Local content soars to 54% in oil, gas sector – FG

The Federal Government said it had increased local content investment activities in the oil and gas industry by 54 per cent in 2022.

Also, the government reiterated its plan to increase the figure to 70 per cent by 2027.

Engr. Simbi Wabote, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, disclosed this on Wednesday during a press briefing to inaugurate the fourth edition of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair, 2023, in Abuja.

According to Wabote, the board is committed to building the capacity of indigenous oil and gas players in line with its 10-year strategic roadmap.

He explained that NOGOF had impacted the industry heavily since its commencement in 2017.

He added that this year’s edition would not fall short of expectations but would serve as a springboard to solving the challenges facing Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.

“With the advent of NOGOF, today, 50 per cent of the activities in NLNG Train 7 project are being done by Nigeria because we provided the required information on capacity building. I sincerely believe in the future that almost 70 per cent of activities in the oil gas sector will be done by Nigerians in-country.

“The industry [in] those days spent close to $21 billion yearly in the oil and gas sector, less than five per cent remains in the country; virtually everything was done outside Nigeria, today 54 per cent of that is retained in the country in terms of monetary value and activities.

“Our sister African countries keep coming to Nigeria to seek advice on the strategies to develop the oil and gas sector. Recently when the CEOs of National Oil Companies met in Algeria, they decided that the commission should help them develop their sector. Also, in Gambia, when they discovered crude oil and approached the World Bank, the bank directed them to NCDMB to understand the strategies needed to succeed,” he said.

DAILY POST learnt that NOGOF 2023, scheduled for May 18 and 19 in Bayelsa, with the theme, “The Oil and Gas Industry: Catalyst and Fuel For Industrialization of Nigeria” would stimulate investment and foster growth within the oil and gas value chain.