The country’s presidential adviser on Petroleum Matters, Emmanuel Egbogah does not think there is anything wrong with Nigeria’s inability to develop its own technology after 50 years of commercial oil exploration activities.
He said this on Monday, while declaring open the Nigerian stand at the Offshore Technology Conference, holding in Houston, Texas which enters its 40th year and the biggest in history,.
Mr Egbogah, was defending Nigeria’s attendance at the annual conference, despite the use of only imported technology. He insisted the country’s presence was not frivolous.
Participants are here to “exchange ideas, as the Offshore Technology conference …is to showcase technology pertinent to the offshore operations in the oil and gas industry, of which Nigeria is a major player”, he said.
He however said that the lack of technological development in Nigeria for its oil and gas, the dominant sector in the economy “is a challenge.” But that, Nigeria is not the only country that has been in the business for 50 years and still has no home grown technology. ‘’It is a challenge to you and to me,” he said.
The presidential aide however added that it would have been a shame if Nigeria is not able to adapt to some of the technologies displayed annually to improve its economy and learn best practices.
“If we come here continuously to see what the others are doing to improve their economy and we are not able to do any of those things, I think we simply have ourselves to blame. So it is a very important event for people who pursue this business as serious minded, it would not be a jamboree. It is an event from which we learn how to do things better for own best practice,” he said
Mr. Egbogah revealed that Nigerian companies like Dorman Long, Oil Data and others “have home grown technologies that others may not have. The fact is that maybe they are recognised as technologies grown and developed by Nigeria.”
On Niger Delta crisis
With regard to participants’ ability to attract foreign partners in view of the Niger Delta crisis, Mr. Egbogah, who unfortunately, does not “think that the Offshore Technology Conference, is a place for discussion of Niger Delta,” however argues that the Federal Government is doing its best to tackle the challenges by giving “guarantees”.
According to him, “If it has not been clear before, let me say that the government gave guarantees, which we are backing up with continuous and consistent engagement of the Niger Delta communities and the people for them to understand that all that they are doing, is nothing but what they are doing unto themselves.”
He also stated that guarantees boost investor confidence. Militancy in the troubled Niger Delta region continues unabated, leaving more than 20 per cent of Nigeria’s crude oil production shut-in since January 2006.