African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) Secretary General, Dr. Omar Ibrahim, has urged Nigerian players in the oil sector to expand into other African oil producing countries.
Ibrahim, made the call at the Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunities Fair (NOGOF 2025) in Yenagoa on Thursday.
The APPO scribe applauded Nigeria’s advancement in the African oil and gas sector and challenged Nigerian companies to look beyond the shores of the country for opportunities to lead other countries who look up to Nigeria.
“Nigeria is currently doing well in the oil and gas space especially with regards to the regulatory templates which a lot of countries are coming to. Nigerian Content has become a model for other African oil producers.
“Nigeria is doing well but it can be better when opportunities for expansion outside Nigeria is explored.
“From what I have seen at the exhibition hall, Nigerian entrepreneurs can export their innovative solutions to the rest of Africa and even beyond,” he said.
He advised the oil industry entrepreneurs to jettison the idea of sole ownership of their business and seek collaborations and partnership with their peers in other African countries to get a foothold into the foreign markets.
Ibrahim explained that all the International Oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria have partial ownership structures ceding some percentage of their shares to Nigerians to enable them have access to operate in Nigerian.
“Nigerian businessmen should jettison the idea of me and my son mentality and open ownership to their peers in other oil producing countries to get into those countries,” he said.
Some 1,000 companies are participating in the fair organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board to showcase opportunities that Nigeria entrepreneurs can leverage on to deepen the participation of Nigerians in the energy sector
