By Adedapo Adesanya
During his outlook for the energy sector last month, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, declared that 2020 would be the year of Gas for Nigeria. To kickstart this, the country is set to host the third annual Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS) from February 9 – 12, 2020 in Abuja.
The NIPS conference will be themed: Widening the Integration Circle: Technology, Knowledge, Sustainability and Partnership and will present strategies and opportunities for growth in oil, gas and energy technologies as well as showcase major contract signings.
The summit will provide the opportunity for the nation to outline how local companies can be crucial in the advancement of the petroleum industry to boost the country’s output. The delegation will be led by President Muhammadu Buhari; Mr Timipre Sylva; and the Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Mele Kyari.
Speaking on the event, Mr NJ Ayuk, the Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber and CEO of the Centurion Law Group, noted that the event would attract over 5,000 international energy executives which was an opportunity for the country to make it plans known.
“NIPS is the most opportune space for Nigeria to communicate its growth and development plans, more so since the Honorable Minister declared 2020 as the year of gas for the country,” he said.
The summit will also see the country showcase its oil and gas investment – led by the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Train-7 project, which recently is set to boost production by 30 percent from the current 22.5 capacity million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to 30 mtpa.
“Following the recent $10 billion investment on Train-7 which will enable the NLNG processing unit to remain the fifth-largest supplier of LNG in the world, Nigeria is right to build on this momentum,” he stated.
The event is set to feature speakers, including former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Nigeria, Mr Ibe Kachikwu; Mr Omar Farouk Ibrahim, OPEC Governor for Nigeria; Mr Sun Xiansheng, Secretary General, International Energy Forum; Mr Jean-Marc Thystère Tchicaya, Minister of Hydrocarbons, Republic of the Congo and Mr Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons Republic of Equatorial Guinea.
