BY VICTORIA ONU, ABUJA
THE Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has said it received bids from 339 companies for the 2020/21 sales and purchase of the Nigerian crude oil grades.
The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Mele Kyari, disclosed this at the 2020/2021 Crude oil tender prequalification bid opening ceremony in Abuja.
Stakeholders like the Nigerian Extractive industries Transparency Initiative, Bureau of Public procurement, Department of Petroleum Resources, Civil Liberty Organisation, among others, were part of the bid opening as part of statutory requirements.
The GMD, who was represented by Umar Ajiya, NNPC Chief Financial Officer, said that inspite of the challenges posed by COVID-19, the Corporation had modified the bidding process by leveraging on technology to ease the cycle of crude oil bidding.
He explained that the objectives of the 2020/2021 crude oil bidding process were to engage reputable, qualified and high capacity international and indigenous companies, ensure that selection of off-takers was aligned with tested transparent and accountable procedures in compliance with the Public Procurement and Nigerian Content Acts.
Kyari stated that the bidding process would be in compliance with all the extant regulations and reinforcement of commitment by the Corporation to transaparency and accountability, adding that companies would guarantee market placement of the Nigerian crude oil at optimum value during the next contracting cycle.
The GMD futher noted that apart from the objectives, the Corporation would sustain transparency in all process and establish the best partners through robust mix of big international players.
” Ultimately, crude oil is a major revenue earner in Nigeria, therefore, the credibility of this process is very important to us all,” he added.
He also said that the major destination of the Nigerian crude oil had changed over time from India to China.
He said, “We have continued to see a strong demand for different grades of Nigerian crude in the oil market despite the lockdowns and refinery run cuts.
”We are also witnessing demand for Nigerian crude switch from traditional destinations such as India and finding home in new markets such as China.”
The Chief Operating Officer, Upstream, Adokiye Tombomieye, in his remarks, assured that the corporation had taken steps to ensure the process of producing the best bidder while adhering to COVID-19 principles.
He explained that the process aligned with the Corporation’s Transparency, Accountability and Performance Excellence agenda, extant statutory requirements and the Public Procurement Act.
The Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Division, Billy Okoye, noted that the selection of off-takers aligned with tested transparent and accountable procedures in compliance with the BPP Act.
“The bid submission process was modified by replacing it with virtual submission interphase on the NIPex portal to ensure all applicants were granted equal opportunity and access to unified submissions platform,” he said.
