Bauchi Govt set to create oil and gas free trade zone

In a bid to woo investors to the state, the Bauchi State Government says it has commenced plans to build a magnificent oil and gas-free trade zone.

The Governor of Bauchi State, Sen. Bala Mohammed, disclosed this at the Nigerian Oil and Gas Forum and Awards Night 2024 held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, on Friday.

“I want to use this opportunity to call on prospective investors that are ready to enter a mutually beneficial partnership to come and invest in the oil and gas sector in Bauchi State,” Persecondnews quotes the Commissioner for Natural Resources, Mr. Bello Maiwada, who represented the governor, as saying.

According to the Commissioner, the governor has started the process of creating a favourable environment to do business, not just in the oil and gas sector but also for investors in other mineral resources the state is blessed with.

The 2023 Nigeria Subnational Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Report ranked Bauchi as the sixth-best state for ease of doing business in the country.

“Bauchi State takes sixth place with a commendable EoDB score of 6.37. The state ranks (4th) in infrastructure, (7th) in transparency and accessibility of information, (8th) in skills and labour, (7th) in a secure and stable environment, and (6th) in economic opportunity. It also holds the 13th position in the regulatory environment category,” the report said.

Maiwada added that the governor has taken the giant stride of paying 50 percent of the tuition fee for pioneer students of the Bauchi Oil and Gas Academy, Alkaleri, to encourage and produce professionals from the oil and gas sector.

The Academy, the first of its kind in northern Nigeria, sited in Alkaleri, sought NBTE’s approval to start awarding the National Innovative Diploma (NID) in nine programmes, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Telecommunications technology, Computer Software Engineering, Solar Installation Technology, Automatic and Mechanics, Welding and Fabrication, Buildings Construction and Hardware Engineering.

In 2021, the Bauchi State Government established the academy to provide the skilled manpower required to fastrack oil and gas exploration in the Kolmani oil field and other areas in the northern part of the country.