Over 40 Nigerian oil servicing companies and 15 British firms met last week in Lagos under the auspices of Shell-UKTI Partner Programme for Supply Chain opportunities in an attempt to build partnerships that will lead to the development of indigenous capacities in the oil and gas industry.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Denzil Kentebe assured that the Board will continue to support every initiative geared to develop the local oil and gas industry.
Kentebe applauded the partnership that has developed between UK firms and their Nigerian counterparts especially in the oil and gas industry, noting that such partnerships will help to build business ventures and create opportunities for Nigerians to be gainfully employed.
The Executive Secretary who was represented by the Director, Monitoring and Evaluation, NCDMB, Mr. Tunde Adelana further commended the efforts of Shell Nigeria in promoting partnerships between UK companies and their Nigerian counterparts.
He explained that the underlying goal of the Nigerian Content Act is the development of local capacity and employment generation and Nigerians must be determined to pursue these in their quest for partnerships.
He stressed that without building local manufacturing of components used by the industry, there would be limited Nigerian Content growth and creation of employment opportunities would be stunted.
In his words “the Board conceived the Equipment Components Manufacturing Initiative to get local representatives of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) in Nigeria to partner with such OEMs to set up manufacturing facilities in Nigeria.”
He explained that the Board made it compulsory that any equipment supplied for use in the oil and gas industry must have a timeline for some of the components to be manufactured locally.
He reported that the initiative had started yielding positive results as some of the OEMs have begun to domicile the manufacture of their equipment components in the country.
In his remarks, the Deputy British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Ray Kyles said that over 50 partnerships have been formed by British and Nigerian companies through the programme in the last three years.
He expressed hope that the attending UK firms would meet matching Nigerians partners that will help them enter the Nigeria market.
In his welcome address, the General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Shell Nigeria, Mr. Chiedu Oba underscored Shell’s long term development of Nigerian companies and the nation’s economy.
He stated that Shell Nigeria had in 2014 awarded over 90 per cent of its contracts valued at $1.9bn to Nigerian companies so as to demonstrate that indigenous capabilities have developed over time.
