The Centre for Petroleum Information (CPI) held its second energy finance forum last Friday, with stakeholders including investment bankers, energy lawyers, analysts and indigenous oil sector players taking part in discussions.
“The relevance of local companies in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria is continuously increasing. Access to capital, whether it is debt or equity, will determine success. The wider, global pool, if tapped will open newer vistas for the local players. It is critical that attention be paid to governance, as it is the single most important factor if one wants to be considered attractive globally” Omar Hafeez, MD&CEO Citibank Nigeria Limited, said at the CPI Energy conference.
Some of the issues confronting the sector include security, non passage of the petroleum industry bill, and low financial system lending capacity, according to Emeka Emuwa, MD/CEO, Union Bank of Nigeria.
“The financing needs for the sector are significant,” said Emuwa.
“There is the need for creativity in tackling the capital needs of the oil, gas and power sector.”
Some headwinds for the sector include the lack of movement on new trains for NLNG. Asia which remains power hungry is expected to drive 55 percent of global natural gas growth between 2012 and 2035.
“Some of the biggest plants will be built in Australia,” said Victor Eromosele, CEO of ME consulting limited.
“This may affect Nigerian gas exports by 2020,” Eromosele said.
The global oil and gas capex in 2013 exceeded $1.1 trillion and the major areas financed were LNG plants, oil and gas pipelines and petrochemical plants.
Industry experts at the forum agreed on the need for Nigeria to position itself to attract more of the global capital flowing into oil and gas capex in the coming years.
Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date
Open In Whatsapp
