What we saw At the Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference 2021
Our Report Of DMG Events' Nigerian Oil & Gas Conference 2021 in Abuja, Nigeria.
The Event
The 20th Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference (NOG 20) was held from the 5th to the 8th of July 2021, and an Adrianople Group Representative was present for the event in Abuja, Nigeria.
HM Timipre Sylva (Minister of State for Petroleum Resources of Nigeria) giving his opening remarks.
Main Themes
The event was themed “Fortifying the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry for Economic Stability and Growth”, focusing on evaluating Nigeria’s position within the industry, increasing global investment into cleaner sources of energy.
The volatility of oil prices were another subject of analysis, and the recently passed Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in Nigeria was discussed at length, examining the future of Oil & Gas production in the country.
Speakers & Highlights
Speakers included representatives of the Nigerian government, CEOs of both International and local oil companies, national leaders in the oil and gas space and many others who provided insightful commentary on the nature of not just the impact of COVID-19 on the industry, but also its general direction.
The key parts of the conference were made up of the speech of HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo (Secretary General of OPEC) who highlighted the effects of Covid-19, how OPEC plans to boost the industry and respond to the net zero carbon initiative. Also, there were conversations regarding the federal government’s declaration of year 2021 – 2030 as the decade of Gas and which steps were being taken to achieve this goal. Furthermore, the IOC’s discussed the reductions in investment in the past and why this needs to be ramped up to encourage the growth of the gas industry and diversification into other energy alternatives.
NLNG Train 7 Project
Particularly interesting was discussions centred around the current NLNG train 7 project which would bring total capacity of Nigeria’s LNG capacity to 30 mtpa. In a statement made by Simbi Wabote at the conference, he stated that “Nigeria is a gas country with a spot of oil”. Also, the Exhibition Centre erected outside the conference provided the opportunity for companies to display their biggest projects so far which was educative and gave insights to where the key focus is on the industry.
Despite many questions about investments and the net zero carbon initiative, the focus on the event remained primarily on matters of adapting to new technologies and seeking out new business opportunities that would help achieve the decade of gas goals. The newly passed PIB would also help foster growth, and AG will continue to monitor the developments in this space.
Conclusion
In closing, this event was an excellent opportunity to not only learn more about the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry, but also to build relationships and networks to last this coming decade of uncertainty and competition. AG will likely attend further events to maintain our knowledge edge in the Oil and Gas sector.