NNPC Ltd Will Leverage It’s Unique Advantages To Support Global Push For Sustainable Energy, Says Wunti

The Chief Upstream Investment Officer of the NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services, Mr Bala Wunti has said that the National Oil Company will leverage the quality of its resources, geographic advantage, and years of industry experience to move domestically from energy deficiency to sufficiency and support the global push for sustainable energy.

He said this at the 41st CERAWeek held on Tuesday in Houston, Texas,

There had been a general perception that National Oil Companies around the globe, which represent around 50 per cent of the World’s Oil & Gas production, are absent in the effort to decarbonise the global energy mix.

This issue was discussed at the 2023 CERAWeek.

Wunti who represented the NNPC Limited on the panel discussing the role of National Oil Companies in the changing World said the NNPC is leading the push for sustainable energy delivery in the domestic and international markets while simultaneously delivering on the promise of eradicating energy poverty and subsequently achieving the 2060 Net-Zero target.

He painted the current picture of NNPC Limited’s reality in supplying the domestic market, producing and exporting hydrocarbons, and the vision for the future.

He also highlighted Nigeria’s rich resource base, the balanced Gas to Oil ratio of Nigeria’s hydrocarbons, its unique geographic location giving it access to global trade routes, and over 60 years of experience supplying hydrocarbons to over 60 countries spread across six continents as the major advantages of NNPC Limited.

Wunti noted that NNPC Limited is taking a cursory look at its portfolio and deliberately shifting its focus to Gas.

He said, “We are moving from the production of Oil with associated Gas to the production of Gas with associated Oil.

“We are first reducing emissions, and the principal source of that emission is gas clearing. We are changing the players across and we are taking them and harmonizing them.

“And the second rule is that we are replacing fuel, we have a lot of upgraded generators, and we are converting these generators to gas. In that way, we are removing high carbon-intensive fuels to gas.

“We are also renewing our equipment and infrastructures that we have, from traditional, all archaic, inefficient equipment to new ones that use less fuel but gas.

“We are reforesting as well, we are going to restore our forest and make sure to arrest the issue of afforestation.

“And lastly is the fact we have decided to rebrand our country from an oil-producing nation to a gas-producing country. We have about 40 billion barrels of oil and we have over 200 tcl of gas.”

He said the NNPC Limited will leverage gas as a transition and destination fuel by deploying gas for electrification, for chemicals, and for domestic industries and exports.

He noted that this aligns with the global effort to build a hydrogen-based economy by evolving from grey Hydrogen Vectors (LNG, Ammonia, and Methanol) to blue and eventually a green Hydrogen fuelled World.

Speaking about global trends, Wunti noted that the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the resulting energy crisis have proven that nations around the globe will always prioritise energy security over other considerations.

Nonetheless, he said that the NNPC Limited believes in delivering clean, affordable, and reliable energy as its strategy to eradicate energy poverty domestically and capture higher market share globally as iy witness shifts in supply partnerships.

According to him, the NNPC Limited has ambitious plans to evolve as an energy supplier of choice.

This is anchored around its 5R strategy to reduce emissions by eliminating gas flaring and adopting renewable solutions, replace ‘dirty’ liquid fuels by converting Diesel Generators for power generation to gas, renew production and processing plants by discarding outdated and less efficient equipment and adopting newer and cleaner technology, revegetation to address environmental degradation, and rebranding as a gas producing nation.

In his closing remarks, he reminded the audience that it is common knowledge that capital is discriminatory against the Oil industry.

This, he stated, has fed into Nigeria’s current low reserve-to-production ratio.

He added that at the current depletion rate, Nigeria will be unable to reap the benefits of its vast resources.

While assuring that NNPC Limited will continue optimising its portfolio to be ESG compliant, he explained that the Nigerian Petroleum Industry Act enacted in 2021 provides a short terms solution by mandating NNPC Ltd to set aside a portion of its profit for Frontier Exploration.

Wunti also alluded to the progress in combating the menace of insecurity that heightened in the past year.

He noted that cincerted efforts in tackling insecurity and restoring investor and partner confidence have seen Nigeria recover its position as the number one oil producer in Africa after a brief eclipse in 2022.

Others on the panel were Bader E. Al-Attar, Managing Director, Planning & Finance – Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Zhen Wang, Chairman – CNOOC Energy Economics Institute. The panel was moderated by Daniel Pratt, North America Upstream Lead – S&P Global.

CERAWeek is an annual energy industry conference hosted by S & P Global, a global information and analytics company.

The conference brings together industry leaders, policymakers, experts, and innovators from around the World to discuss and debate the future of the energy industry.

The conference features a diverse range of sessions, including keynote speeches, panel discussions, and presentations on a variety of topics related to the energy industry.

These topics range from the latest trends in oil and gas production, renewable energy, electric vehicles, energy storage, carbon capture and storage, and climate change.

CERAWeek provides a platform for industry leaders to network, exchange ideas, and collaborate on innovative solutions to the most pressing challenges facing the energy industry.

It is an important event for the energy industry and is attended by many high-profile individuals and organisations, including CEOs, government officials, thought leaders, academics, and investors.

NNPC Limited executed a three-year strategic partnership with S & P Global for the CERAWeek to maximise NNPC Limited’s participation at the renowned executive conference.

Last year’s event welcomed over 5,000 participants from 87 countries in Houston, Texas. The theme for the 2023 CERAWeek is Navigating a Turbulent World: Energy, Climate and Security.