*Rebrands Ascon Oil
*Unveils expansion plan
OpeOluwani Akintayo
Lagos — Quest Oil & Engineering Services Limited has called on the federal government to undertake significant measures to activate vehicle conversion from petrol engines to gas in line with its campaign aimed at promoting more gas usage across the country.
Speaking during a media roundtable, Goke Dele, Chief Executive Officer, Quest Oil & Engineering Services Limited, said the private sector is counting on the government to take the first investment leap towards enabling vehicles currently running on petrol to run on gas.
He described government intervention as key, especially as stakeholders in the oil & gas industry have expressed optimism that the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA will unlock investments in the sector.
“The PIA will mark a new dawn and the beginning of a major repositioning in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
“that is why the private sector is calling on the federal government to first invest in vehicle conversion so that vehicles can now run on gas before we join in. Yes, there are huge opportunities in the gas sector, however, the investment on converting petrol engines to that of gas is too huge for the private sector” he said.
He added that “the prospects for the industry is a mixed bag. On the one hand, the industry has been starved of key investments in the last decade, while on the other hand, there have not been enough incentives in terms of fiscal framework to galvanise the needed investment. Thankfully, with the presidential assent to the PIB, the world will finally take notice of our industry once again,” he said.
“Investing in the gas sector will create thousands of jobs especially for the youths”, he added.
Following Quest’s acquisition of Ascon Oil Company Limited, (the first private bulk white Petroleum products storage, sales, and distribution channel) in 2019, he said the company aims to deepen its footprint in the downstream sector as it sees a major boost in its operations by 1st quarter 2022.
The acquisition has led to the on-going overhauling, restructuring and rebranding of ASCON to Quest.
According to the company, this action falls under its initial goal of integrating all of its offerings under the Quest umbrella while providing the best petroleum products. During a recent media roundtable in Lagos, the company explained that it expects significant growth in the first quarter, 2022.
“It gives us great pleasure to contribute our quota to national economic growth by providing clean and affordable petroleum services to Nigerians. Our investment in the downstream sector symbolises our reinvigorated strategy for the Nigerian market. This, according to the company, is in fulfillment of its goal of providing affordable, clean, reliable and sustainable energy to all in line with the United Nations SDG 7”, Goke remarked.
Dele Taiwo, the Chief Operating Officer, Quest Gas & Power commented that riding on the declaration by the Minister of state, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, to dedicate the new decade to the promotion and adoption of Natural Gas as the fuel of choice for national growth, the company, he said has channeled significant resources towards optimising its service portfolio, not just to provide better quality of services to its customers, but also to create a sustainable energy ecosystem that aligns with our Environmental, Social and Governance, ESG goals.
According to Dele, ‘after PIA, the next big thing that has happened to the Nigerian oil and gas industry is the Nigerian Gas Expansion Programme, NGEP, saying that the move will create a level playing field for investors and catalyse the development of Nigeria’s vast gas resources which as of today, stands at about 206.53 trillion cubic feet.
“Quest Gas & Power, a strategic business unit of Quest, is highly ambitious, with engagements in several active projects including the Captive and Distributed power space. In the Gas sector Quest Gas & Power is planning to build a Gas Storage Facility of a capacity of 10,000 MT scalable to 15,000MT in Delta State, a Composite Cylinder Manufacturing Plant with an LPG Bottling Plant to leverage the gas value chain”, he said.
When asked whether the company is planning on any new acquisition after ASCON, the CEO said that there are plans to significantly invest in cleaner energy, hence, the company is optimistic that in the coming years, Quest will grow its asset in this area in a deliberate manner.
Speaking on the impact of COVID-19 on the oil and gas industry, the CEO said that the impact is yet to wear out. Given that the third wave is right here with us, we have to take bold steps to protect ourselves. Though the signs are there that the economy is picking up due to increased vaccination, investors are cautiously optimistic about the future. For us at Quest, the health of our employees is paramount and we are doing everything possible to ensure that everyone is safe.
“In the next 5 years, one of our top priority is to operate a business that evolves with time, while leveraging trends and technology to deliver quality products and services to our customers”, the CEO said.