Energy

Seplat expects clarity in taxes, royalties, others in PIG bill

Published

9 years ago

July 10, 2017

Seplat targets new oil, gas exploration well in 2027 following Aku-01 discovery

By Chioma Obinagwam

The Managing Director (MD) of Seplat, Austin Avuru has said that he is looking forward to clarity in taxes, royalties, and an even playing field in the recently passed Petroleum Industry Governance(PIG) bill.

The bill, which is awaiting assent from President Muhammadu Buhari after scaling through the Senate, seeks to open up the sector to more and better business opportunities, make the sector more transparent, and ensure better accountability of revenue derived from oil.

“A very large part of the PIG bill will deal with gas supply. We will key into it. We want to see clarity in terms of the taxes and royalties such that investments are attracted into the country,” Avuru disclosed.

ALSO SEE: Niger Delta: Militants to resume attacks on oil facilities

Continuing, the Chairman of the company, Ambrossie Orjiakor said: “We’ve been waiting for the PIB for the past 18 years. What they have done is to break the bill into different sections.”

He added that the issue of modular refineries is something Nigeria must continue to address.

“We need to privitise our refineries and encourage those who are in the business of refining products to continue to refine,” he noted.

If the bill scales through assent by the President, it would restructure the Nigeria National Petroleum Cooperation(NNPC), Department for Petroleum Resources and also create new agencies with more responsibilities.