OIL AND GAS: Pengassan Draws Attention To Impact Energy Transition on Oil.

By Helen Udoh-Abuja.

Following the effects of climate change rekindle the world’s apprehension on how to eliminate the footprint of fossil fuel and reduce its attendant impacts on the environment, governments all over the world are committing to greener energy, thereby making energy transition a global burning issue cutting across all sectors.

With these commitments, the call for quick action has led to several climate change initiatives and world conferences where several decisions have been taken on how to curb the menace of climate change and bequeath a world that is safe for all.

Although the initiatives are advantageous, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, (PENGASSAN), has however said that the attention and discussions have been majorly on investments, climate and profits with little or no focus on the workers who ensure all other factors of production are assembled.

To address this, the Association which has a mission to protect the jobs of its members through engagements and promotion of legislations in the interest of the Oil and Gas Sector and the Nigerian Economy at large, is currently holding its maiden Energy and Labour Summit in Abuja with the theme; “Energy Transition and Its Effect on the Workforce in the Nigeria Oil and Gas Sector”.

Speaking at the Summit on Monday, the PENGASSAN President, Comrade Festus Osifo, disclosed that the Association being proactive and poised to protecting the job of its workforce, chose to organize the Summit so as to brainstorm on how the transition can be sailed, how it will affect the workforce that are the most important asset and by extension their families and dependents, and how it can birth maximum value to the nation.

According to him, “The call for climate action has made several Oil and Gas companies migrate to Energy Companies in order to reflect the new realities. A lot of oil and gas exploration companies are now strategizing and moving their investments and significant capital to renewable energy-related projects.

“Investment in fossil fuel is gradually drying up as most major banks that finance oil and gas exploration, development and research have announced their reduction in fossil fuel financing and focusing more on renewable and climate-friendly energy. Educational institutions offering petroleum engineering are metamorphosing into energy institutions. The list is endless when enumerating the effects of energy transition all over the world.

“We hope that the Summit will reveal what the working class in the oil and gas industry have to do today to remain relevant tomorrow; the new skills and training needed; the collaborations that are required with their employers and government in achieving a smooth and sustainable transition”, he said.

He further noted that as much as there is the advocacy for every global region to be allowed to transit at its own pace, focus must not be lost on the reality of today that will shape tomorrow’s future.

Leading a panel session on the topic: “Repositioning the Nigerian Energy Industry and its Workforce for the Future”, the Group General Manager, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Dr. Bala Wunti, urged PENGASSAN to prepare itself and be on the growth trajectory by acquiring relevant skills that will make the workforce remain relevant, adding that significant disruption is expected in the industry in the next five to 10 years, with global emphasis on clean energy.

In his words, “The future is going to be different; it is going to be technology-driven therefore, innovation, creativity and soft skills are very important for all of us to be workers of today and future leaders.

Dr. Wunti, while expressing confidence that by 2060 Nigeria will achieve net zero emission and energy self-sufficiency, emphasized that the target of the country’s oil and gas means that all hands must be on deck.source:The Sight News.