…Says investments returning to Nigeria’s energy sector
06 December 2018, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, says the Federal Government will finally launch the much anticipated ‘Project 100’ initiative before the year runs out.
The minister gave the assurance at the 8th Annual Practical Nigerian Content Forum in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, even as stakeholders expressed doubts about the possibility of this happening.
‘Project 100’ is an initiative meant to encourage 100 small locally-owned companies with prospects in the energy sector, to grow. Part of the package for the companies is to provide funding, mentoring and enabling environment for them to thrive.
Kachikwu said finishing touches have already been put to the concept and that the initiative would be launch any time from now.
“For all of us gathered here today, because of our love, belief, or duty for the Nigerian Content, I want to inform you that we are about launching the Project 100. We have finalised the concept framing and our target is that before the end of this year we will launch the programme,” he said.
He added: “This is meant to be a practical demonstration of Nigerian Content in action with the goal of shattering any glass ceiling preventing our local oil and gas entrepreneurs from coming into prominence and execute activities in the scale they have never done before”.
The minister explained that government wanted to “practicalise those wonderful propositions from Nigerians that have been held down by one bottleneck or the other, stressing that the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and its agencies were poised to facilitate and unblock the obstacles stopping these initiatives from propulsion.
According to him, the time has come for implementation of all “those beautiful ideas” about Liquefied Petroleum Gas penetration, local refining, infrastructures for security of supply and built-in redundancies, technology and automation, flares capture and utilisation, field development and several others”.
He said the Ministry of Petroleum Resources is proud of Nigeria Content achievements, more so that some of these achievements had stimulated other sectors like Information and Communication, Automobile, Construction and Power to adopt some of its templates in their policy formulations.
“We are also proud that on the international scene, some African countries like Kenya, Congo Brazzaville and Uganda, as well as Gabon and Angola, have come to Nigeria in the past for mentorship on Local Content initiatives. I urge you all, not to drop the ball,” he stated.
He assured of government’s continued support for the enforcement of the provisions of the Nigerian Content Act to increase in-country value addition and support the job creation initiatives of President Buhari’s administration.
Meanwhile, the minister said investments were steadily beginning to return into the oil and gas sector.
