DRC hydrocarbons minister opens week-long tour of Nigeria's oil and gas local content system

Simplice Stev Onanga, the DRC's Minister of Hydrocarbons, is leading a delegation through Nigeria this week to look at how the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board runs its local content regime for oil and gas, Punch and APA News reported.

The group wants a working view of the rules, agencies and contracting practices Nigeria uses to push more domestic participation into petroleum operations, according to Punch.

Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), hosted the visitors in Abuja on Monday and told them Nigeria was open to sharing what it had learned with other African producers, Punch reported. He put current local content capacity at 61%, built up over the 16 years since the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act came into force.

Obinna Ezeobi, General Manager of Corporate Communications at the NCDMB, said in a statement cited by Nigerian Eye that the trip is part of the DRC's review of local content models.

The itinerary runs through Friday and takes the delegation to the NCDMB headquarters in Bayelsa State, fabrication yards at the Onne Free Zone, a supplier session hosted by Nigeria LNG, the University of Port Harcourt Gas Centre, and the LADOL and Nigerdock facilities, according to Nigerian Eye.