FORMER Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Funso Kupolokun, has decried the non-passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), saying it could inhibit development of needed capacity in the oil and gas sector.Speaking in Abuja, at the weekend, on the topic Fiscal terms of the PIB: A comparism with existing terms, at the fourth yearly Nigerian Association for Energy Economics (NAEE) seminar, Kupolokun declared that Nigeria must move swiftly to confront security concerns, funding, form partnerships, among other concerns, if the aspiration to grow Nigerias reserves was to be achieved.He said: While the PIB is aimed at complete transformation of the industry, the unintended delay, combined with other issues, including security concerns, funding, partners non alignment, infrastructure inadequacy, human capacity shortage, contract cycle time etc, continued to pose significant challenges to industry vibrancy and indeed impede growth of oil reserves and production, gas availability and national content development. He said the PIB, still pending at the National Assembly is principally meant to address institutional reforms, legal framework for operating in the industry, fiscal reforms, which included wide range of changes to some key fiscal provisions of PPTA, PSC, PSC commercial terms and gas fiscal terms.Relying on the economic calculations of what has accrued to Nigeria as a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Kupolokun submitted that Nigeria has not gained much as a member of the group.Although Nigeria is a member of OPEC, from economic standpoint, it is a weak link in the club. And Nigerias position is rather vulnerable in the face of price fluctuation dictating a compelling need for sustained activity to grow oil reserves and production capacity as well as optimal terms for revenue maximisation, he added.On his part, the out-going president of NAEE, Prof Akin Iwayemi of the department of Economics, University of Ibadan, decried the paradox of energy insecurity highlighted by energy poverty, inadequate and unreliable energy service provision despite the enormous endowments of non-renewable and renewable primary energy resources.He added that energy deficit of the country has indeed lead to colossal loss and urged energy economists in the country to come to the aid of government and policy makers with a view to making informed decision on energy provision initiatives.He identified deterioration of energy infrastructure, which has resulted in inadequate and unreliable energy supply to end-users, low capital income and high level of poverty of most Nigerians and the political economy of deregulation, privatisation, restructuring and market liberalisation as formidable bane that are happening reliable sully of power.The Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Prof Kassey Garba called on NAEE to come up with scientific and verifiable advise to government on how to get out of energy quagmire.She said: It has become conventional wisdom that government cannot transform the economy alone. This is why Association such as yours must engage government productively and contribute to the provision of sound evidence-based advise. The Office of the Chief Economic Adviser to the President is keen to engage with your Association in its mandate to promote innovative transformative projects across the critical sectors of our economy. We have already started building strong public-private partnerships with manufacturers in the South East zone and it has become clear that efficient power system is indispensable to unlocking the vast potentials of our manufacturers. We have located at least 11 industrial clusters in the geopolitical zones all of which require an efficient power system to develop and compete globally.
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