Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), has advised industry stakeholders on the need to ensure that current and future wholesale gas and petroleum liquids supply demands are met.
According to him, this is the collective responsibility of everybody in the sector, including the Authority. He further states that this is not only critical to the national economy but also integral to the global energy market.
The Authority chief who made this remark on Monday at the Stakeholder Sensitisation Workshop on Wholesale Supply Operations in Nigeria held in Lagos, adding that the objective of the engagement is to address issues and concerns raised during the first phase of the NMDPRA sensitisation program, to reach an alignment that will enable the effective implementation of the wholesale supply operations
The Authority chief who was represented by Joseph Tolorunshe, legal Adviser/ Secretary of the Authority, said: “As a brief reminder, the PIA came into existence in August 2021, introducing licences for wholesale supply operations as prescribed in sections 142 and 197 of the Act. These licences are the appropriate licences for entities engaged in, or wishing to engage in, the sale and delivery of natural gas and petroleum liquids, for domestic use or exports. Wholesale gas and petroleum liquids supply operations marks a significant evolution from the Petroleum Act of 1969 (PA) that was focused on production and exports only, to the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021 (PIA), which ensures domestic energy security in addition to exports.”
He stated that the benefits of wholesale supply operations cannot be over emphasized. These he stated, include fostering investments across the petroleum value chain, enhancing transparency in hydrocarbon measurement, providing tools for enforcing domestic obligations, ensuring arm’s length dealings for a level playing field, and acting as a pathway for willing buyer-willing seller transactions of Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources, amongst many other significant advantages.
He said due to unresolved issues, NMDPRA has been overwhelmed with disagreements regarding the implementation of wholesale supply operations. And so, at this stakeholder sensitisation workshop: “your issues and concerns will be discussed and NMDPRA’s position on these concerns will be provided, in an interactive manner. “
He therefore appealed to the stakeholders to ensure that they all work collaboratively in enabling the operationalisation of these guidelines that will pave the way for optimised midstream and downstream oil and gas operations, energise development of infrastructure and foster collaborations that will contribute to the growth of our nation’s energy sector.
