Sopuruchi Onwuka

Former Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (MCDMB), Dr Ernest Nwapa, has declared that observed ambiguities in the Presidential Directives have created systemic problems that require institutional adjustments to address.

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Nwapa who delivered a presentation during the Nigerian Content Academy Lecture Series also stated that the role and authority of the NCDMB must be reenacted to enable full realization of the objectives of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010.

Oracle Intelligence reports that the NCDMB weekend activated its Nigerian Content Academy Lecture Series with an overview of local content strategy and implementation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.  And participants in the program called on players in the sector to show greater commitment to meeting the prime economic aspirations of the government for establishing the value derivation agency.

In a presentation on “Staying the Nigerian Content Course in the Midst of Delivery Challenges,” Nwapa, stated that “There are many government policies that are affecting FIDs,” adding that stringent implementation of local content policies by the NCDMB has not inhibited investment inflow into the energy sector.

He pointed out that Nigerian Content policy has delivered mixed results since the national aspiration was conceived with the Nigerian economic development model.

While admitting that the industry currently faces “an increasingly complex environment shaped by global energy trends, shifting investment patterns and heightened expectations for local participation and value addition;” Nwapa dismissed fears that the future of local content policies is under intense scrutiny, noting that some industry stakeholders opposing the local content policy have transformed to advocates of gloom.

He pointed at “unintended ambiguities in the Presidential Directives” and consequent systemic problems that need to be addressed by stakeholders to reinforce the authority of the NCDMB for industry regulation.

He called on the regulators and players in the industry to comply with the directives of the NCDMB, adding that questioning directives of the NCDMB amounts to challenging the law that established it.

According to him, statutes like the Petroleum Act, 1969, the Joint Venture (JV) agreements, the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), and creation of NAPIMS, all had been conceived to achieve some measure of local content. There was also the Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act, 2003.

“But all these were incomparable to the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010,” he pointed out. He added that the NOGICD Act has developed a fertile ground for industry skills and experience development following the volume of jobs that have been domiciled for in-country execution.

“Our young engineers, our young technicians now have places to go to acquire practical skills” because a lot of projects are going on in the country. If you look at the number of Nigerians that worked in Egina at the Integration Yard [SHI-MCI Fabrication and Integration Yard, Tarkwa Bay, Lagos], it’s not something you can just underestimate. So, we need to know there are serious consequences for failure of what we’ve started.”

On cost margins associated with the introduction of local content policy, Nwapa made it clear that the long-term cost savings justifies the initial investments in capacity development. He stated that the policy provides the opportunity to use activities within the local economy to drive the costs to competitive levels.

He advised that NCDMB works with the industry players to evaluate costs on project-by-project basis and provide the information and matrices.

Nwapa also advised that the Nigerian Content Academy, a division of the NCDMB, to expand the scope of the lecture series to form a policy think-tank for government and players in the industry.

General Manager in charge of Corporate Communications at the NCDMB, Dr Obinna Ezeobi, stated in a media release that the Nigerian Content Academy Lecture Series hold weekly and are intended to raise awareness of trends and issues in the oil and gas industry, and thus empower Nigerians to take full advantage of economic opportunities in that sector.