‘Passage of PIB, key to attracting foreign investments to Nigeria’
THE passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law is key to attracting foreign investments into the country, the oil service contractors have said.
The PIB, according to the Chairman of the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC), Ote Enaibe, remains the bedrock for foreign operators to know if they would invest in the long-term regime of the nation’s oil and gas industry or not.
Enaibe, who stated that nonpassage of the bill is creating fears among the investors, said only a legal framework could pave way for foreign direct investments to come into the industry in Nigeria. The IADC chairman spoke in Port Harcourt yesterday during the 2018 Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) rig owners and operators’ meeting.
Enaibe, who called for a reversal on the oil price, lamenting that the Federal Government forced the oil service contactors to reduce the price by 40 per cent, which according to him brought heavy setbacks and struggle, said an increase of price would enable the oil service contractors meet up with the standard the industry expects from them.
Similarly, the Zonal Operations Controller of DPR, Dr. Frank Briggs, noted that the fluctuating crude oil price, among others, remains the major challenges facing the oil and gas industry in the country.
Also, the Business and Government Relations Manager, SPDC, Mr. Ighemuno Onokpite, said the meeting created a platform for all concerned to proffer solution that would help the industry to move forward.
He also expressed the hope that the fluctuation of the oil price, which affects oil industry activities, would be addressed.