The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC), Mr Mele Kyari, has warned that Nigeria may be denied fresh oil and gas investments if it fails to pass into law , the Petroleum Industry Bill, 2020.
The NNPC boss gave the warning on Thursday at a 2021 budget defence session before the Joint Committee on Petroleum Upstream, Petroleum Downstream, and Gas Resources noted that without the passage of PIB, no one will invest in this country (Oil and Gas Industry), again.
The warning came as the House of Representatives Wednesday vowed to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) before the end of the first quarter of 2021.
Chief Whip of the House and chairperson of the ad-hoc committee on PIB, Tahir Monguno, gave the assurance on Wednesday at the inaugural sitting of the committee.
The House had on Tuesday passed the bill for second reading and referred it to the committee for a public hearing.
The revised legislation, which is an executive bill, among other things, seeks to scrap the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) which would be replaced by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited – after all the assets and liabilities of the NNPC must have been identified by the ministers of petroleum resources and finance, budget and national planning.
