NOGEC designed to achieve cost reduction, increase production, and value maximization in oil and gas industry
By Chief Timipre Sylva
It is my profound delight to warmly welcome all in attendance, both physically and virtually, to this historic event – the commissioning of the National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre (NOGEC) situated at the DPR Annex, 7, Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.
You would recall that immediately following Mr. President’s mandate for the oil and gas sector at the beginning of this administration, we rolled out nine (9) key delivery priorities for industry growth and sustainability. Thanks to the formidable leadership of His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who is also the Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources, we have continued to implement sustainable reforms and policy directions in the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry targeted at driving optimum value from our petroleum resources for Nigerians. The National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre which is being commissioned today is a testament to the successes achieved in this regard.
NOGEC has been carefully designed to support the achievement of the ministerial priorities – significant amongst which are cost reduction, increase in production, and value maximization in the industry. The Centre, under the direct supervision of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), will leverage the existing capacity of the National Data Repository (NDR) as the principal data warehouse of the industry to drive initiatives that will enhance Safety, Value and Cost-efficiency across all operations in the Industry.
The establishment of the National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre is not only a response to a safer, cost-efficient and sustainable oil and gas industry, but also a strategic move to position Nigeria as a regional and global leader in cost efficiency, breakthrough solutions and value-added services for the industry. Accordingly, and to achieve the afore-mentioned three-prong value drivers of Safety, Value and Cost efficiency, the integrated NOGEC complex encompasses the following five (5) Units: Search, Rescue and Surveillance (SeRAS) Command & Control, Centre, National Improved Oil Recovery Centre (NIORC), Oil & Gas Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre (ADRC), Oil & Gas Competence Development Centre (CDC) and Integrated Data Mining & Analytics Centre (IDMAC).
Let me take a few moments to highlight the main elements of each of these centres to underscore its role in driving cost reduction, increasing production and enhance value for the Industry. Search, Rescue and Surveillance (SeRAS) is a flagship programme of the Centre designed to enhance safety management, emergency preparedness & response and routine transportation for bed space management. SeRAS will therefore drive cost reduction and improve operational efficiency across the Industry. Conservatively, it is projected that upon full implementation of SeRAS, the annual industry expenditure for offshore & remote locations flight logistics and emergency response will reduce by 50% – a significant gain towards our target reduction of cost-per-barrel across our operations.
The National Improved Oil Recovery Centre (NIORC) on the other hand, is designed to promote the implementation of Improved and Enhanced Oil Recovery technologies/methods to arrest the incidences of production decline and resultant high cost in many assets, especially in the matured Niger Delta Basin. In essence, NIORC will trigger secondary and tertiary recovery operations in the industry. The Centre will collaborate with operators, global technology centres, international oil & gas regulators and other relevant parties to leverage experiences and best practices for application in Nigeria.
Expectedly, the foregoing measures will result in reserves growth, production increase, field life extension, improved asset life cycle cost and reduced cost-per-barrel, all with positive impacts on the national economy and investors’ profitability.
In another vein, the Oil and Gas Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre (ADRC) is created to arrest the prevalent value erosion attributable to sub-optimal development or non-development of oil & gas assets due to lingering disputes in the Industry. The ADRC shall offer Arbitration, Mediation and Conciliation services utilising industry’s technical experts who will provide fair and balanced resolutions of industry-related disputes from an informed position. The Centre will take advantage of the resources of the National Data Repository (NDR) to ensure alternative dispute resolutions that result in value optimisation in terms of resource growth and global competitiveness.
By the same token, the other two (2) units namely, the Integrated Data Mining and Analytics Centre (IDMAC) and the Oil & Gas Competence Development Centre (CDC) are structured to position Nigeria as a top-tier destination for credible, bankable and investment-grade data in oil & gas and to serve as the regional hub for competence development respectively. These centres will provide cost-effective data and analytics solutions for investors, financiers, operators as well as resources for oil and gas capacity building and training.
In conclusion, I wish to assure all that NOGEC represents a state-of-the-art, integrated facility that will provide the oil and gas sector with the much needed technical and resource capabilities for stability, growth, safe operations and cost efficiency for the benefit of all stakeholders. We are confident that this Centre will support the attainment of Mr. President’s clear development imperatives for sectoral growth and the industry performance targets set by the Ministry for a fortified oil and gas sector. Ladies and Gentlemen, Once again, I warmly welcome you to this event and congratulate the Nigeria Oil and Gas industry for this laudable achievement.
– BEING SPEECH DELIVERED BY MINISTER OF STATE, PETROLEUM RESOURCES, HIS EXCELLENCY, CHIEF TIMIPRE SYLVA ON THE OCCASION OF THE COMMISSIONING OF THE NATIONAL OIL AND GAS EXCELLENCE CENTER (NOGEC), 7, KOFO ABAYOMI STREET, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS.
