Mr Austine Okeke, the Executive Director of Leadership Engagement and Research Network (LEARN), on Thursday said only deregulation of the oil sector would permanently end importation of petroleum products in Nigeria.
Okeke told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that it would be ideal for Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to replicate the deregulation of telecom sector in the oil sector.
He called on the Federal Government to remove subsidy, which he said, was an impediment to privatisation of refineries in the country.
“In other words, government should take the telecom module and replicate it in the oil industry.
“Market forces will make it competitive. Soon those investors will begin to look for other markets and then begin to export,’’ Okeke said.
The leadership consultant said that deregulation of oil sector would usher in competition among investors to the advantage of the country’s economy.
He said that such competition would force the investors begin to use other bye-products which could lead to a drop in gas flaring.
NAN reports that Nigeria still imports petroleum products contrary to former Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr Ibe Kachikwu’s claim that Nigeria’s refining capacity would reach expected 1.1 million barrels per day in 2020.
In 2018, the immediate past minister, had in an interview with BBC, vowed to resign if Nigeria continued to import fuel by 2019.
