The Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Maikanti Baru, has asked the new board of one of the downstream subsidiary firms, the Nigerian Pipeline Storage Company, to enter into partnerships with the private sector to build more pipelines parallel to the corporation’s existing ones.
Baru gave the charge while inaugurating the new board of the company at the NNPC headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, noting that such partnerships would enhance the NPSC’s profitability.
The NNPC boss was quoted in a statement issued by the corporation’s spokesperson, Ndu Ughamadu, as saying, “Your work also is to look at refurbishing these pipelines and storage along a public private partnership arrangement by getting willing private companies to invest in these pipelines. The NNPC management is very much disposed to supporting your efforts in this regard.”
Baru said the company should double its pipeline network in the next 10 years, stressing that such a target was absolutely necessary.
He described pipelines as arteries of the nation’s oil and gas industry, adding that part of the reform process embarked upon by the corporation under his watch was to birth the NPSC that had a clear focus that would see pipeline storage and distribution as a real business.
“I have a passion for this company and I believe this firm will be a leader in that segment of our operations. That is why we focused our energy on refurbishing, repairing and re-streaming of our storage facilities and pipelines over the last few months,” Baru said.
He charged the firm to also integrate, through its pipelines resources, the various butanisation depots, which are used as reception points for Liquefied Petroleum Gas.
“We have a lot of the LPG that is being exported. This can be utilised domestically in line with our vision of providing alternative energy sources for domestic and industrial use nationwide,” he stated.
Baru tasked the NPSC management to engage the various host state governments towards the restoration of the products Right of Way to ensure the safety of citizens and products.
He added that most of the state governments were willing to support the corporation in preventing infringements on the products’ RoW.
He expressed the NNPC management’s readiness to engage security agencies against any act of economic sabotage towards the pipelines.
Responding, the Chairman of the NPSC Board and Chief Operating Officer, Corporate Services, NNPC, Isa Inuwa, pledged the readiness of the board to support the firm’s management to achieve its set targets.
“It is our vision to transit the NPSC to a market-phasing, competitive and profit-making organisation. We are committed as a board to deliver on this mandate,” Inuwa stated.
Also speaking, the Managing Director, NPSC, Luke Anele, noted that although the task before his team was huge, it would leave up to expectation. – Punch.
