Nigeria Records $6bn Annual In-country Oil Industry Spending

Peter Uzoho

Nigeria’s annual in-country retention from oil and gas spendings currently stands at $6 billion.
The development has been described as a major achievement recorded by the country owing to the implementation of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act of 2010.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote, disclosed this in Lagos, in a keynote address at a colloquium organised by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Section on Business Law in collaboration with the NCDMB.

The session focused on the “Strides in the Pursuit of True Nigerian Content”.
Wabote, whose speech was read at the session by his representative and Director, Legal Department, NCDMB, Mr. Mohammed Umar, said since the inception of the NOGICD Act in 2010, its implementation has resulted in 35 per cent of in-country value retention compared to the less than five per cent value retention before the advent of the Act.

“Since inception in 2010, the implementation of the Act has resulted in 35 per cent of in-country value retention compared to the less than five value retention before the NOGICD Act.

“Before the Act, we had annual spend of $20 billion with little or nothing retained in-country. Today, I can confidently say that we spend over $6 billion in-country annually.
We have two world-class pipe mills and five impressive pipe coating yards,” he said.
Wabote further noted that about 40 per cent of marine vessels used in the oil and gas industry are owned by Nigerians and that Nigeria currently has four active dry-docking facilities in Port Harcourt, Onne, and Lagos.

He said the Act and its enforcement has also led to the manufacturing of all cables required in the oil and gas sector in-country. He added that over 50,000 direct jobs have been created on the back of implementation of the NOGICD Act, pointing out that Nigeria has 76 operating companies and over 8,000 oil and gas service companies pulling their weight in the industry.

“Our indigenous operators are responsible for 15 per cent of our oil production and 60 per cent of our domestic gas supply
In fabrication, today Nigeria can handle fabrication of more than 120,000 tonnes per year,” he stated.
He said the enactment of the NOGICD Act in 2010, which led to the establishment of NCDMB restored hope to the Nigerian oil and gas industry as no nation can survive under the negative trend of capital flight, loss of jobs and community discontentment.

He said the local content drive unleashed an array of opportunities in the oil and gas industry, saying some of them relate to the legal profession including opportunity to invest in any area along the oil and gas value-chain and/or opportunity to enter into a partnership with the board in any critical, high-value area of the oil and gas industry.