Nigerian Independent Petroleum Company (NIPCO) Plc has said it would sustain its growth by exploiting opportunities in gas and petroleum products marketing, especially the deployment of LPG skids across the country.
Addressing shareholders at the company’s yearly general meeting, the Managing Director, NIPCO Plc, Suresh Kumar assured its shareholders of better returns and improved growth in the year 2021 and beyond.
He expressed optimism that it would actualise the vision of the promoters of the company this year despite the teething challenges in the nation’s oil and gas industry, adding that the firm supplied 35 per cent of Nigeria’s Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in 2020, as a depot operator and supplier to marketers.
According to him, the creation of the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP), headed by Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim to deepen domestic utilisation of gas is one of the veritable tools that can enhance the performance of the company in the area of gas marketing.
“With the declaration of 2020 as the year of gas by the Federal Government, the sector is expected to witness more growth to the benefit of stakeholders by exuding more confidence in investors, hoping that it would channel more funds into the sector.
“The renewed interest of the Federal Government in utilisation of natural gas as vehicular fuel through NGEP is also expected to give fillip to your company at improving on our bottom lines through plethora of investments in providing avenues for a cheaper and cleaner alternative source of energy for Nigerians.
“Another major plank in improving the fortunes of your company is in the area of the marketing of a wide range of petroleum products the firm engages in. We intend to broaden our marketing horizon to ensure the company continues to take a sizable portion in product sales,” Kumar said.
He told shareholders that the pandemic had put a lot of pressure on the company’s human capital as they had to grapple with how to cope with the virus and keeping pace with work schedules.
According to him, management had to devise several containment measures to ensure the utmost safety of the workforce by adhering strictly to all the COVID -19 protocols as advised by relevant government agencies.
“It is with immense pleasure that I report to you that all through the year under review, we did not have any downtime due to the fear of the virus, a feat I commend our staff’s dedication towards their work. We are upbeat that with the standards set in, the much-dreaded virus will be properly contained in the overall interest of both the employees and you the investors.
“As investors continue to have more confidence in us to manage the company for upward growth, there will be more opportunities for not only advancement for all cadres of the workforce but also more avenues of new intakes into the organization,” Kumar said.
On corporate social responsibility, Kumar said that his company intervened in the area of mitigating the effects of the pandemic through donation to the CACOVID fund, packaged by CBN, NNPC, DPR and others.
The company facilitated in conjunction with some other companies the inauguration of a 110-bed isolation centre for COVID -19 patients at Landmark Convention Centre, Oniru, Lagos as well as providing some essential facilities for the smooth running of the centre.
He added that in the company’s host community, hundreds of women were offered gas burners and other accessories to ease domestic cooking and alleviate poverty.
