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International oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria have outlined factors that led to the crash in global crude oil prices.
To effectively surmount the challenges posed by the plunge in crude prices, the IOCs called for collaboration among stakeholders.
They noted that strong partnerships among African governments as well as with oil sector players would help reduce the harsh impact of the sectoral challenge.
The Chairman/Managing Director, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Mr. Clay Neff, stated that although the Federal Government had put in place policies and initiatives for the transformation and growth of the industry in the country, the plunge in global crude prices still posed a huge challenge.
Neff, in a document made available to our correspondent in Abuja, said, “Some of the factors responsible for this challenge are the weakening of growth in countries like China, slow economic recovery in Europe and the exploitation of Shale oil by the United States, turning the US into the largest producer of oil in 2014.
“However, the good news is that the industry and the Federal Government of Nigeria are collaborating to mitigate these challenges. Success at the continental level, and indeed globally, starts with a critical recognition that producing and consuming countries, the IOCs and all stakeholders must understand that when it comes to challenges of the industry, we are all playing for the same team.
“Therefore, collaboration is very important. It is our belief that through collaboration, we can together come up with practical solutions that will help address the challenges facing the industry.”
Similarly, the Managing Director, Sahara Group, an energy conglomerate, Mr. Tonye Cole, told journalists in Abuja that the crash in oil prices had created worries in the sector and stressed that this had prompted talks among industry operators.
He said, “I’ve been in this industry for the past 20 years and during this period, we have seen oil prices move up and down, and is always constantly moving. But the one thing that you see when oil price start coming down to the level that it is now is that it creates worry and make people sit down and for the first time begin to ask how can we get out of this crisis.
“Now, the common viewpoint is that everybody needs to survive in this period. The government, oil companies, stakeholders and even the local communities who agitate that the crude is their resource, need to survive. So, that survival is why everybody needs to and should be able to come together and say how do we forge ahead from here.”
On measures to be adopted in order to ensure survival in the business, particularly in Nigeria, Cole stated that stakeholders must begin to look inwards for solutions to some of the problems in the sector.
