Nigeria's Acting President Pushes Petroleum Bill

The new law gives preferential treatment to indigenous companies seeking to participate in the country’s oil and gas industry and requires that IOCs hire more Nigerians. This could give the PIB a fillip, as it removes the need for that larger bill to include similar legislation. Also, for the first time the government has awarded licenses for dedicated gas exploration to four companies – Shell Petroleum Development Company, Total Fina Elf, Niger Delta Resources and Nigeria Agip Oil Co. Historically, gas discoveries have been a by-product of exploration activities focusing on oil; a trend for gas-specific exploration could yield significant new reserves. Download here