EXCLUSIVE: 14 firms win bids to lift Nigeria’s oil in 2019/2020

No fewer than 14 local, regional and international oil companies that bid for the 2019 Direct Sale of Crude Oil and Direct Purchase (DSDP) contract have emerged successful.

Although many of the companies applied as individuals, sources at the state oil firm, NNPC, said many of the eventual winners formed consortiums with other applicants to emerge successful.

The eventual successful bids include:

• BP/AYM Shafa Limited
• Vitol-Hyson/Calson//Varo
• Trafigura PTE Limited /AA Rano
• MRS
• Oando PLC/CEPZA Consortium
• Bono Energy Limited/Akleen/Amazon/Eterna PLC
• Eyrie/Masters Energy Oil & Gas Limited/Cassiva/Asean Group
• Mercuria Energy Trading SA/Barbedos/Petrogas/ Rainoil Limited
• Matrix Energy Limited/Mocoh Oil & Gas/Levene/Petra Atlantic
• TOTSA
• Duke Oil Company Incorporated
• Sahara Energy Resources Limited
• Gunvor Limited

The 14th successful winner is yet to be confirmed.

Reliable sources at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said that, The 14 successful bidders were among those invited to participate in contract negotiations held in London a fortnight ago for shortlisted companies.

The NNPC is yet to formally make public the names of the successful companies.

But, a source who requested not to be named as he was not authorised to speak on the issue, said the corporation may follow a familiar pattern of not publicly announcing winners of such contracts.

On May 3, the NNPC had announced a list of 132 local and international business partners, and potential off-takers and suppliers that submitted bids for the 2019 Direct Sale-Direct Purchase (DSDP) of crude oil contract.

During the opening exercise, the outgoing Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Maikanti Baru, said the exercise was to ensure that qualified companies were engaged, shortlisted and awarded the lucrative contracts.

Prospective awardees, he said, would be expected to possess the capacity to transport about 14 billion litres of products under the DSDP scheme.

The Group General Manager, (GGM) Crude Oil Marketing Division, NNPC, Mele Kyari, had said each of the companies that would emerge as winners of the contract would be allocated some of the 445,000 barrels per day of Nigeria’s crude oil usually allocated for domestic refining.

Mr Kyari, who will take over as NNPC chief next month, said only companies with the capacity to utilise the allocated crude oil to supply petroleum products to the country would be considered for the contract award.

The DSDP scheme was introduced in 2016 with efficient and cost-effective systems and processes.

Mr Kyari said since the inception of the DSDP scheme in 2016 until March 2019, about 29.5 million metric tons (39.6 billion litres) of petroleum products have been supplied under the scheme representing over 90 per cent of the national requirement.

According to him, the scheme has over the years ensured about 84 per cent reduction in product demurrage cost and cost savings of about $2.2 billion.

Source: premiumtimesng.com