PIA Five Years On: Stakeholders Demand Faster Reforms

Five years after its enactment, Nigeria’s Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) faces calls for stronger implementation to unlock investment and production growth.

Stakeholders at the PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit in Abuja said unresolved issues and regulatory uncertainty could weaken investment, output and energy security. They reviewed the PIA’s impact since 2021 and discussed steps needed to deliver greater economic benefits.

Oil and gas expert Solomon Orieji said the PIA helped address uncertainty around five major deepwater assets responsible for about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s deepwater production. Their commercial agreements, signed in 1993 for 30 years, were approaching expiry by 2023. The PIA provided a framework for renewing and renegotiating the production-sharing contracts, helping protect future investment.

However, Dr Mohammed Malah said the PIA should now be judged by actual investment and production results. He noted that legal reform alone cannot increase output. As he put it, “The law itself does not produce a barrel,” adding that infrastructure, technology, skilled workers and effective implementation remain essential.

Okechukwu Nwankwo highlighted positive investment responses, including more than 20 regulations, new final investment decisions and gas projects with combined processing capacity of about 810 million standard cubic feet. He also said the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund had invested more than N570 billion and helped attract over N2 trillion in investment.

Still, stakeholders urged faster action on tariffs, pricing, licensing, transparency, feedstock supply, third-party access and strategic petroleum stocks. They stressed that the PIA can only deliver its full promise when regulatory certainty translates into deployed capital, completed projects and higher production.

What should Nigeria prioritise next to ensure the PIA delivers stronger investment and energy security?