PETAN Refocuses on Current Realities in Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry at 2016 OTC

PETAN Refocuses on Current Realities in Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry at 2016 OTC

……… Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, declares Nigerian Pavilion’s Open

The Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) is leading Nigeria’s delegation to this year’s edition of the Offshore Technology Conference to address current realities and hidden opportunities in Nigerian oil and gas industry.
The conference is scheduled to take place between May 2 and 5, 2016 in Houston, Texas in United States of America (USA).
This is contained in the statement issued and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos recently by Mr. Nik Odinuwe, the Publicity Secretary of the association.
Odinuwe said that the 2016 OTC is themed “The Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry: Current Realities, Hidden Opportunities”.
He said that PETAN is expected to consolidate achievements recorded by the association in driving partnership of indigenous oil and gas companies by international oil and gas companies.
He said that the conference is an annual gathering of people from around the world with interest in oil and gas, comprising policy makers, operators, professionals, manufacturers, business executives, entrepreneurs and visitors.
Odinuwe said that Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, would declared the Nigerian pavilion open, while Mr. Bayo Ojulari, MD, SNEPCO and Austin Avuru, MD, Seplat Petroleum, among others would be in attendance.
He said that the OTC avails the attendees an opportunity for engagement with key players in the industry.
Nigeria’s delegation in this year’s edition includes the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Independent Oil Companies (IOCs), independent, international and indigenous service companies, investors and representatives of government agencies.
He said that Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) is again at the forefront co-coordinating the Nigerian pavilion.
The OTC was founded in 1969 and now attracts over 150,000 visitors and 3,700 exhibitors from around the world each year.
The Offshore Technology Conference’s daily technical programme of presentations and the innovative breakfast and lunch sessions provide a dynamic forum for discussing the technical challenges facing the offshore oil and gas industry.
PETAN members have exhibited at the OTC every year since 1999 making OTC 2016 its 17th.
Speaking on the success of 2015 conference, PETAN’s president, Mr Bank-Anthony Okoroafor, stated that the conference created opportunity for people to meet and interact with serious Nigerian players, business men, entrepreneurs and technocrats who have been in business for over two decades.
Okoroafor said that this is why PETAN is taking this extra step to bring Nigerian companies to exhibit and make new business negotiations.
“We arranged elaborate programmes through the OTC week. We had plenary session as well as a workshop with Nigerian oil professionals abroad, where issues in the country’s oil and gas were also discussed.
“These are ways and means to create a platform for Nigerians to interact concerning the issues in the oil and gas sector.
“Part of the plan for the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigerian,(PETAN)’s participation in this year’s Offshore Technology Conference, OTC, holding at the Reliant Park, Houston, Texas, in the United States, is how to attract more investments in Nigeria’s gas exploration sector.
“As designed by the organisers, OTC is where energy professionals meet to exchange ideas and opinions to advance scientific and technical knowledge for offshore resources and environmental matters’’, he said.
Part of the activities scheduled by PETAN for the 4-day conference holding between May 2nd and 5th, include luncheon/panel sessions; Nigeria industry award dinner & cocktail; business networking seminars, and will be rounded off with a golf tournament.
For the exhibition, the Nigerian pavilion will be hosted in Booths 1462, 1463, 1466, 1467, 1563 and 1567 at the Reliant Centre,
PETAN is an association of Nigerian technical oilfield service companies in both the upstream and downstream sectors, which promotes the development of technology in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. It does this by mobilising active participation of indigenous firms in international conferences, seminars and workshops and training young graduates through internship programmes.
It also engages in active consultations with the legislative arm of government for enabling policies, enforcement and enhancing indigenous companies’ participation in major projects through robust engagements with the IOCs.
Meanwhile, organisers of the OTC 2016 disclosed on its official website that technical programmes during the conference will cover “a wide range of topics related to the offshore energy industry”.
They added that “OTC offers key insights by global experts on technological advances, safety and environmentally focused solutions and economic and regulatory impacts”.
They further disclosed that this year, OTC received 1,313 proposals, the highest in the event’s history. It listed parts of the progammes to include technology improvement advances.