Baru hails Nigeria’s crude oil bidding process

The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, has said that the bidding for the 2019 Direct Sale of Crude Oil and Direct Purchase (DSDP) to local and international business partners is to ensure reputable qualified companies are engaged.

Speaking at the opening of the bids on Thursday on Abuja, Baru said that the process would ensure that the selection of off-takers aligned with transparent and accountable procedures in compliance with the Public Procurement and Nigerian Content Acts.

“The third public bid opening ceremony for the DSDP tenders is fully in line.

“It is in demonstration of President Muhammadu Buhari’s transparency and anti-corruption initiatives which the NNPC has imbibed and championed relentlessly.

“The DSDP scheme was introduced in 2016 with efficient and cost effective systems and processes to plug the value eroding loopholes of the January 2015 OPC contracts,” he said.

According to him, since the inception of the DSDP scheme in 2016 until March 2019, about 29.5million metric tonnes of petroleum products had been supplied under the scheme, representing over 90 percent of the national requirement.

“Through a transparent competitive bidding and evaluation process, the scheme has enlisted a robust supplier mix comprising of the big international players and strong Nigerian downstream companies for supply flexibility and local capacity development,” Baru said.

He added that the scheme has over the years ensured significant reduction in product demurrage cost in the range of 84 percent and cost savings of about 2.2 billion dollars.

In his speech, the Group General Manager, (GGM) Crude Oil Marketing Division of the NNPC, Mele Kyari said that 132 companies bidded for about 14 billion liters of products under the DSDP scheme.

He assured that the bid process was open to all to optimise local participation.

SOURCE: journalducameroun.com