Brazil, Nigeria To Sign MoU On Energy

The NNPC and Brazil’s Petrobras have concluded arrangements to sign a memorandum of understanding in oil exploration, production and gas and power development.

The Vice President, Alhaji Namadi Sambo, made this known at a meeting with the management staff of the NNPC and Petrobras in Brassilia on Monday.

He said the MoU which would also include research and development, refining and petrochemical and oil marketing and trading would be signed in February in Abuja.

He said the MoU would be beneficial to both Nigeria and Brazil, adding that it would also enable Nigeria to secure adequate gas supply for its thermal power plants.

He disclosed that 10 new thermal power plants would soon be completed across Nigeria to boost electricity supply in the country.

The vice president further announced that Nigeria would soon commence the provision of electricity supply to all families, similar to the Brazilian “Light for All” programme.

He maintained that this had become imperative in view of the fact that the Nigerian economy was directly related to energy, saying that “where there is power the economy improves”.

Sambo expressed the hope that the MoU would assist Nigeria in meeting the power needs of its people.

In his remarks, the President of Petrobras, Jose Gabrielli De Azevedo, described the MoU as a welcome development for both countries.

He said the company, which recently raised 17 billion dollars from the international stock market for its expansion programme, planned to invest 224 billion dollars in the oil and gas sector in the next 10 years.

He revealed that Petrobras was refining an average of 2 million barrels of oil per day from 11 refineries, and planned to establish additional five refineries in the next five years.

Azevedo, who further disclosed that 51 per cent of the oil being consumed in Brazil was refined from sugarcane, said that 60,000 staff members were being trained annually by the company at its resource development centres within and outside Brazil.

He expressed the readiness of Petrobras to assist NNPC in the training of its staff in the areas of oil and gas, energy and power sectors for the transformation of the Nigerian economy.

In his contribution, the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mr Stephen Oniwon, stated the MoU would enable NNPC to market its products in Brazil and U.S.A.

He said Nigeria would also commence the exportation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to Brazil to address the shortage of gas in the country.

Similar meetings on energy and power were held by the vice president and officials of the ministries of power, foreign affairs, as well as NNPC and the presidency with various companies and stakeholders who had shown interest to invest in Nigeria.