Energy Briefs

THE Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowernment Programme, SURE-P, has debunked the rumour that Christopher Kolade, its chairman,  has resigned his appointment. An official of the SURE-P told Realnews on telephone that the chairman was in the office as he was talking. He said he could not trace how the rumour started but that it could be as a result of misconceptions that Kolade was the person sharing the large chunk of the SURE-P funds.

According to the official, the states and the local governments get a large chunk of the SURE-P money (66 percent) while 3 percent is reserved for ecological fund. The federal government gets 41 percent of the Sure-P fund. The official said that people should be asking the state government and local governments what they are doing with their shares of the SURP-P fund instead of focusing attention only on what the federal government’s is doing with the fund. Kolade manages the federal government aspect of the SURE-P.

Public Hearing on PIB

THE zonal public hearing on Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, will hold on April 22 and 23. According to Ishaka Mohammed Bawa,  chairman of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee on the PIB, the public hearing would hold in all the six geo-political zones of the country. He said that the public hearing was mandatory because oil and gas are the life-wire of the country and whose exploitation will be guided by the PIB. “We cannot sit in our offices and decide for the country. That is why we are sending it out to the people for their input,” Bawa said, adding that having interacted with the industry elites in Lagos, the committee intends to take the process down to the grassroots so as to enhance consultations and broaden participation

Lagos will host the south-west public hearing, Port Harcourt for the South-South and Enugu for the South-East. Kaduna is the centre for the North West, Ilorin for the North-Central and Gombe for the north-East.

The public hearing will provide opportunity for state governments and legislatures and  professional groups to participate in the crafting of the PIB that will hold something for everybody, he said.

PENGASSAN On War-path

THE Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, is angry with Petrobras Nigeria Limited for maltreating its employees. Petrobras, an arm of the National Oil Corporation of Brazil, locked out its employees in Nigeria because it was divesting its stake in some Nigerian oil blocs valued at N795 billion.

A statement by PEGASSAN said Petrobras as a corporate personality, including its management in Nigeria, must respect due process and rule of law and ensure that the parent body of the organised labour in Petrobras, which is PENGASSAN, is adequately engaged in accordnance with the provisions of our extant national and labour laws, and the industry’s best practices before the planned divestment is fianlised. As part of the process of consummating due diligence on Petrobas, PENGASSAN said that before it decided to issue its statement, efforts were made by its national secretariat, which engaged the top management of the company to address the matter. It added that even though it severally advised the managing director of Petrobras against undermining due process, the rule of law and the industry practice, he seemed bent on doing so, ostensibly to his own peril and to the detriment of the new company that will acquire its stake in Nigeria oil and gas industry. PENGASSAN warned that it should not be taken for a ride even though Petrobras is deluding the public that it was discontinuing with the divestment.

Strategic Talks on North African Oil

THE CWC-organised inaugural North Africa Gas Summit will hold from June 25 to 26, at the Grand Plaza Hotel in Rome, Italy. The summit will bring together senior government officials from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Egypt along with industry representatives from across the region and beyond for strategic talks on the opportunities for unleashing the full potential of the North African gas industry. During the two days, there will be panel discussions between governments, national oil company representatives and international investors. The discussions will focus on the investment opportunities in both the conventional and unconventional sectors; how the region’s major suppliers can meet demand on a domestic as well as international levels. Other areas will focus on North Africa’s position within the global energy context and strategies for diversifying the energy mix; and ensuring a balance between gas and renewables. Nicky Bowen, North Africa Gas Summit producer, said “Building on the success of CWC’S Algeria Future Energy and Libya Summits in 2012 and InterGas which takes place in Cairo every two years, the North Africa Gas Summit is set to become the meeting place where the region’s sellers can come together to meet European and international buyers.”

The North Africa Gas Summit will be co-located with Lebanon Gas, a one-day event held under the patronage of  Gebran Bassil, minister of energy and water, on June 24. With participation from the petroleum administration, The Lebanon Gas Summit will provide an update on the First Offshore Licensing Round as well as insights into Lebanon’s hydrocarbon sector and its potentials. As the global energy industry looks forward to create oil and gas wealth in the face of an ever increasing talent gap, governments collaborate with key stakeholders to uncover new strategies to create employment and foster technology transfer.

Developing Local Content Strategies

THIS year’s National Oil Companies, NOCs, and Governments’ Summit, taking place from 28-30 October 2013 at the Mandarin Oriental, London, will bring together global oil and gas industry leaders, governments and regulators under the Chatham House Rule to debate how a resource holding country can develop its local content strategies to create real in-country value.

The high-level, strategic discussions will explore cutting-edge case studies from key countries including Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Ghana, Iraq, Brazil, Oman and many more.

Tracy Clark, managing director of The CWC Group, said “Building on the success of CWC’S world renowned NOC/IOC retreat series, this unique summit will capitalise on experiences from across the globe and discuss strategies that will develop local content, drive job creation, and aid technology transfer. It will seek to answer the definitive question: how can we best facilitate the shift from a focus on revenue generation to value creation in resource holding nations?”

The NOCs and Governments’ Summit will explore strategies to create in-country value and foster growth and development within resource holding nations. The summit will also provide a platform for an interactive format, offering the ideal environment for facilitating constructive, frank discussions between key stakeholders to develop crucial strategies required to drive the industry forward.

— Apr. 22, 2013 @ 01:00 GMT

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