NNPC, IOCs, Others Sign MoU To Reduce Contracting Cycle

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) cum Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL) and five international oil-producing companies to optimise the contracting cycle in the oil and gas industry.

The MoU, which was executed on Monday at the NNPC Towers in Abuja, is to quickly ramp up Nigeria’s flagging crude oil production, ensuring compliance with the provisions of the Nigerian Content Act and timely approvals of documents.

The agreement was signed by the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr Simbi Kesiye Wabote, while the GCEO of NNPCL, Mr Mele Kyari, was represented by the Executive Vice President, Upstream of NNPCL, Mr Oritsemeyiwa A. Eyesan.

Key benefits of the framework in the MoU include a reduction of the contracting cycle for open competitive tender, selective tender and single sourcing tender to 180, 178 and 128 working days respectively compared with the current best effort performance of 327, 333 and 185 working days respectively.

Speaking at the MoU signing, Mr Eyesan said signing the agreement heralded exciting times for the nation’s oil and gas industry and stood as a bold testimony that the company was plunging into the future of hope, productivity and success.

Mr Wabote on his part stated that the overall goal was to conclude the oil and gas industry’s tendering to contract award processes within six months, affirming his conviction that the target was realistic with all key parties now on board with the execution of the SLA.