FG reiterates commitment to local content development

To demonstrate the level of support the local content development has garnered from the federal government, Sylva Timipre, Minister of states for petroleum emphasised the importance government  attaches to ensuring that there is in- country capacity development in all segments of the  oil and gas  industry.

At the award Dinner to some companies, Timipre Sylva noted that the awards represent recognition of the contributions of the awardees to the growth and development of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

“The Oil and Gas industry is the mainstay of the Nigerian economy,and anyone who is awarded recognition by the industry is being recognized by Nigeria as a country,” he remarked.

Turning to the two local companies that were given award at the dinner, MG Vowgas and Walter Smith he urged them to do more to save Nigeria from the embarrassment of depending on foreign expatriates for services that Nigerian firms can provide.

MG Vowgas was given award of recognition for investment in in-country capacity in oil and gas for 2019 by NIPS.

The executive secretary NCDMB, Simbi Wabote who presented the award  said  he was not surprised that MG Vowgas was recognised as it has worked very hard to put in place facilities that can do a lot of works in -country.

The MG Vowgas fabrication yard marks a new dawn in local content development in Nigeria as it has  invested  on multifunctional  facilities needed for any form of fabrication in the country.

The facilities at the fabrication yards would convince the international oil companies that never believed that indigenous companies can do great and complex works that meet international standards.

Analysts that visited the yard said International Oil Companies (IOCs) will now have no excuse to carry their jobs outside the country.

MG Vowgas  installed high tech equipment that reduces the timelines for even difficult jobs.
It has also perfected arrangement to start fabrication of modular refinery and boilers for both refineries and oil companies. Fabricating modular refineries would go a long way to solve the problems of raising foreign exchange for promoters of modular refineries in the country.

The company which is purely an indigenous one is also into engineering, procurement and commissioning (EPC) of projects such as fabrication of topsides, building of structural steels, platforms, pressure vessels and has also been active in flow lines repairs. It also provides marine support services by building marine vessels. All of these activities are carried out under the supervision of ASMES.

Also in terms of in country capacity,  the yard has graduated from four workshops in two years ago to having eight workshop today which are equipped with sophisticated machines that are capable of doing various fabrication  works of international standards.

Godwin Izomor, the group managing director of MG Vowgas Nigeria Limited said it was the negative attitudes of  the international oil companies that indigenous companies cannot carry out jobs that would meet international standards, that challenged him to push for the investment he has put in to build the yard that is sitting on around 85,000 square meters of land covering marine warehouse and fabrication yard.