Follow Us on Google
From Uche Usim, Abuja
Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, has asked the Turkish Government to leverage the enormous oil and gas resources to deepen onshore investments as the Federal Government was determined to encourage foreign direct investments, especially in natural gas.
Speaking during a bilateral meeting with the Turkish Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alpersen Bayraktar, on the sidelines of the ongoing Ceraweek, in Houston, Texas, Sylva said that Nigeria was opened to more Turkish investments in the hydrocarbon sector, especially with the planned divestments of some International Oil Companies (IOC) from the onshore sectors in the country.
“We are looking at the possibilities of Turkey taking interests in more investments in Nigeria” Sylva told the Turkish minister adding that “now that IOC like Shell, Exxon Mobil and others are planning to divest from onshore assets, more investments in that sector would be a great opportunity for Turkey to expand its investments interest in Nigeria”.
He said the “cooperation between Nigeria and Turkey is very significant and we can extend our relationship in energy and other areas of trade”. The Minister added that with the new Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) Nigeria has further streamlined its laws in the oil and gas investment environment and thus making investments in the oil and gas sector of the economy more attractive to potential investors.
