…NCDMB plans 70% in-country job retention
Kunle Kalejaye
17 May 2017, Sweetcrude, Houston — The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, says Nigerian companies can now handle over 60,000 tons of fabrication in-country.
Fabrication in the oil and gas industry is the building of metal structures by cutting, bending, and assembling processes of metal.
It is a value-added process that also involves the construction of machines and structures from various raw materials.
Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote, revealed the development at the 2017 Nigeria Content Investment Forum in Houston, Texas, United States, organised by the NCDMB in collaboration with SweetcrudeReports.
He explained that prior to the coming of the Local Content Act in 2010, there were no active dry-dock facilities and fabrication yards in the country.
“The few (dry-dock facilities and fabrication yards) we had were abandoned and rotting away. Today, we have four active dry-dock facilities in Port Harcourt, Onne, and Lagos.
“Today, Nigeria can handle fabrication capacity of more than 60,000 tons in SHI, MCI (Samsung Heavy Industries and Mega-Construction and Integration) yards”, he said.
Wabote also disclosed that before the arrival of the Local Content Act 2010, Nigeria had experienced over $300 billion capital flight and two million job losses in the past 50 years, but added that the introduction of the act changed the tide.
Currently, he also said, there are 6,648 local services companies and 40 operating companies registered in NCDMB Joint Qualification System, JQS, and doing business in the oil and gas sector.
He added: “We also have over 75,000 registered individuals in the JQS, 2,742 marine vessels, and 548 registered marine vendors. We now have two world-class pipe mills and four impressive pipe coating yards in Nigeria.
“Before 2010, three per cent of marine vessels were owned by Nigerians. Today, Nigerians own and control 36 percent of vessels used in the oil and gas industry, especially in deep offshore areas, PSV, Heavy Lift, Offshore pipeline vessels, just to mention a few.
“All cables required in the oil and gas sectors in Nigeria are manufactured locally today. Initially, bolts and nuts were all imported, but today, all bolts and nuts, fully certified to the required oil and gas industry standard for onshore and offshore projects, are now available in Nigeria. Nigeria Machine Tools, Oshogbo is blazing the trail.
“Today, Nigerians can assemble offshore Christmas tree in-country, which never existed before. But now, there are facilities in-country that can do this – FMC Technologies’ assembling plant in Onne, GE assembling plant in Onne and Calabar, etc)”.
Commenting on NCDMB’s vision in the next 10 years, Wabote said the board plans to achieve 70 percent in-country value retention and improve roadway for indigenous and marginal field operators to participate in offshore operations.
“We also plan to play a bigger role in midstream and downstream sector of the economy and sectoral linkage to other sectors such as power, ICT, construction, steel, and mining development.
“We will take a focus into functional steel mills as I plan to take it up with the minister of mines and steel development to ensure that Nigerian Content becomes the catalyst for the development of steel plants in-country because 95 percent of what we do in the oil and gas sector is dependent on steel. But today there is no functional steel,” he said.