In a strategic move to boost Nigeria’s crude oil production and expand its reserves, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has declared a state of emergency in the nation’s oil and gas industry. This announcement was made by the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Mele Kyari, during his keynote address at the opening ceremony of the 23rd Nigeria Oil & Gas Conference and Exhibition (NOG Energy Week) in Abuja on Tuesday.
Kyari emphasized the urgent need to increase oil production to enhance local capacity, highlighting that the company is working vigorously to close the two million barrels per day oil gap. Currently, Nigeria produces between 1.2 million and 1.4 million barrels per day. He stressed the importance of addressing the challenges that hinder crude oil production, stating, “We can’t continue talking, we cannot continue debating. Debate don’t produce oil, debate produce conflict. This industry is about producing oil and gas.”
He pointed out that it is critical for stakeholders to collaborate and remove the obstacles impeding production. “The world expects many things from us. But more importantly for all of us in this room, I’m sure the biggest interest is to produce more oil and more gas. We don’t need to talk about reserves we have reserves. It is all dream until you produce it.”
Kyari further explained that the focus is on increasing production by investing in necessary resources such as money, skilled personnel, and technology. He highlighted the need for action to benefit from the available reserves. “Therefore, what we are focused on with our partners today is to produce more oil and to grow the production.”
Despite Nigeria’s significant production capacity, there has been a decline in output. Kyari noted that while factors such as oil theft and integrity issues contribute to this decline, the primary issue is the industry’s inability to act swiftly. He stated, “When we look at the data for our production by assets in the last three months without doing anything, without mobilising any rig, we can talk about decline as it has been said, but decline don’t happen in three months.”
A detailed analysis of assets revealed that Nigeria can produce two million barrels of crude oil per day without deploying new rigs, but timely action is necessary to sustain this level of production. Kyari emphasized, “Also, we can blame anything, access to capital, yes. Why don’t we have access to capital. We can blame anything but what we have seen is that we are actually at two million barrels per day without doing any of the major things we are talking about.”
To address these challenges, NNPC Ltd has declared a “war” on production impediments, aiming to resolve issues related to security, asset integrity, and other factors. “We have the right troops. We know what to fight. We know what we have to do at the level of assets and we’ve engaged our partners. Any partner that doesn’t do what it should do will get it done. We can’t wait for anyone, we are moving on.”
Kyari also mentioned the need to replace the aging pipeline network constructed in the 1970s, which is critical for crude delivery to Bonny, Forcados, and Brass. “With or without the vandal action or the theft, we have taken another major decision that we’ll replace these pipelines. On this no debate.”
He called on industry players to work together to reduce production costs and increase output to target levels. NNPC Ltd is committed to investing in critical midstream gas infrastructure such as the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) and the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipelines to enhance domestic gas production and supply for power generation, industrial development, and economic prosperity.
Regarding Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), Kyari noted that NNPC Ltd has aligned with the Presidential CNG drive and, in collaboration with partners like NIPCO Gas, has built several CNG stations. “12 of which will be commissioned on Thursday in Lagos and Abuja.”
The event also featured goodwill messages and keynote addresses from notable figures including the Secretary General of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Haitham Al Ghais; the Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), Engr. Mohamed Hamel; the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri; the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo; the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Ms. Olu Verheijen; and the Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG), Abdulrazaq Isa.
