The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Simbi Kesiye Wabote has applauded the pace of work at the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics base (LADOL), stressing that he will be on hand to inaugurate the Egina FPSO in the fourth quarter of this year.
Wabote stated this in Lagos when he led a team of his officials and other top industry service providers and international oil companies (IOCs) on a facility tour of the base at the Apapa Ports Complex, Lagos.
LADOL is currently playing host to the fabrication of a $3.8 billion oil and gas logistics service facility commonly known as the Floating Production Storage and Offloading –FPSO rig, otherwise called the Egina project.
The project which has been applauded as first -of- its- kind in the sub-Saharan Africa is being handled by the Korea-based Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) on behalf of Total Oil Exploration, with LADOL serving as its local content partner. He said the indigenous oil and gas logistics service provider is a testimony of the success story of local content laws in Nigeria.
On the pace of work at LADOL, he said: “So far so good I have seen remarkable progress. I was here in December last year and I saw some of these things been fabricated. Today I am here again, I can see a discipline work force. My only fear now is what will happen to the thousands of Nigerians working here if we do not have projects coming on stream. As you recall I have been going round to visit some of the IOCs in the last few weeks to ask them the projects they have on stream and their challenges.
“We are also looking at how the Nigerian content can help accelerate those projects so that we can keep Nigerians employed. Luckily for us, this is the first integration on FPSO that is happening in Nigeria and I believe that nobody can tell is now that we cannot do it. Now we have fabricated six module, the next project should go beyond that, we cannot as a country go backwards it is only forward that we can go. So I tell project promoters, the IOCs and indigenous companies that we must have a benchmark in the future FPSO that we have in the country using Egina as a benchmark of what is acceptable in the country.
“We will continue to pursue the letters of the law, what the law wants to achieve in terms of local content, be it capacity for our fabrication industry, capacity for Nigerians. We must continue to move up the trajectory instead of coming down. I also believe in the maxim and I say it everywhere I go that if there is no project there can be no local content. If Egina has achieved this others should be looking at surpassing it. “
The Managing Director of LADOL, Dr. Amy Jadesimi said the location of LADOL in Lagos was informed by the growth in oil and gas activities in the country, and that a deep offshore logistics company in the region will guarantee an effective control of domestication of deep offshore activities in the industry.
On why the NCDMB was at LADOL, he said he was there to inspect progress being made in the LADOL FPSO facility on the Egina project.
“As you heard him say, we are moving on schedule. On LADOL side we are committed to supporting more fabrication across the country because the more fabrication there is the more integration for us to do. This is a none stop train and it is fantastic for local content,” she said.
The Chief Operating Officer, SHI Nigeria, Mr. Frank Ejizu, explained that the Quay side was ready to receive the FPSO, noting that the tracks have been certified. On the workforce, Ejizu stated that 364 Nigerian welders have been qualified and awarded international certifications with which they can work anywhere in the world.
The NCDMB chief also visited the facilities of Dover Engineering, JC International and Thompson and Grace Limited, all located in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. He explained that his visits to oil and gas facilities across the country were aimed at assessing capacities and confirming that Nigerian companies have firm footing in their areas of operation.
According to Wabote, information and observations gathered from the visits will be used during tenders and in planning for capacity development. He also promised to enlighten IOCs and project promoters on existing in-country capacities and ensure their utilisation during projects.
At Dover Engineering, Wabote noted that experts in offshore designs, FSPO designs and detailed engineering were in high demand and engineering companies must develop strategies to retain them so their competences will not be lost. He praised the company for forming a consortium with other engineering firms to deliver major projects, charging other service companies to emulate the model.
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