Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Mr. Ibe Kachikwu has said that Federal Government would commence payments of Joint Venture Cash Call arrears to international oil companies by the end of April 2017.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources said this during a courtesy visit to ExxonMobil in the United States. Kachikwu said that a number of gains had been achieved in the petroleum sector as a result of the signing of the repayment agreement for the Joint Venture Cash Call in 2016.
He reiterated the need for the IOCs to reciprocate the Federal Government’s gesture and commitment by ensuring that they ramp up investments in the country’s oil and gas sector.
Kachikwu said the efforts of the Federal Government is geared toward reducing importation of petroleum products, adding that this effort would be boosted if major IOC partners operating in Nigeria invest in building signature refineries to be run on joint venture basis with the Federal Government providing the necessary incentives.
He commended ExxonMobil on its enduring partnership with Nigeria which has grown stronger over the years, while he encouraged ExxonMobil to invest in more practical deliveries in the area of human capital development and investment in local growth of skill sets required in the oil and gas sector.
The Ministry said the meeting is part of the ongoing investment drive initiative embarked upon by Kachikwu to International Oil Companies (IOC).
The first of these, according to the Ministry was with Italian IOC giant Eni, in January 2017 where the Italian company pledged to work with Nigeria to revamp the Port Harcourt Refinery.
Other IOCs scheduled to be visited, the Ministry said, include Shell, Chevron and Total.
“In furtherance to this, the Honourable Minister of State will be leading the country’s delegation to the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas early May 2017 with the objective of showcasing the opportunities, processes and reforms in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
