The Executive Vice President, Gas, Power and New Energy, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL), Olalekan Ogunleye, has underscored the importance of gas as a crucial resource for driving economic development across Africa.
Ogunleye made this known while speaking during a panel session hosted by the NNPC Ltd at the ongoing 2024 CERAWeek Conference in Houston, the United States, with the theme, “Africa’s Energy Future: Access, Investment & Sustainability”.
He stated that gas would continue to be an important resource for Africa because it is the surest tool for economic development and for delivering better living standards for the teeming population on the continent.
He called on all gas players to sustain the advocacy for gas as a major energy source that will be utilised to develop the economic and industrial fortunes of the continent and a top priority for NNPC Ltd because the company is at the forefront of Nigeria’s gas commercialisation efforts and flare elimination.
“Gas has come to stay. It is going to be part of the energy mix for us in the long term. We shall continue to be at the forefront of accelerating gas development and commercialization in Nigeria,” he added.
He further identified transparency, accountability, research, technology and innovation as key drivers of the ongoing transformation in NNPCL.
Ogunleye disclosed that under the current leadership of Mele Kyari, the company has institutionalised the use of modern technology to drive its operations, a development that has created tremendous value for the company in its quest to compete with its global peers.
He said with the coming of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in 2021, NNPC Ltd has today transformed into an integrated commercial entity that is focused on transparency and accountability, two core values that are vital towards the company’s quest to float an Initial Public Offer (IPO) at the stock exchange.
“Over the last five years, the NNPC Ltd has been pushing the agenda of transparency, accountability and performance excellence. I am glad to say that we are setting very high standards and this is a journey that we are all committed to going forward,” Ogunleye added.
He further observed that transparency and accountability have a commercial component to them, because they can make any organisation attractive to its partners and potential investors.
He said currently, the NNPC Ltd is working assiduously to become IPO-ready, stressing that once that is done, the IPO will be phenomenal and successful.
Ogunleye, who described the future as exciting for the NNPC Ltd, said as the biggest energy company in Africa with the biggest resources and largest market, the company remains committed to delivering value to its shareholders by relentlessly improving its processes in line with global best standards.
