Uche Usim, Abuja
The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Mele Kyari, has raised the hope of a likely oil find in the frontier basins, saying that significant progress has been made in the ongoing exploration.
He has also declared that the target of growing the nation’s reserve to 40billion barrels by 2023 was realistic and achievable.
Speaking while hosting the leadership of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationist (NAPE) at the NNPC Towers, Abuja on Tuesday, Kyari pointed out that the Corporation was revving up exploration activities in all the frontier basins to achieve the three million barrels per day of crude oil production target within the shortest possible time.
He further clarified that the recent redeployment of 12 management staff of its flagship upstream subsidiary, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), was consistent with meeting the aforementioned targets.
According to him, the management’s focus on Transparency and Accountability with Performance Excellence (TAPE) was geared towards transforming the NNPC into a global company of distinction, stressing that the Corporation was the window to the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
He noted that the national oil company would invest more efforts and resources in the search for hydrocarbons in the frontier basins and the ultra-deep water basin in the Niger Delta in order to grow the nation’s reserve base.
“We promise that we are going to be transparent and accountable to all our stakeholders. We will drive this company to become a company of global excellence through excellent performance. This is very possible and there are strong indications that this is achievable”, Kyari stated.
He stated that the Corporation would galvanise its partners in the direction of attaining national goals and aspirations for the economic wellbeing of the nation and its citizens.
The NNPC helmsman gave assurance that the Corporation, with the collaboration of other arms of the government, would create a favourable fiscal landscape that would encourage inflow of foreign direct investment into the nation’s oil and gas industry.
On the commercial level, he said NNPC would continue to meet its cash-call obligations to its Joint Venture partners on a sustainable basis to enable the international oil companies go back to exploration, maintaining that the move had already made exploration activities to start blossoming.
Kyari called for the support of NAPE to enable the nation attain the three million barrels per day and the 40 billion reserve aspiration going forward.
Earlier, President of NAPE, Mr. Ajibola Oyebamiji, congratulated Kyari on his well-deserved appointment and assured him of the association’s support in growing the nation’s reserve base.