By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Ibe Kachikwu, has been directed to appear before the Senate Joint Committees on Petroleum (Upstream), Gas and Foreign Affairs.
He is to explain to the lawmakers details of the $15 billion proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian government and another $80 billion MoU signed with Chinese firms recently.
In a motion moved on Tuesday by Senator Clifford Ordia, the lawmaker noted that Mr Kachikwu carried out a road show in China where an MoU worth over $80 billion to be spent on investments in oil and gas infrastructure, pipelines, refineries, power, facility refurbishments and upstream financing, spanning five years, was signed with Chinese companies.
Mr Ordia further noted that the Minister negotiated a $15 billion investment deal with India where the Asian country is expected to make an upfront payment to Nigeria for crude oil purchases.
According to the Senator from Edo State, the signed agreement with Indian government will facilitate investments in the oil and gas sector, specifically in areas such as refining, oil and gas marketing, upstream ventures, the development of gas infrastructure and in the training of oil and gas personnel in Nigeria.
“Outside these MoUs with the two largest oil companies in China, Sinopec and others signed investment MoUs with the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, committing the companies to further investments in Nigeria’s upstream oil sub-sector to the tune of $20 billion,” he said.
But the Senate wants Mr Kachikwu to throw more light on the agreements with the two Asian countries and what to hear from him what Nigeria stands to benefits from the MoUs.