Business
PETAN To Address Nigerian Oil, Gas Opportunities In US

L-R: Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Steve Ayorinde; Commissioner for Transportation, Dr Dayo Mobereola and Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Transportation, Prince Lanre Elegushi, at a news conference on the current fuel scarcity in Lagos on Wednesday.
The Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) says it is leading Nigeria’s delegation to the Offshore Technology Conference to address the current realities and hidden opportunities in Nigerian oil and gas industry.
The association’s Publicity Secretary, Mr Nik Odinuwe, said in a statement in Lagos yesterday that the conference would hold from May 2 to May 5 in Houston, Texas, U.S.
According to the statement, the theme of the conference is “The Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry: Current Realities, Hidden Opportunities’’.
It said that PETAN was expected to consolidate achievements recorded by the association in driving partnership of indigenous oil and gas companies by their international counterparts.
It noted that the conference was an annual gathering of people from around the world with interest in oil and gas, including policy makers, operators, professionals, manufacturers, business executives, entrepreneurs and visitors.
The statement added that Dr Ibe Kachikwu, the Minister for State Petroleum Resources, would declare the Nigerian pavilion open.
It said that Mr Bayo Ojulari, MD, SNEPCO and Mr Austin Avuru, MD, Seplat Petroleum among others would also be in attendance.
The statement said the conference would avail the attendees an opportunity for engagement with key players in the industry.
On the success of the 2015 conference, PETAN’s President, Mr Bank-Anthony Okoroafor, said the conference created opportunity for people to meet and interact with Nigerian players in the sector.
According to him, this is why PETAN is taking this extra step to bring Nigerian companies to exhibit and make new business negotiations.
“We had plenary sessions as well as a workshop with Nigerian oil professionals abroad, where issues in the country’s oil and gas were also discussed.
“These are ways and means to create a platform for Nigerians to interact concerning the issues in the oil and gas sector.’’
The conference was founded in 1969 and now attracts over 150,000 visitors and 3,700 exhibitors from around the world each year.
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BVN Enrolments Rise 6% To 67.8m In 2025 — NIBSS
The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has said that Bank Verification Number (BVN) enrolments rose by 6.8 per cent year-on-year to 67.8 million as at December 2025, up from 63.5 million recorded in the corresponding period of 2024.
In a statement published on its website, NIBSS attributed the growth to stronger policy enforcement by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the expansion of diaspora enrolment initiatives.
NIBSS noted that the expansion reinforces the BVN system’s central role in Nigeria’s financial inclusion drive and digital identity framework.
Another major driver, the statement said, was the rollout of the Non-Resident Bank Verification Number (NRBVN) initiative, which allows Nigerians in the diaspora to obtain a BVN remotely without physical presence in the country.
A five-year analysis by NIBSS showed consistent growth in BVN enrolments, rising from 51.9 million in 2021 to 56.0 million in 2022, 60.1 million in 2023, 63.5 million in 2024 and 67.8 million by December 2025. The steady increase reflects stronger compliance with biometric identity requirements and improved coverage of the national banking identity system.
However, NIBSS noted that BVN enrolments still lag the total number of active bank accounts, which exceeded 320 million as of March 2025.
The gap, it explained, is largely due to multiple bank accounts linked to single BVNs, as well as customers yet to complete enrolment, despite the progress recorded.
