The Federal Government has reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to sharing its oil and gas industry experience with other African countries, particularly through the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO), as a high-level delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) begins an understudy visit to Nigeria.

The delegation, led by DRC Minister of Hydrocarbons, Simplice Stev Onanga, is in Nigeria to understudy the local content framework developed by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and its application in the oil and gas industry.

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Receiving the delegation in Abuja on Monday, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said Nigeria remained committed to knowledge-sharing with fellow African nations.

Lokpobiri said Nigeria had raised its local content capacity to 61 per cent since the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 16 years ago.

He said the divestment of onshore oil and gas assets by international oil companies (IOCs) had also created opportunities for indigenous companies, including Renaissance Africa Energy Company, SEPLAT Energy Producing Unlimited and Oando Energy Resources Nigeria Limited, to acquire the assets and expand their operations.

“The solution to Africa’s energy challenges lies within Africa,” Lokpobiri declared, adding that Nigeria currently produces more than 1.8 million barrels of crude oil per day.

The minister noted that although deep offshore operations remained largely dominated by foreign companies, Nigerian oil and gas operating and service companies had increasingly taken control of land and shallow-water assets, contributing to the growth of local content.

He explained that local content initiatives were funded by the industry through a one per cent Nigerian Content Development Fund (NCDF) levy imposed on awarded upstream oil and gas contracts.

Lokpobiri assured the DRC delegation that Nigeria was willing to share its experiences openly, while conveying greetings from President Bola Tinubu.

Representing NCDMB Executive Secretary, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, the Director of Corporate Services, Dr. Abdulmalik Halilu, said the Board was ready to support the DRC in developing a robust local content framework.

Halilu highlighted Nigeria’s institutional structures, regulatory coordination and 10-year strategic roadmap, which targets 70 per cent in-country value retention and the creation of more than 300,000 direct jobs by 2027.

Onanga praised Nigeria’s progress in developing local capacity, describing it as the only African country to have attained significant self-sufficiency in oil and gas local content.

“We are proud to be in Nigeria to witness what has been accomplished,” he said.

The understudy visit, which will continue until Friday, includes tours of the NCDMB headquarters in Bayelsa State, fabrication workshops at the Onne Free Zone, an NLNG supplier session and the UniPort Gas Centre.

The delegation will also visit the LADOL/Nigerdock yards and participate in other engagements designed to expose DRC officials to Nigeria’s regulatory, institutional and operational approaches to developing local capacity in the petroleum industry