THE Group General Manager, GGM, Nigerian Upstream Investment Services, NUIS, an arm of the NNPC Limited, Bala Wunti, yesterday, disclosed that Nigeria expects to attract additional foreign direct investments, FDIs, worth between $18 and $20 billion in the next one year.
Wunti, who noted that the FDIs are expected mainly because of the nation's Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, urged investors to invest in the oil and gas industry.
He said: "In the international market, capital has become very discriminatory against fossil fuel. We also know that capital has become very impatient. Everybody wants to invest today and harvest tomorrow. Nobody wants to wait for a 10-year circle.
"Therefore, if Nigeria and those in the industry want to attract this capital, "we must structure ourselves in such a way as we will be speedy, not only being speedy, we will key into the global dynamics and narratives of carbon and emissions management."
Speaking at a panel session at the ongoing NOG Energy Week in Abuja, he said that many projects, including Agbami gas and Exxonmobil's Owowo field, have already attracted investors' commitments.
He said: "We are significantly advancing on the Agbami gas project, which is bringing in billions of foreign direct investments.
"On top of that, we all know the Owowo project, which Exxon has put in the freezer has been unfreezed, courtesy of the PIA and removal of the Production Sharing Contract, PSC. Put all these together, we see an outlook of between $ 18 billion and $20 billion in the next one year."
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Similarly, the Commission Chief Executive, Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe disclosed that the Commission seeks to become a business enabler, leveraging regulations to create an enabling environment for investors in Nigeria.
He stated: "We are creating regulatory incentives that make issuances quicker in a manner that will shorten turnaround time and that will impact favorably on the unit cost of production because businesses are looked at on the basis of profitability."
The Managing director, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited, Elohor Aiboni, said the government should improve the investment environment, stressing that investors look out for stability, funding, ethics, compliance, and security.
Also, the Managing Director, Seplat Petroleum Development Company, Roger Brown, said the government should not only put in place regulations but should ensure that they are implemented.
However, the Managing director/Country manager, TechnipF, Tayo Akinkunmi, who noted that the nation needs to become very intentional about enhancing oil and gas investments, said: "If you look at the valuation of the NLNG today, it is in excess of the entire companies listed on the stock exchange. That's a long-term gain that we have to be looking at. NLNG has paid over $20 billion dividend to the Nigerian government."
