Nigerian Crude Oil Lifting Contracts: Names of 36 Beneficiaries Revealed

The provisional names of the 36 companies that were awarded contracts to lift crude oil by the Federal Government through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) from June 1, 2014 to May 31, 2015 have been revealed. Although the list is not final as more companies are expected to make the final list, it signals a paradigm shift to indigenous companies as against previous preference for foreign companies. The final list may contain more local names according to a reliable source.

The list, which was obtained exclusively by THISDAY, comprises 21 indigenous companies; eight international oil traders; two foreign refineries; two subsidiaries of the NNPC and three countries, represented by their state-owned National Oil Companies (NOCs).

According to the document, 21 indigenous companies were awarded contracts to lift a total of 630,000 barrels per day of crude oil during the one-year period, representing 57 per cent of the 1,179,000 barrels per day awarded to the 38 beneficiaries.

The list also showed that eight international oil traders got an allocation of 240,000 barrels per day, representing 20.5per cent of the whole allocations, while two foreign refineries got 60,000 barrels per day, or 5.1per cent of the allocations.

Two subsidiaries of the NNPC were awarded contracts to lift 90,000barrels per day, which translates to 7.7per cent, while three countries, represented by their NOCs also got 90,000barrels per day.

A breakdown of the allocations showed that each of the 21 indigenous traders got an allocation of 30,000barrels per day.

These companies include; A-Z Petroleum Products Limited; Hyde Energy Nigeria Limited; DK Global Energy Resources Limited; Aiteo Energy Resources,; Avidor Oil and Gas Company Limited; Azenith Energy Resource Limited; Barbados Oil and Gas ServicesLimited; Century Energy Services Limited and Crudex International Limited.

Other beneficiaries include, Eterna Plc; Bono Energy; Taleveras Limited; Mezcor SA; Sahara Energy Resources Limited; Tridax Energy SA and Tempo Energy SA.

The rest include, Ontario Trading SA; Voyage Oil & Gas Limited; Elektron Petroleum Energy and Mining Limited; Ibeto Petrochemical Industries Limited and Emo Oil and Petrochemical Company.
Also included in the list are eight international oil traders, which got an allocation of 30,000 barrels per day of crude oil each.

They include, Addax Energy SA; Elan Oil Limited; Mercuria Energy Trading SA; Springfield Ashburton Limited; Petro/Ietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil); Sullum Voe; Vitol SA and Delaney.
Two foreign refineries – Fujairah Refinery Limited and PTT Public Company Limited received an allocation of 30,000bpd each; while two subsidiaries of the NNPC – Duke Oil and Calson were awarded 30,000bpd each.

The NNPC also entered into bilateral commitments with the Republic of Malawi; SINOPEC of China and Indian Oil Corporation Limited, with each of these entities receiving 30,000bpd.
The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke said recently that the government deliberately favoured indigenous companies as part of the efforts to encourage local participation in the oil and gas industry.

The Minister, who is also the chairman of the NNPC Board, confirmed that over 60 percent of the 2014 to 2015 annual term contracts for the lifting of Nigeria’s crude oil were awarded to local firms.

“When we unveiled the Nigerian content law a few years back, the overriding principle was to grow indigenous capacity in an aggressive manner and I am happy to report that today, in the oil and gas sector, Nigerian content has been placed on the path of irreversible progress,” she said.

An energy expert who wants anonymity,  praised the deliberate emphasis on indigenous companies stating that ‘‘Increasingly, local Nigerian companies have become more assertive more ambitious, more resilient and aggressive in their business preposition.

No where is this more on evident than the oil and gas sector and more recently, the power sector which have seen local indigenous companies in partnerships with foreign companies bid big and win big. It is essentially a sign of the growing assertiveness of the young entrepreneurial Nigerians that are clearly unafraid to take risk. And more than that, the opportunities the local content law has opened Nigerian companies to are unparalleled. Nigerian are rising,’’ he stated

He added the federal government, especially the Petroleum Minister deserve  commendation for this bold initiative. It is important that we appreciate what the Minister has done, by empowering local players to build capacity for even higher undertaking, he declared.

- Thisday News