The Integrity Youth Alliance has called on security agencies to arrest the leadership of the Niger Delta Youth Alliance for blackmailing the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPCL, Mele Kyari.
Responding to the call for the sack of NNPCL leadership during their protest in Warri, the Publicity Secretary of the Integrity Youth Alliance, Danjuma Lamido, said this in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, October 12, 2023.
“We keep seeing people protesting for the removal of the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, in the name of corruption, forgetting that Kyari brought transparency and accountability to NNPC.
“Due to his reputation for openness and expertise in the field, the industry was excited and optimistic when Kyari was named GMD in August 2019. His appointment was praised by stakeholders as fitting like a round peg in a round hole.
“It is on record that the Transparency, Accountability, and Performance Excellence (TAPE) agenda of Mele Kyari ended the era of opaqueness in the affairs of the NNPC, Danjuma Lamido said.Â
He further said, “As of when Kyari took over, all the refineries were damaged beyond turnaround maintenance, hence Kyari’s initiative of comprehensive rehabilitation, which involves replacing very obsolete equipment that can bring the plants back to optimum performance.
“On their baseless procurement of pipeline surveillance contracts, the NNPC Limited, on Sunday, October 8, 2023, already made clarifications that it adhered to the highest standards of transparency and global best practices in all its activities, and this includes its contracting process. These contracts, which were advertised, were awarded based on rigorous evaluation criteria and in line with industry norms.
The statement read, “Kyari came at a time when disputes, aside from oil theft and pipeline vandalism, were paralyzing oil production. But within a few months of stepping into office, Kyari was able to resolve them. These include the dispute between Shell and Belema Oil that shut in over 30,000 barrels per day of production in OML 25, and over agreements with SNEPCo and other PSC partners to resolve the disputes around another deep offshore block, OML 118, leading to the renewal of that acreage with the prospect of a new $10 billion investment in the development of the Bonga South-East Field.
“Among the resolutions was the execution of the Abo OML 125 Heads of Terms, leading to the resolution of the issues around most of the deep offshore production sharing contracts. This paved the way for the renewal of OML 125 and further investment.
“There was also the successful resolution of the 1993 PSC dispute, which holds over 90% of Nigeria’s deepwater production, paving the way for unlocking over 7 billion barrels of oil, 20 TCF of gas reserves, and potential investment of up to US$40 billion over the next five (5) years, while at the same time relieving NNPC of almost US$10 billion in contingent liabilities.
“He also achieved the commercial discovery of hydrocarbons in the Gongola basin of the Upper Benue trough and attained the presidential flag off of the Kolmani Integrated Development Project (KIPRO) on November 22, 2022, with over 1 billion barrels of oil and 500 billion metric tonnes of gas addition to existing hydrocarbon reserves, which will go a long way to enhance national energy security, create job opportunities, and stimulate balanced economic growth.
“As part of the strategic drive to shore up national reserves, Kyari expanded hydrocarbon exploration campaigns to the Sokoto and Bidda basins and achieved a spud-in for the ongoing exploration projects in the Nasarawa and Chad Basins.
“Within this year alone, Kyari achieved first oil in OML 13, restored production in OMLs 11 and 18, and is currently working to achieve first oil in OMLs 83 and 85, among others. Kyari is also taking major initiatives that will move towards achieving FID for major projects in the deepwater and frontier basins such as the Bonga Southwest Apraro, Bonga North, Prowei, KIPRO, Owowo, Bosi, and so on.
“In terms of investments in infrastructure expansion, it’s hardly an exaggeration to say no GMD has done as much as Kyari within the short time he has been in office. Many significant investments have been made that have turned around the industry.
“He wrapped up the final investment decision on the NLNG Train 7 Project in December 2019. The project is expected to generate over $20 billion in revenue for the government over the project’s lifecycle, including 10,000 direct and 40,000 indirect jobs.
“Under Kyari’s leadership, NNPC, as the largest shareholder of NLNG, enabled the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract of the NLNG Train-7 project with the SCD JV Consortium, comprising affiliates of Saipem, Chiyoda, and Daewoo. The execution of the EPC contract signals the effective commencement of the detailed design and construction phase of the multi-billion-dollar project, which, on completion, is expected to raise the NLNG production capacity by 35 percent from the current 22 million metric tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 30 MTPA.
“He also flagged off the construction of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline project on June 30, 2020. The project, an integral part of the Trans-Nigeria Gas Pipeline (TNGP) with a capacity to transport about 2.2 billion cubic feet of gas per day, has been described as a game-changer.
“To address domestic gas challenges, the NNPC GMD commissioned the Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility (IGHF) and the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Storage and Dispensing Unit. The facilities are wholly owned and constructed by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) and currently deliver over 200 million standard cubic feet of dry gas per day and 330 metric tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (cooking gas), which is equivalent to 16 units of 20-tonne LPG trucks per day into the domestic market.
“Other landmark achievements of the NNPC under Kyari include the execution of a JV agreement with NIPCO to market and distribute CNG and a Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Brass Gas Hub with the Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical Company for the $3.6 billion Brass Methanol Plant in Odioma, Bayelsa State.
“A project to deliver 300 million standard cubic feet of gas per day and 1,200 megawatts of electricity to the domestic market was achieved with the signing of a $260 million financing agreement for the Assa-North Ohaji South (ANOH) Gas Project with Seplat.
“To boost gas production, NNPC, under the leadership of Kyari, also executed a Gas Development Agreement (GDA) for the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 143 with its partner, Sterling Oil Exploration and Production Company (SEEPCO). The project will boost the nation’s gas production by 1.2 trillion cubic feet (tcf).
“The NNPC also secured the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) Grant, commenced the upgrade of the 1350 MW Abuja IPP project development to World Bank Standard for bankability, and signed the Trans-Atlantic Pipeline Project (Nigerian Morrocco Gas Pipeline) MOU with African NOCs, with ONHYM and ECOWAS.
“Under his able leadership, NNPC has succeeded in keeping the nation wet with petroleum products through an efficient supply framework while working to restore downstream infrastructure through the emplacement of the Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) model for the depots and pipeline network.
“He also achieved the execution of an agreement with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and Zed Energy for the construction of the N10.5 billion Brass Petroleum Products Terminal. The facility will serve as a strategic reserve for the country, as it is expected to provide a depot for 50 million liters of petroleum products, a two-way product jetty, automated storage, and an automated bay for AGO, PMS, DPK, and ATK. It will close the infrastructure gap in the distribution of petroleum products and also help to stop illegal refining activities.
“To deepen gas commercial, Kyari-led NNPC achieved expansion of the LPG logistics business via the joint venture company WAGL acquisition of two LPG vessels: MT Sapet and MT BaruMK.
“As typical with visionaries, NNPC, under Kyari’s leadership, acquired OVH, adding over 380 retail stations to the existing retail network, a 240,000 MT capacity per annum jetty, 3 Lubes blending plants, 3 aviation depots, 8 LPG plants, 38 LPG skids, and 12 warehouses, which positioned NNPC Retail as the single largest downstream network in Africa.
“As part of Kyari’s commitment to make Nigeria a net exporter of petroleum products, on April 6, 2021, NNPC signed the $1.5bn Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) Contract Agreement with Tecnimont SpA for the complete rehabilitation of Port Harcourt Refinery, which will be managed through an operations and maintenance model.
“He also achieved the WRPC and KRPC Quick Fix contracts awarded to Daewoo for the restreaming of both plants by 2024.
“He also took a strategic investment decision through equity investment in Dangote Refinery, Azikel Refinery, and three units of 10 kbpd condensate refineries.
How can some unscrupulous group now call for the sack of men who have achieved the above within the shortest possible time?
