage illegal refiners and stealing of crude.

The statement quoted Sangster as saying that the company had operated in Nigeria for 60 years and is the only IOC that operates in the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

He explained that the company developed the last three Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) platforms in Nigeria and Egina in 2018 created new records, one of which is recording 40 million man hours in-country.

Sangster also reported that the company had made significant progress with the development of the Ikike Oil Field and would record first oil before the end of 2021.

He stated: “It had been difficult developing the project, particularly with the pandemic, but we are making progress and we appreciate the support from the NCDMB.”

On the PIB, the OPTS leader advised federal legislators and policy makers to ensure that the fiscal provisions in the law are fair to key stakeholders, to stimulate new investments in the industry.

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