…As company bags Best Downstream Company Award
Nigeria’s leading indigenous marketer of choice, OVH Energy Marketing (Oando Licensee) has proffered strong recommendations on the development of the midstream and downstream Oil & Gas industry in Nigeria, suggesting that the sector needs significant infrastructure investments. This was discussed at the just concluded 5th Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) held in Abuja themed: “Revitalising the Industry: Future Fuels and Energy Transition.”
The summit which, has gathered momentum on the global scene, is a platform for Nigeria to engage both local and international stakeholders towards the effective development of the oil and gas sector as a strong catalyst for economic growth.
The second day of the five-day conference featured a CEO roundtable with Mr. Huub/ Stokman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of OVH Energy Marketing Ltd, Oando licensee, advocating for more collaboration amongst relevant stakeholders in the industry to develop on the necessary measures that can improve infrastructural development in the sector to meet customers’ needs.
“On Midstream and Downstream infrastructural development, the industry needs more investment to expand and boost our jetties, the pipelines, depots, trucks and human capacity development for a safe operation. We recognise that the industry needs more funding and investment to achieve all of these whilst customers’ demands are met and creating values to the end users,” he said.
He further stated that the new refineries will change the supply landscape, and Nigeria becoming self sufficient in the production of refined fuel. “This is a major milestone,” He noted, “If this happens combined with a good competitive environment (a level playing field), the customer can decide the best price served and who they want to buy from. A regulated market slightly distorts these elements.”
According to Mr. Stokman, “New refineries will produce cleaner fuels which is good for the environment, and for the good health of all Nigerians. The current challenge around fuel supply and distribution shows us that as an industry, we need to have a good emergency plan (the refineries go down for maintenance, what then do we do?). We should use today’s challenges as a learning opportunity for the future.”
He commended the Federal Government for the signing of the PIA and the swift response of the Authority Chief Executive in the implementation of the Act, however, he observed that the postponement of full deregulation of industry will pose a lot of challenges to the industry.
“As it is the decade of gas, we should also capture gas (LPG, CNG, LNG) as a substantial part of the energy mix of Nigeria: – in terms of Energy Self sufficiency and towards a sustainable future,” he said.
Mr. Stokman further commended the efforts to bring together industry stakeholders to share ideas on how to move the country forward, “this is our fourth participation at the NIES, and it is a wonderful platform for players in both upstream and downstream. This a great event which brings in foreign and local experts to exchange ideas, opinions, trends and outlook for the future.”
OVH Energy Marketing also won the 2021 Best Downstream Company Award. The award was conferred on OVH Energy Marketing at the gala night of the fifth Nigeria International Energy Summit in Abuja on Monday.
Speaking on the award, Mr. Stokman explained that the award is a reward for the company’s repeated commitment to be customer-centric whilst contributing to the development of the downstream sector.
In his words, “We are always humbled to receive recognitions like this and a big thank you to our customers for their unwavering patronage over the years.
“OVH Energy Marketing will continue to provide exceptional services to our customers, as our strong unrivaled heritage drives to impact our customers’ lives positively while distributing over one billion litres of refined petroleum products annually and providing trusted petroleum services including, supply reliability and technical expertise nationwide.”
In recent times, Nigeria has made strategic moves towards becoming a foremost oil and gas investment destination, through ongoing strategic sectoral reforms and engagement with host communities. This year’s NIES conference continues to engage industry experts and investors on developing hedging strategies to combat prevailing sectoral challenges towards unlocking inherent value in the near future.