23 October 2013, Lagos – The President, Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has declared that only an enabling environment provided by all stakeholders in the industry remained the panacea for any meaningful investment in the oil and gas industry for the growth and development of the nation’s economy.
He has therefore called for cooperation of all Nigerians to ensure the actualisation of the $9 billion investment in refining and petrochemical sub-sector of the petroleum industry.
Speaking at the third Quadrennial Delegate Conference of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State at the weekend, Dangote urged the government to muster necessary political will to deal with issues threatening investments in the oil sector so that other potential investors would have confidence to come on board.
The business mogul, who was honoured as the exemplary true industrialist and pioneer of local private refinery, by the union, warned that the dream to refine and produce petroleum products for exports would not come to fruition unless the federal government musters the political will to drive to its logical conclusion the ongoing reforms in the oil and gas industry.
Dangote, who spoke on:”Reforms in the Oil and Gas Industry: Catalyst for National Growth and Development, What Prospect for the Attainment of Decent Work Agenda, called for support for President Goodluck Jonathan’s economic transformation agenda, which he said was aimed at accelerating the growth of Nigeria’s economy. He also noted the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) was a bold step, which was initiated to correct perceived flaws in the industry as it was intended to address structural, policy and managerial issues in the Nigerian oil and gas sector. Represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr. Joseph Makoju, Dangote said: “The PIB is designed to enhance the value of the petroleum sector for the Nigerian people, and also seeks to plug identified loopholes in policies and management agreements and by so doing improve transparency and efficiency of the sector.”
“When the PIB is fully signed into law, it is expected to address observed weaknesses and abuses by operators and stakeholders, eliminate corruption and restructure the industry in order to make it more responsive to social and economic needs of both Nigerians and the investors in the sector.
“It is now generally accepted that successful passage and signing of the PIB into law is vital to the growth and development of the Nigerian petroleum industry. Amongst other things, it will help address gas flaring, which is a perennial and highly contentious issue in the industry, and by improving the empowerment and buy-in of host communities, it will ultimately curtail youth restiveness in the Niger Delta region”, he said.
– This Day
