THE Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) is set to start drilling the first oil well in Nasarawa State in March 2023, in continuation of its oil exploration activities in the country’s inland basins.
The company’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kolo Kyari, disclosed this when the Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Sule, led a delegation of prominent indigenes of the state on a courtesy visit to the NNPC Ltd. in Abuja.
Kyari, in a statement on Friday, January 13 by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd., Garbadeen Muhammed, said the results of exploratory activities confirmed the presence of substantial hydrocarbon resources in the state.
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The NNPC chief, calling for prompt action on the project, said, “This work must be done very fast because the whole world is walking away from fossil fuel due to energy transition.
“The earlier you go to the market, the better for you, otherwise, 10 years from now, no one will agree to put money in petroleum business except it comes from your cash flow.”
He described community support and a conducive environment as key to a successful operation in the area in order to avoid the experience of the Niger Delta.
In his response, the governor congratulated Kyari on the successful commencement of oil production and the Kolmani integrated development project, which was inaugurated in Novemner 2022 by President Muhammadu Buhari.
‘’I want to congratulate you, the management of NNPC and the federal government on what you have done at Kolmani. For those who don’t know what you have done for Nigeria, you have written your name in gold,’’ Sule stated.
He commended President Buhari for his support, while assuring the NNPC of a conducive environment.
The governor was accompanied on the visit by, among others, the Deputy Governor, Dr Emmanuel Akabe; National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and first executive governor of the state, Abdullahi Adamu; and his predecessor, Senator Tanko Almakura.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.