Non-passage of PIB fuelling uncertainty in the oil, gas industry ― Kyari

The Group Managing Director (GMD), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari on Tuesday, said the delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) is fuelling uncertainty in the oil and gas industry.

This was even as he appealed to the House of Representatives’ Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), to facilitate the speedy passage of the critical bill.

The GMD stated this while receiving members of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), who were on an oversight visit to the Corporation in Abuja.

He said the delay in the passage of the Bill has deprived the oil and gas industry of massive investments.

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Kyari, in a statement, lamented that international investors were already losing confidence in the nation’s oil and gas industry.

According to him, the absence of a stable fiscal environment was inhibiting the growth of the Nigerian petroleum industry, especially the upstream sector.

He said: “We need to act quickly to move from this unstable situation to a very stable one and the only way is for us to get the PIB to work so that countries and investors can work with us.”

He argued that the only way to attract foreign capital needed in the upstream sector was to have stable laws and a friendly business environment that could guarantee cost recovery and a decent return on investment for investors.

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In his remarks Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Musa Sarki Adar expressed the readiness of his committee to provide the necessary support for the corporation to discharge its duties without hindrance.

He acknowledged the NNPC’s efforts at deepening transparency and accountability, stressing that the committee was impressed with the level of professionalism exhibited by the NNPC management and the leadership role played by Kyari in rallying the oil and gas industry to provide support for the Federal Government’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.