Calls grow for open licensing to drive oil, gas competitiveness

A journalist and a lawyer have called for open licensing to drive competitiveness in the petroleum downstream sector and enhance market accessibility.

They made the call at the a media roundtable organised by Extractive360, a media outlet, in Abuja, on Wednesday.

Presenting the welcome remarks, Juliet Ukamwosu, executive director, extractive360, said the Nigerian petroleum downstream sector is navigating a complex phase marked by both opportunities and challenges.

She said the sector’s current state is characterised by fluctuating product prices, high operating costs, irregular foreign exchange rates, import dependency for refined products, and infrastructural bottlenecks.

Ukamwosu noted that key challenges in the sector include price volatility, infrastructural bottlenecks, aging infrastructure, lack of investment and import dependence, among others.

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She said liberalisation policy has opened up the sector to more private sector participation, investment in storage and distribution infrastructure, and conversations around refining capacity expansion.

In his presentation entitled, ‘Competitiveness in the Nigerian Petroleum Downstream Sector,’ Olasubomi Chucku, a lawyer, noted that despite the enactment of the PIA, the market is still fairly closed.

Other challenges he noted include a near or emerging monopoly in refining and weak price competition due to limited participants, artificial scarcity as well as regulation inertia due to superlative influences

In his recommendations, the legal expert called for the development of open access regulatory platforms with API integration, and limitation of partners from dominating the market.

He urged the government to ensure that there are no non-discriminatory concessions while applying taxes across board.

Ruth Tene Natsa

Ruth Tene, Assistant Editor, Agric/Solid Minerals/INEC Ruth Tene is an award-winning journalist with over 15 years experience in developmental reporting across several newsrooms, as a reporter, editor and other managerial roles. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism from the University of Maiduguri among several other certifications She has attended several trainings and certifications both locally and internationally and has been recognized for her impactful work in humanitarian reporting, receiving the Gold Award for Humanitarian Services from the Amazing Grace Foundation. She is also a recipient of the Home Alliance Fellowship, reflecting her commitment to fostering a more humane, safer and more sustainable planet. An active member of professional journalism bodies, Ruth is affiliated with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), and the Agricultural Correspondents Association of Nigeria (ACAN), where she continues to advocate for excellence, ethical reporting, and development-focused journalism.