Executive Director with TotalEnergies, Nigeria, Mr. Obi Imemba, has urged Nigeria to move away from announcing percentages, to ensuring maximum net value retention in the implementation of the local content law in the country’s oil and gas industry.
Imemba made the call during a panel discussion at the 2025 Practical Nigerian Content (PNC) organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Yenagoa, with the theme, “Securing Investments, Strengthening Local Content and Scaling Production.”
Speaking against the backdrop of NCDMB’s announcement of the achievement of 61 per cent local content, Imemba said TotalEnergies had moved on to where it could advance for net value retention for the country, insisting that this is where Nigeria ought to be.
NCDMB Executive Secretary, Felix Ogbe, had announced the achievement of 61 per cent local content as the board pursued the attainment of 70 per cent by 2027.
But Imemba said discussions on local content should centre aroundwhere the country ought to be, explaining that the country is still at a “prescriptive” level.
He said, “For me, in this area, what I can advance or what my company can advance is net value retention for the country. So you need to find a balance where we will, move from where we say it has to be 70 per cent or 90 per cent or 100 per cent to start talking about value.
“Which one, what are we going to do to give us the maximum net value retention for Nigeria? And that is the balance? That’s where we need to go. I think we are not there yet. Today, we’re still at that prescriptive level.”
On the achievements of TotalEnergies in the last decade, Imemba said the company had made two major investments, including the 200,000 barrels per day Egina FPSO. He also mentioned TotalEnergies investments in Ladol Yard in Lagos, Aveon Yard in Port Harcourt, FMC Yard in Omni, and the Ikike Project as some of its significant achievements.
According to him, TotalEnergies has been the most dynamic company in the oil and gas industry in the past one year.
Imemba said, “We’ve been the most active and dynamic in terms of reshaping our portfolio. So, that is intentional. What we are doing is that we are focusing on consolidating and accelerating investment and development in our operating portfolio.”
Olusegun Samuel
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