By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has said Nigeria is ready for business in the oil sector, stressing that he is ready to tackle all the issues relating to businesses in the country.
He stated this in New York on Monday while playing host to a delegation consisting of the global leadership of an oil and gas transnational giant, ExxonMobil.
According to a Tuesday statement by the presidential spokesman, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, the country is no longer settling for crumbs and leftovers on the investment agenda of the world’s most prolific energy conglomerates.
“Nigeria has never been more ready for business than it is now,” Mr Tinubu was quoted as saying.
“The knotty issues require direct supervision on my part. Despite many contending obligations, I will sit down and oversee the process of removing these encumbrances to job and wealth creation for the Nigerian people.
“We know the industry. We grew up in it. We are positioned to solve the problems, and we are pragmatic, and we will solve the problem,” the President assured.
Mr Tinubu explained that following an illustrious private sector career as a professional accountant in the oil and gas industry, he has proven his capacity to make difficult decisions as President.
He also noted that he was best prepared to solve problems and crush all bottlenecks standing in the way of new and large-scale capital flowing into the industry.
On his part, the ExxonMobil President of Global Upstream Operations, Mr Liam Mallon, assured Mr Tinubu that he is aware of the new and personal commitment that the President is bringing to bear on behalf of Nigeria.
Mr Mallon stated that he is well placed to reciprocate the President’s efforts with new investment as he pledged new production of nearly 40,000 bpd in its Nigerian operations in phase one of a new investment push in Nigeria.
“What you told us was that your team would collaborate with us, and that has proven true. We have made significant progress since we last met. We are growing our production, and we are working hard on expanding deepwater production.
“We appreciate your efforts, and we will respond in kind. The time is right. Thank you for your leadership,” he said.
