‘PIA Will Create Investment Opportunities In Oil & Gas Industry’

The Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) will engender trust and enhance investors’ confidence towards achieving a successful transitioning of the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry, says Quest Oil & Engineering Services Limited.

The head, Gas & Power for Quest Oil & Engineering Services, Engr. George Amara, at the recently concluded Strategic International Annual Conference 2022 organised by the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) in Lagos, stated that the PIA will enhance investors’ confidence in the sector due to the possibility of recouping such funds.

He further said, the stakeholder-based inclusiveness framework and market-driven nature of the Act, provides a transparent platform for both the regulators and operators to work together, where the former acts as partners in progress.

He also harped on the need for stakeholders to collaborate in order to succeed in this transitioning phase of the industry.

While supporting the call for right pricing of petroleum products, Amara opined that, it is imperative for market forces to be given the right of way to encourage competition within the industry as in other climes.

According to him, this will drive growth and development of the downstream oil and gas sector.

He also emphasised the need for local refining of the petroleum products in order to lower the operational/logistic costs, create employment in-country and harness the entire value chain benefits of the petroleum and other related industries.

Another panelist at the event, the president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria(PENGASSAN), Comrade Festus Osifo, noted that, in order to build lasting success in the industry, government needs to prioritize the refineries.

To him, this has the potential of producing a multiplier effect of better pricing and ensuring availability of products for the Nigerian people.

The NAEC Strategic Conference is an annual event which brings together leaders, captains of industry, government and policy makers as well as the media to discuss strategies that will promote better management of the industry and enhance collaboration between the government and private sector players and ultimately navigate the emerging business environment.