The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Dr. Joseph T. Dawha and the Chairman of the Brass LNG Limited, Dr. Jackson Gaius -Obaseki have commended the role played by the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke in reviving the Brass LNG after the unceremonious exit of ConocoPhillips from the project.
Speaking at a status briefing on the Brass LNG project held at the NNPC Towers Abuja recently, the NNPC GMD and the Brass LNG Board Chairman stated that Mrs. Alison-Madueke did not only revive the project but also gave it enough volume of oxygen to ensure it stayed alive to live out its dream.
“The Brass LNG is a cardinal project that is geared towards achievement of goals of diversifying our hydrocarbon resources. It is an important government project in the sense that it is one of the projects that is designed to impact positively on the economy of this country and employ our teeming youth. This explains why the Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources did everything possible under the law to ensure that the project is brought back on track after the exit of ConocoPhillips,’’ the GMD Said. .
Dr. Dawha pledged that as the biggest shareholder in Brass LNG, the NNPC will continue to collaborate with all stakeholders to make sure that the project t is seen through. He promised “ to make sure that all the challenges confronting the development of the project are addressed.’’
In his presentation, Dr. Gaius-Obaseki while congratulating Dr. Dawha on his recent elevation as GMD noted : “Brass just escaped death and in this respect, I want to specially again thank the Honourable Minister. We went through a very tough time with the exit of Conocophillips because the provision of the shareholders agreement would have been that we would deadlock and have to wind up the company and I knew that it would have been a nightmare if we went that way. I had meetings with the minister and she was just wonderful in this respect and just only took decisions that guaranteed the continued existence of Brass LNG. ’’
He noted that rather than being an undertaker, the NNPC deserves praise for presiding over Brass LNG that is alive.
The Brass LNG Board chairman also acknowledged the commitment of the existing shareholders, namely: NNPC, ENI and Total. He noted that it would have been impossible to hit the ground running without the unalloyed commitment of the shareholders.
Describing the Brass LNG as a viable project, Dr. Gaius- Obaseki noted that the reasons for conceiving the project were still very relevant today and that the market was still there, irrespective of the advent of shale gas.
