Engr. Felix Ogbe, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) announced that by the end of 2023, the country had reached a 54% Nigerian Content level in the oil and gas industry, with a commitment to achieving the 70% target by 2027.
On Wednesday, the ES NCDMB made this known while speaking on the theme “Local Content and Sustainable Inclusive Economic Growth” at the 2024 Namibia Oil and Gas Conference in Windhoek, Namibia.
According to Engr. Ogbe, who was represented by Esueme Kikile, General Manager, Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, the adoption of local content policy for the oil and gas industry and or other resources is “one veritable means through which African countries can ensure that the utilization of our resources will translate to energy security, economic development, and industrialization of the continent.
Highlighting the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010, and its astonishing success in resetting oil and gas industry spending and in-country capacity development, Ogbe noted that recent discoveries of hydrocarbon deposits have increased the oil and gas reserves of the continent to about 126 billion barrels of oil and about 614 trillion cubic feet of gas.
He said, “Since the enactment of the NOGICD Act in 2010, Nigeria has recorded significant achievements, which include “the creation of over 30,000 direct jobs, over 15 million training man hours, and award of over 90% of contracts to Nigerian-owned businesses.
“The NOGICD Act has also led to the utilization of the expatriate management system to ensure 80% of oil companies’ management positions are held by Nigerians, growth of successful indigenous operators who are now responsible for the production of more than 60% of Nigeria’s domestic gas requirements and over 15% of crude oil production, to mention a few,” the NCDMB boss said.
Engr. Ogbe, further shared NCDMB’s experience as a regulator responsible for deepening and driving local content in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, noting that “a successful local content policy must entail the deployment of six (6) key parameters, namely, regulatory framework, gap analysis, capacity building, funding and incentives, research and development, and market access.
According to him, “a law, or decree depending on the political arrangement in a country, sets the framework and boundaries for all local content practitioners.”
“In Nigeria, the NOGICD Act of 2010 is the regulatory framework that drives local content policy.
“A structured capacity-building intervention, is also necessary to foster the development of in-country capacities and capabilities, while gap analysis is to ensure that baseline and periodic gap evaluations are carried out to ascertain the human capacity and infrastructure deficits which will then form the basis for developing initiatives, projects, and programmes that will seek to close the identified gaps.
The NCDMB boss further emphasised the importance of research and development, which he noted would facilitate the development of innovative solutions to address peculiar challenges that are being experienced in a nation’s oil and gas industry.
In addition, local companies require incentives and low-interest, long-term funds to be able to develop their capacities which will, in turn, enable them to compete favourably in the oil and gas industry.
Engr. Ogbe however underscored the necessity for access to the market as developed capacities and capabilities need patronage to be sustained.
He emphasised that, “A market, within a country and across international boundaries, is imperative for the potential benefits of enhanced capabilities to be maximised.”
