INDIA has replaced the US as the largest importer of Nigeria’s crude oil with China and Malaysia emerging second and third respectively.
It also emerged that the United States has not stopped importing crude oil from Nigeria but it has drastically reduced to 250, 000 barrels per day.
A statement by the Group General Manager Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Ohi Alegbe, in Abuja Thursday said with reduction by the US, India, with daily import of 2.5million barrels per day of Nigeria oil, has now taken over as the largest importer of Nigeria oil.
The statement quoted the Coordinator Corporate Planning and Strategy, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Dr. Tim Okon, as saying this while speaking at the on-going 21st World Petroleum Congress taking place in Moscow, Russia.
Dr. Okon, who also doubles as the Director of Transformation of the NNPC, explained that Nigeria would not ignore any market in its quest to remain competitive in the global oil and gas industry.
His words: “Asia is important and in that respect we have regards for all markets; the important thing is to make sure that you are selling the products that you have and you do not ignore any market.”
He noted that Nigeria is participating in the congress to access global business opportunities in the petroleum industry especially in the gas sub-sector to enable it to position itself as a major competitor in the hydrocarbon market.
He said as a natural resource rich country, Nigeria is working hard to do a better job in developing such resources and translating them to the wider economy.
While stressing that the country does not have preference markets for its products, he however admitted that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) currently before the National Assembly needs to be speedily passed into law to enable the country maximize its potentials in the oil and gas industry.
“I cannot talk about future incentives if the principal law that would give birth to it has not been passed but I want to say that the general intention is that Nigeria must compete in the market place and our fiscal systems are designed to be competitive that would lead to good outcomes for the country.
“It is always helpful to do things in a timely manner and that is an important point to stress. Many of the countries that were trying to get new legislations passed like Ghana, Brazil, Mozambique and even Uganda have passed their legislation. So I think timeliness is of the essence,” Dr. Okon stressed.
Roundly regarded as the global oil and gas industry equivalent of the Olympics, the World Petroleum Congress is the biggest congregation of oil and gas experts on the global stage. The Congress essentiality consists an exhibition and conference.
Nigeria’s participation at the gathering is anchored on the theme `Harnessing Nigeria’s Gas Resources for Sustainable National and Regional Development’.
Source: Guardian
