THE Group Managing Director (GMD), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Maikanti Kachalla Baru, has emerged as the Chairman, Advisory Board, Nigerian Gas Association (NGA).
The board was inaugurated on Tuesday during an Executive Gas Roundtable for Chief Executives and Directors levels of the oil and gas companies to meet with the NNPC GMD.
In his remarks, the GMD commended the NGA for its contribution to gas sector development through advocacy.
Furthermore, he said the advisory board will add to the development of the gas industry.
He stated that the Federal Government has mandated aggressive gas policy to stimulate growth of gas sector. He however assured stakeholders of his commitment to the objectives of the Board.
In his remarks, the President of NGA, Mr Dada Thomas, stressed the importance of gas in economic development in Nigeria.
“For Nigerian economy to achieve its full potential, there must be power, to get power we need gas, to get gas, we need much needed investment to develop the gas sector, without appropriate fiscal policy on gas, there can never be investments in the sector.
“We must diversify the Nigerian economy and gas has a crucial role to play, so, we must promote investment in gas sector. We must ensure that we pass a good petroleum industry bill that will promote and expand the industry and not shrink it,” he said.
He stressed that a situation where gas investment are made in dollars, gas is sold in dollars but invoices are raised in naira at Central Bank of Nigeria exchange rate which will reduce the invoice value is unacceptable.