*Puts French multinational’s daily production at over 300,000bpd
*Urges IOC to bring pending oil assets to production
Peter Uzoho
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, has said French multinational oil company, TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited has produced over 3.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent and invested billions of dollars since it began production in the country in the last 60 years.
The minister, who put the oil major’s daily oil and condensate production in the country at over 300,0000 barrels per day, however, urged the company to double its efforts towards bringing its pending oil assets to production.
Sylva stated these in his goodwill message at the TotalEnergies EP Nigeria’s 60th anniversary dinner in Lagos, saying the company has maintained a sustainable partnership with Nigeria in the oil and gas upstream sector.
Represented at the occasion by the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, Sylva stated: “Available records within the Commission reveals that TotalEnergies has produced a cumulative volume of over 3.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent in Nigeria, with investments running into billions of dollars.”
Recognising further, the impact the company had made on the Nigerian economy, the minister added that “With production levels of over 300,000 barrels per day of crude oil and condensate, the company contributes almost a quarter of the country’s current liquid production. However, we believe more can be done to improve your current production.”
He said the success story of the Nigerian oil and gas upstream sector would not be complete without mentioning the contributions of TotalEnergies from 1962 when it started as Safrap before officially changing names to Elf, Total Fina Elf, Total E&P and now TotalEnergies.
According to the minister, the active regulatory compliance by the French oil giant from the days of the defunct Petroleum Inspectorate and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to the present NUPRC cannot be overemphasised.
He noted that that effective partnership and regulatory compliance led to the discovery and development of several fields with huge potentials such as Amenam/Kpono, Akpo, Usan, and Egina among others.
These discoveries, Sylva maintained, had contributed to the growth of the national oil and gas reserves and production as well as improved revenues for both government and TotalEnergies.
He said the company has provided several job opportunities for the Nigerian populace both directly as staff of the company and indirectly as third-party vendors and contractors providing various services with an attendant transfer of skills and knowledge.
He noted that that the investments by the oil major contributed significantly to the nation’s economic growth and transfer of relevant skills to indigenous Nigerians.
“Let me at this time say that TotalEnergies is one of the companies that have weathered the storm in doing business in the Niger Delta.
“The sustenance of their operations within the Niger Delta may not be unconnected to the effective implementation of active Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and carrying out of various Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR), which has helped in building a friendly relationship and wellbeing with their host communities and the immediate environment,” Sylva stated.
The minister urged the international oil company (IOC) not to relent on its efforts at utilising developmental openings in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria.
Sylva specifically urged TotalEnergies to double its efforts towards bringing its pending field developments such as the Preowei, Ikike, Egina South among others into production,
He reminded the company that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 provided ample opportunities for profitable investment, while the government was also making frantic efforts at improving the security situation within the oil and gas operational areas.
The minister expressed belief that the attractive fiscal, regulatory and governance provisions in the PIA, especially as it involves the host Communities and Remediation Funds, would further put to rest all agitations within the host communities and hence foster a more conducive business environment for TotalEnergies and other willing investors in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria.
He commended the French multinational for being the first company that has signified interest to take advantage of the new fiscal regime in the PIA to convert from the Oil Mining Lease (OML) to the Petroleum Mining Lease (PML) within the period specified for voluntary conversion in the Act.
“This is a proof of TotalEnergies desire and commitment to regulatory compliance in its business pursuits in Nigeria, and in the words of your former Managing Director, Elisabeth Proust, ‘Total is in Nigeria to stay’, we would therefore continue to put in our best efforts through constructive engagement with all stakeholders in order to ensure the growth and development of Nigeria”, Sylva added.
