The Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NURC) says the Federal Government is committed to shoring up the nation’s oil production quota and boosting investments in the upstream segment of the oil and gas industry.
Mr Gbenga Komolafe, NURC’s Chief Executive Officer, said this in a podcast address to staff of the commission on Thursday in Abuja.
He urged them to work together with the board and executive management to spur economic growth in the sector.
The new commission which replaced the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) is tasked with the responsibility of regulating the technical and commercial activities of the upstream sector of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
Komolafe called for joint effort to build a strong organisation with capacity to positively change the narrative in the upstream sector of the economy.
He said NURC’s establishment would translate to landmark transformation.
The CEO said this was expected to usher in massive investment for enhanced revenue to fund Nigeria’s social budget, as upstream activities were critical to the Nigerian economy.
“Oil and gas sector is at a critical and significant moment in the life of the industry whereby energy transition from fossil fuels to cleaner energy is competing with the need to raise the bar of crude oil and gas production from the current level of 1.4 mbbls/d to 2.4 mbbls/d.
“We are not unmindful that the expectations are high, but we are quite determined to surmount the tasks ahead and hit the ground running,” he said.
Komolafe noted that the executive management team planned to get the buy-in of all the staff members in achieving the expected results.
He said that his leadership approach would be anchored on inclusive management.
Komolafe said that with the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the industry was in a significant era where the local and international community were eagerly awaiting their performance.
According to him, they are determined to deliver a 21st century upstream petroleum regulator anchored on the principles of effective and efficient services, transparency, professionalism and cost consciousness.
He applauded President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Assembly for the passage and assent to the PIA.
Komolafe said the team was committed to laying a solid regulatory foundation that future generations would build upon, especially with the clarity provided by the PIA which defined the boundaries of the job.
“Our focus is to build a completely brand-new organisation with a new vision, mission, culture and ethos in line with international best practices.
“And this will entail our handshake across the border and frontier of Nigeria with similar international regulatory agencies,” he said.
He reassured staff and management of the agency of the security of their jobs, adding that he would do all in his capacity to address issues of workers’ welfare and give priority to good industrial relations.
“Human capital capacity development will be stringently pursued to ensure high standard of professionalism at all times.
“In our drive to ensure best practices for a 21st century regulator, we shall equally focus on digitalisation of our activities at all levels,” he said.
