Mr. Mina Fiabema is an Energy & Marine Consultant. He consulted for the Rivers State House of Assembly in convening the Port Harcourt International Oil & Gas Conference & Exhibition (PHIOG) held at the Assembly Complex, Port Harcourt. In this interview with our Maritime Correspondent, Blaise Elumezie, the Managing Director of Norge Varer Nigeria, spoke on plethora of issues as they relate to the Marine Sector of the Oil & Gas Industry in Nigeria. Excerpts:
Quest: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE OIL & GAS BUSINESS?
Ans: About 13 years. My training in school was finance but when I moved to Norway, I got involved in Oil & Gas, working for an offshore logistics company.
Quest: FROM THE INCEPTION OF OIL EXPLORATION IN 1953, WOULD YOU SAY THAT THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY HAS IMPACTED POSITIVELY OR NEGATIVELY ON THE LIVES OF NIGERIANS?
Ans: Nigerians depend on Oil; I will say it has impacted positively.
Quest: THE PIB HAS BEEN ON DISCUSS FOR QUITE SOME TIME NOW, DO YOU THINK THERE IS NEED FOR THE BILL TO BE PASSED INTO LAW?
Ans: The Petroleum Industry Bill [PIB] ought to have been passed, but the politicking on the proposed legislation has made it suffer knocks from the National Assembly, eventually it will be passed into law because holistically it is in the interest of Nigerians in relation to the Oil & Gas Industry.
The essence of that bill is to correct most of the anomalies in the mode of extraction and production of crude on the one hand and the distribution of proceeds from exported crude. Nigerians need to be more involved in the Oil sector. The Cabotage Act, Nigerian Content Act and now the PIB are all legislations to enhance more indigenous participation.
Quest: WOULD YOU SAY THAT THE POLICIES OF GOVERNMENT IN THE ENERGY SECTOR HAVE IN ANY WAY HELPED IN THE BUSINESS AND GROWTH OF THE OIL AND GAS SECTOR IN THE COUNTRY?
Ans: Yes. Most of the energy policies of successive governments in Nigeria have helped in redefining the sector positively. The establishment of NNPC in 1977 to the Cabotage and Nigerian Content Act and lately the PIB bill are all designed to include locals in the sector, but the know-how in executing the intentions of Government has been our bane. Deregulation of the downstream for me is a spur for investment by locals, but one also has to take into cognizance the fear that government might not implement the corresponding social programmes to condense the challenges of removal of fuel subsidy. However, I believe the merits of these policies have over the years, far outweighed the demerits.
Quest: THE CABOTAGE LAW WAS ESTABLISHED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO ENCOURAGE INDIGENOUS OPERATORS IN THE MARINE SECTOR AND TO GENERATE REVENUE FOR GOVERNMENT. DO YOU THINK THE LAW HAS MET THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH IT WAS ENACTED?
Ans: The purpose why it was enacted? Yes. It is a stimulus for Local investors to take charge of maritime and especially the marine sector of the Oil & Gas Industry in Nigeria. Locals have responded enormously and the percentage of participants is steadily on the increase.
However, investment financing has hampered the rapid involvement anticipated at inception, but generally speaking, ownership of vessels and associate marine paraphernalia has been inching upwards in percentage.
Quest: THE ISSUE OF OIL THEFT HAS BEEN OCCURRING AND RECURRING, AS AN EXPERT IN THE MARINE SECTOR, WHAT ADVICE OR SOLUTION WOULD YOU PROFER FOR GOVERNMENT TO CURB THIS MENACE?
Ans: Oil theft is actually a menace to the economy of the country. Government has tried fighting it by deploying troops to protect the pipelines from vandals. Firms had been contracted by the Federal Government alongside International Oil Companies (lOCs) to safe guard oil facilities, but sabotage within those contracted for the safekeeping and the brigands have made the efforts futile.
My advice would be that government should: digitalize our surveillance on the oil facilities; encourage sub-sea pipelines, rather than the surface laid pipelines we have today in the Niger Delta as some of the lOCs are already taking this option and most importantly, pass the PIB without expunging the call for the lOCs to pay certain percentage of their profits to host communities. The bill addresses what is expected of these host communities which include surveillance of any oil facility within their domains. In my opinion, that would be the best way to curtail oil theft. Every oil facility lies in a community, if the community benefits directly from such facility, they will do whatever it takes to protect it for the benefit of its people.
Quest: YOU WERE AMONG THE COMMITTEE THAT CONDUCTED THE PORT HARCOURT INTERNATIONAL OIL & GAS CONFERENCE HELD AT THE RIVERS STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY AND JUST RECENTLY ANOTHER SUMMIT ON OIL & GAS WAS HELD IN PORT HARCOURT, WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THESE SUMMITS?
Ans: The Port Harcourt International Oil & Gas Conference/ Exhibition (PHIOG) is being convened by the Rivers State House of Assembly Committee on Energy & Natural Resources and Norge Varer Nigeria as the Consultant or anchor if you like. It was an entirely private sector driven project, while the other, is government financed, organized by the State Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.
Quest: DON’T YOU THINK THAT THE SUMMITS OR CONFERENCES ARE WAYS OF SETTLING POLITICAL LOYALISTS OF THE PRESENT STATE GOVERNMENT?
Ans: No; not at all. It is not about politics. I will not talk about the Oil & Gas Summits by the Ministry, but to say that the PHIOG which I convened, was a product of necessity. On relocating to Nigeria, the House Committee on Energy& Natural Resources, Chaired at the time by Rt. Hon. Otelemaba Dan Amachree (now Speaker of the House) contracted me as a consultant to the committee. Dr. Tonie Egobueze was secretary of the Committee and I got down to business.
I started a survey/ work on “The Oil & Gas Industry; in Relation to Human Capital Development in Rivers State”. I had discussions, interviews etc with captains of the sector, some of them I communicated via questionnaires. They were about 500 firms, the IOCs, oil servicing firms, traders in oil gear and even artisans. At completion, what I perceived that needed utmost attention was information. Indigenes of the state accounted for less than 30% of the entire work force of the sector, due to lack of skills and knowledge on how and what to vend to the industry. You will agree that information is knowledge and knowledge is power. We decided to inform Rivers people on the prospects of the Oil & Gas industry, through the Port Harcourt International Oil & Gas Conference/Exhibition. It is an annual event, and we started it in 2010.
Quest: RECENTLY THE STATE COMMISIONER FOR ENERGY DID SAY THAT THEY WILL ESTABLISH A MINI REFINERY THAT WILL BE PRODUCING ABOUT 2000 BARRELS PER DAY, DO YOU SEE SUCH AS REALIZABLE, LOOKING AT THE TIME CONSTRAINT OF THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT?
Ans: Yes, it is realizable. Government is a continuous process. The project may be accomplished before 2015, but if not, I see the successive government completing it, because, it is an essential and vital developmental scheme.
Quest: IS THERE ANYTHING YOU THINK GOVERNMENT COULD DO FOR THOSE IN THE RIVERINE AREAS, PARTICULARLY THE YOUTHS TO ENGAGE THEM THAT WILL ENABLE THEM TO WATCH OVER OIL FACILITIES IN THEIR COMMUNITIES AND IMPROVE THE MARINE ACTIVITIES IN SUCH AREAS?
Ans: There are so much that government can do to perk up the lives of rural youths. The most curative measure would be to create jobs, but we know resources are scarce. However, skills acquisition programmes can help to prune youth unemployment and restiveness drastically. When one is engaged, all he sees is the challenge posed to him by his engagement, if the mind is idle some thought must fill that vacuum. An idle mind without a means to feed is a disaster waiting to detonate, hence the act of piracy and oil pipeline vandalism. The government can also take information to the creeks in the guise of seminars to educate locals on the consequences of oil facilities vandalism.
Some oil majors are involved in this exercise but it would speak volumes if the government engages the locals. If well articulated skills programmes are devised, youths will key in and at completion can be self employed. The government can also develop a labour syllabus where we can export skilled labour to other African countries. Philippines are known for international labour, which has been earning their economy enormous foreign exchange. We are aware that Nigeria has manpower and that is why there are no jobs because the available jobs are not commensurate to the manpower in the labour market. Folks have individually and privately migrated to other African countries as resourceful persons. The government should as a matter of urgency begin diplomatic moves in other for Nigeria to be a supplier of labour at least in Africa.
Quest: RECENTLY NIGERIA PORTS AUTHORITY, PORT HARCOURT PORTS CELEBRATED 100 YEARS CENTENARY ANNIVERSARY, BUT SOME ARE SAYING THAT THERE WAS NOTHING TO CELEBRATE ABOUT, WHAT IS YOUR TAKE ON THAT, SIR?
Ans: Anything that is 100 years is worth celebrating, I say congratulations to them. In real terms, maritime and commercial activities in the Ports have declined tremendously over the years, but that does change the fact that the Ports has operated for 100 years. The past years have been slow, but there can be an upward shift sooner than later if the dynamics of enterprise become favourable to the operators.
Quest: BUT SOME SEE IT AS SABOTAGE OR A WAY OF IMPROVERISHING IMPORTERS FROM THE SOUTH EASTERN PART OR THE COUNTRY AND THAT THERE SHOULD BE NO NEED FOR ANY DIFFERENCE IN FREIGHT CHARGES?
Ans: I cannot talk much on freight because I do not know what the charges are. That is Maritime, while I am concerned with Marine in Oil & Gas.
However, I am aware that the Ports in Port Haecorut and Lagos have been given to concessionaires. I will not call the frustration experienced by the Port Harcourt Ports (former NPA) sabotage, but rather, what I would call competitor strangulation. The terminal operators at Onne such as WACT and Brawal are doing well. So, I would expect the terminal operators at the Port Harcourt Ports to up their game.
Importers would prefer a Ports with regular traffic, so that their goods can come in good time. Most international cargos are routed to Lagos because the traffic is higher. Do remember that Lagos is the industrial and commercial city of Nigeria. No policy stops an importer from making Port Harcourt his cargo destination but realistically, the importer would want his cargo to berth at the shortest possible Ports, which makes Lagos the centre of attraction. The stakeholders understand what I mean, my advice is that they should become more competitive rather than lay the blame on sabotage.
Quest: DO YOU THINK THERE IS NEED TO GIVE PRESIDENT JONATHAN ANOTHER CHANCE TO CONSOLIDATE IN HIS TRANSFORMATION AGENDA?
Ans: Very well so. Personality wise: He is Nigeria’s first true democratic President. He is calm, liberal and accommodates opposition. I consider him a war time President because of the level of insecurity since his inception. I admire and respect his approach to conflict resolution. Upon all the restiveness in our polity, there has not been any form of political killings.
As for his policies, I don’t quite agree with a few but most of his policies are geared toward transforming Nigeria. The rot in our society will take decades to clean up and I state without fear or favour that he is on the right course. I will not list them out here because I am not his spokesman, only answering your question. Most importantly I will support him because I opine that he is the best amongst all those, as at now, clamouring to be President in the political class. There could be somebody somewhere with the credentials who could come up and I change my mind, but for now, there is no second guessing. President Jonathan is the head and shoulders ahead of his perceived opponents.
Quest: TAKING A LOOK AT SOME OF THE ISSUES YOU HAVE RAISED, WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR THE RIVERS PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO KEY INTO THE OIL & GAS BUSINESS THAT PROVIDENCE HAS PROVIDED FOR THEM?
Ans: Rivers people need to be informed. In all honesty, Information is the scarcest commodity in Nigeria, while Time is the most surplus. It is this mix that has caused the country so much, especially restiveness.
How can one control his resources if you no little or nothing about the resources? Resource control does not necessarily translate to 50 or 100% derivation from crude oil proceeds. It means a lot more. It means involvement in the industry and actually controlling the sector.
For example, Oil was struck in the 50’s yet it took Nigeria over 20 years to establish NNPC in 1977. NNPC in joint venture with the lOCs, and as majority shareholders in the JV, did not make the envisaged impact of oil benefits to Nigerians. It took us another 30 years to realize we need more indigenous participation before the likes of the Cabotage Act, Nigerian Content Act and the Petroleum Industry Bill came on stream. The simple reason is that we were not aware. These Acts of Parliament were informed when Oil and Gas conferences were introduced to Nigerians. We got to understand the workings of the industry and realized we could do it.
In like manner, pardon me if I say the Rivers man is not sufficiently rivet, absorbed and engaged in the Oil & Gas industry. This is the essence of the Port Harcourt International Oil & Gas Conference/ Exhibition. We need to enlighten people, give them updates on the ever evolving techniques in the industry and put them in the picture of being prospective investors to grasp the opportunities the Oil & Gas Industry reform is bringing to their door steps. We know they can compete. A captain in the industry once asked me why the conference every year, that after all, it’s the same talk, talk and talk. I responded by saying, yes we will continue to talk and talk until a sizeable number of persons are enlightened, knowledge is infinite and as we continue talking, somebody is learning something, knowledge is being gained, people rediscover themselves and ambitions are realized.
As a parting word, my advice to the government and the private sector is to encourage and sponsor the Port Harcourt International Oil & Gas Conference and Exhibition (PHIOG). ###
