Total Group has invested $10 billion into Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Total Upstream Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Nicolas Terraz, has said.
Terraz stated this at the 2017 Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition (NAICE) of the Society for Petroleum Engineers (SPE) where he explained that the $10 billion investment figure was achieved in the last five years.
The Total boss said at the moment, the company has expertise and strong positions in the onshore, offshore and deep offshore.
“Our Egina field development, which is near completion, is expected to add 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) to Nigeria’s output when it comes on stream in 2018. Today, the industry is facing a shakeout as oil price is still low and the economy is recovering from recession. It is my hope that the 2017 NAICE will provide a platform for all participants to reason together in a common objective of positioning the industry to be able to absorb the vagaries of fluctuating price regimes, uncertainties and other challenges within the operating environment,’’ he said.
Terraz maintained that the oil and gas business is a global one, stating that the time has come for SPE, other professional bodies in the industry and all other stakeholders, to look inwards for home-made solutions that will help Nigeria cushion the effects and ride the wave of ups and downs, the good times and the bad times, in an increasingly unpredictable global market.
He stated that there is no gainsaying the fact that global market conditions might be identical but the local circumstances of nations are unique to them and so are the solutions.
He affirmed that Total will continue to partner with SPE, the government, partners and all stakeholders to build and nurture a stable oil and gas industry insulated from the discomfort of the waves of boom and bust.
He commended the organisers of the conference for putting up an event of such magnitude and mustering participation at these trying times for the industry, when most activities are being challenged in order to conserve resources for only core operational functions.