Potentials inherent in the nation’s oil and gas industry were recently unveiled at the just concluded Offshore West Africa conference otherwise known as OWA held in Abuja. During the 3-day conference, the government reiterated its call for greater collaboration with it by multinational oil companies to realise targets in the deep offshore. President Umaru Yar’Adua stated at the 12th Edition of the conference that with oil operations shifting to deepwater as a result of the conflict onshore, there is need for technological expertise to be provided by the multinational operators to develop the huge oil resources in that area.

President Yar’Adua, represented by Mr. Odein Ajumogobia (Minister of State for Petroluem), noted that “Offshore West Africa is an emerging frontier in the world’s oil operations, with a lot of opportunities. With some of the world’s biggest oil fields like Bonga, Erha, Agbami and Apo, coming on stream, the country’s production capacity is growing towards the realisation of the set target of 40 billion barrels reserves and 4.5 million barrels per day production capacity by 2010.”

At the conference, the Group Managing Director of NNPC Engr. Abubakar Yar ‘Adua informed that the crude oil that was shut-in as a result of the crisis in the Niger Delta region of the country has dropped from about one million barrels last year to 600,000 barrels per day. Engr. Yar’Adua was represented at the event by the Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production, Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi. About seven Nigerian engineering firms have secured five-year contracts worth $420 million (about N49.1 billion) from Esso Exploration and Production Company Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil Nigeria for development of the Ehra deepwater oil field which is a boost to the Nigerian Content initiative.

Meanwhile, the chairman OWA 2008 Advisory Board, Chidi Izuwah described the conference as a key platform for addressing the major challenges in oil exploration in Nigeria and other West African countries. Izuwah maintained that the sub-region has become an attractive market for oil exploration in view of the increasing challenges in the North Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.

He stated that with about $20 billion (N2.5 trillion) investments in the next few years, the West African oil and gas industry will meet the global challenges. The Owa Chairman, who is also Manager, Corporate Pipelines Asset of Shell, charged Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Industry Operators to ensure that not only a privileged few would continue to benefit from the sector.

According to him, government and other stakeholders should establish a National Offshore Research Centre with world class facilities for capacity building in the industry. This he said will ensure greater participation of Nigerians in exploration and production activities and address the restiveness in the oil-producing areas. Poised to boost investment in the sector, President Umaru Yar’Adua at the conference assured that his government would provide adequate financing to the industry this year.

“2008 will be the first year in which financing will not be constrained by budgetary limits, but by what the industry requires. The challenge really is funding but I am happy to say that we have robustly addressed the issue. The issue of rising costs will no longer be an issue. The country welcomes more investments and we hope that as more investments come in, costs will go down and this ensures greater profitability,” he said.

The President maintained that West Africa is the fastest growing supply in view of the decline in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea. He noted that the sub-region where Nigeria accounts for more than 80 percent output was a potential counterbalance to the decline in the other regions.

He disclosed that the country accounts for more than 70 percent of new finds, which according to him, has added three billion barrels in the last few years. He charged the operators to provide a linkage between offshore production and onshore activities, adding that as more activity goes offshore, there should be facilities onshore to service the industry and support the projected four million barrels a day by 2010.

The Offshore West Africa Conference & Exhibition was held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, from 29-31 January 2008. It was themed: “The Gulf of Guinea: Sustaining the Momentum of World Class Resource Development.”About 2,000 delegates and visitors from all over Africa and the energy centers of the world participated at the colourful event.

The exhibition included more than 100 Exhibitors from West Africa, the United States, Europe and Asia. For the first time since the inception of OWA, NNPC had its exhibition booth with NAPIMS featuring prominently alongside NipeX. The world-class offshore technical conference comprises a dual-track program with technical presentations from Operators such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, Shell Nigeria Exploration & Production, Chevron Nigeria, Elf Petroleum, and Total, as well as other Contractors, Independent Consultants and Exploration and Production Specialists.

OWA was instituted to address the technical, environmental and business challenges associated with oil and gas exploration and production in this rapidly growing region. The 2008 programme focused on lessons learned from recent field developments, emerging technical solutions, and areas where new challenges remain. The next edition of OWA is slated for January, 2009