Kyari stated that with about 26 per cent of all Nigeria’s gas exported to Spain, it remains a major market for the country. He, therefore, reiterated his commitment to sustaining what he described as the strategic energy partnership between both countries.
Kyari spoke while addressing Nigerian and Spanish business leaders on investment opportunities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry in Madrid, Spain, on the sidelines of President Muhammadu Buhari’s state visit to the country.
A statement by the Group General Manager, Public Affairs of the NNPC, Garba Muhammad, stated that Buhari had earlier met with the Spanish President, Pedro Sanchez, King of Spain, His Majesty, King Filipe VI, and had given a speech at the headquarters of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) in Madrid.
During the visit, the NNPC statement quoted Buhari saying that Nigeria looked forward to increasing bilateral relations with Spain. Describing the partnership between Nigeria and Spain as an important one for the NNPC, GMD said: “26 per cent of all LNG produced in Nigeria ends up in Spain, and 14 per cent of all crude oil produced in Nigeria ends up in this country. Clearly, for us as a business, it is an important market for my company.”
Kyari explained that the world would need energy for today and the future in industries such as power, Information Technology, and automobile, among others.
“We know that energy transition is real. We know that net-zero by 2050-2060 is real. But it doesn’t mean zero hydrocarbons in 2050-2060. It means that you are going to have a cleaner use of hydrocarbons,” Kyari added.
He said that investors must get returns when they invest, with a high chance that they can recover their costs and make some margin from it. According to him, in line with global acceptance of gas as a transition fuel, Nigeria has since declared 2021-2030 as the decade of gas.
“In our country today, we have legislation that has created a commercial National Oil Company (NOC), which our president will unveil in the coming days.
“Together with the Spanish business community, I am confident we can build this industry,” Kyari explained.
