The Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has approved a new National Petroleum Policy for the country, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources said on Wednesday.
The approval of the 100-page document was given last week after the cabinet meeting, the ministry said.
The National Petroleum Policy, according to the ministry, defines the strategy of the federal government with respect to Nigeria’s oil resources.
It also articulates the vision of the federal government for the petroleum (specifically oil) sector and proposes fundamental reforms to improve the operational efficiency and performance of NNPC.
It is intended to remove the barriers affecting investment and development of the sector.
The policy will be reviewed and updated periodically to ensure consistency in government policy objectives at all times, the ministry also said.
The main aspects of the petroleum policy are Governance (Legal and Regulatory Framework) and Industry Structure, which proposes the establishment of a new National Oil Company of Nigeria (NOCN) leading to the restructuring of NNPC into autonomous business units.
In the upstream, maximizing production of hydrocarbons, additions to reserves and future production as well as allocation of oil licences and leases are some of the highlights of the policy.
In the downstream, the policy will deal with the commercialisation and liberalisation of downstream and petroleum products pricing.
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