Chibisi Ohakah, Abuja
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said that the exploration drilling efforts in the Kolmani River in the Gongola Basin are very encouraging.
Early in February, President Muhammadu Buhari officially flagged off the spud-in of Kolmani River-II Well in the Gongola Basin, located on the Upper Benue Trough signalling the commencement of drilling operations and the opening of new vistas for the oil industry in Nigeria.
Before then, the NNPC officials had conducted a series of studies and seismic data gathering activities in the Gongola Basin area, which they said showed prospects of hydrocarbon presence. The flag off effectively set forth the drilling operations which was supposed to confirm the presence and volumes of oil and gas.
Speaking during a town hall meeting held at the NNPC Towers in Abuja yesterday, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Mallam Mele Kyari, said in terms of gas and power development, NNPC would support stakeholders along the power value chain to improve generation and transmission which would naturally translate to improved power supply.
“We shall leverage on the existing Direct-Sales-Direct-Purchase product supply arrangement to guarantee energy security for the nation,” he said, assuring that his management would continue with the current efforts to revamp downstream infrastructure to ensure 90% pipeline availability, automation of processes in product distribution system, and growth in NNPC Retail’s market share to 30 per cent.
He charged the staff to support his management to deliver on all the objectives and brace up for greater challenges ahead, noting that as the main enabler of the Nigerian economy, the NNPC must entrench processes to ensure steady production growth and assured profitability across all tiers of the industry.
The highpoint of the meeting was the presentation of his agenda entitled Roadmap to Global Excellence, which encapsulates the strategic focus of his management.
Under the roadmap, NNPC operations under the new management would be anchored on Transparency, Accountability and Performance Excellence (TAPE).
He explained that while the Transparency component of the agenda was aimed at maintaining a positive image, share values of integrity and transparency to all stakeholders, the Accountability leg of the campaign would assure compliance with business ethics, policies, regulations and accountability to all stakeholders.
In terms of the two-prong item of Performance Excellence, Mele Kyari said the idea was to entrench a high level of efficiency anchored on efficient implementation of business processes which would also emplace an appropriate reward system for exceptional performance among the workforce.
Kyari said that under his watch, the NNPC would continue to give attention to safety and security of personnel and assets while creating a business environment that would be anchored on technology and innovation to improve efficiency which would ultimately create the desired outcome of strengthening the NNPC brand.
On the issues of domestic refining capacity, the NNPC GMD said the corporation would pursue the ongoing refinery rehabilitation exercise to a successful conclusion while deliberate efforts would be made to encourage the establishment of new private refineries to ensure that the country becomes a net exporter of refined petroleum products.
The GMD also called on the NNPC workforce to support his drive to put in place a governance structure to consolidate NNPC’s role as the central enabler of the Nigerian economy.
Be the first to know when we publish an update
