PNC Forum: Incredible energy and consistency from industry players, By Esueme Dan Kikile

In 10 uninterrupted years of active participation in the Practical Nigerian Content Forum, organized by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, leaders in the Nigerian oil and gas industry have so far meant that local content has something thing of a force of belief in their ranks. Adding value in the country through improving local capacities and capacities remains the unchanging goal – what they must pursue and actualize to improve the economic performance and development of the country.

The apostolic zeal of industry stakeholders, as they come together by the hundreds year after year to assess the state of the industry and determine how(s) to maximize the opportunities along the lines laid out in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, is the most notable. In the spirit of collaboration and stakeholder engagement, topical issues are always adopted as themes for presentation and deliberations in the different editions of the Forum.

NCDMB Innovations and Results

The NCDMB and stakeholders were thus guided in subsequent actions through interventions, policies and compliance. The Council becomes increasingly innovative as challenges emerge through workshops and exhibitions. Concepts and ventures such as the Nigerian Oil and Gas Technology Hackathon (NOGTECH), Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunities Expo (NOGOF), Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Joint Qualification Scheme (NOGIC JQS ) and funding for research and development, have been in response to a felt need and have strengthened the sector.

Together, the industry regulator and the oil and gas companies – upstream, midstream and downstream – have moved mountains, radically altering the status and image of Nigeria as a rent-seeker and the placing him in a respectable position as endowed with resources and with appropriate technological capabilities to exploit and utilize hydrocarbons efficiently.

The difference NCDMB has made

In twelve years of implementation of the NOGICD Act of 2010, Nigeria, through the well-targeted strategic interventions of the Council, has developed the widest range of skills and facilities for engineering, procurement, manufacturing and many other things, and has thus grown in the country's value retention from less than 5% in 2010 to 46% in the first quarter of 2022. And 70% is in focus as we move towards the 2027 deadline of the Council’s 10-year Nigerian Content Strategic Roadmap.

Today, world-class fabrication yards and tube mills have transformed Nigeria into a hub for related businesses in the Gulf of Guinea, just as the country's service companies now operate as corporations international services in different African countries. This is the NCDMB success story made possible by far-sighted and resourceful leadership that engages all stakeholders, stepping in materially without hesitation to build business operational capabilities. On December 5-8, the PNC Forum is another platform with great opportunities for participants and society at large.

What to expect from PNC 2022

Face-to-face with potential clients and investors, attendees at the PNC Forum 2022 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State will deliberate on the topic of “Deepening Nigerian Content Opportunities in the Decade of Gas.” The key topics, as highlighted on the dedicated PNC website, are:

Harnessing Nigerian Content Opportunities for Local Businesses in Nigeria's 'Gas Decade' What opportunities have been revealed by the seven ministerial regulations to increase Nigerian content compliance Outlining Nigeria's future energy mix and Nigerian content targets over the next 30 years What are the catalysts needed to bridge the capacity gap for improved local content implementation with a growing focus on gas? How can local businesses attract the necessary financing? What efforts are in place...