Abstract:

This study investigated the relationship between Supplier Integration and Competitiveness of oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. This study employed the survey research design, and both primary and secondary data were collection and utilized. The population of the study was forty-five (45) functional oil and gas exploration and production companies operating in the Niger Delta region as contained in the Directorate of Petroleum Resources (DPR) annual report, 2017. Three (3) structured copies of questionnaire were randomly distributed per company to three (3) heads of departments/managers which comprised; procurement, logistics, warehouse/store, marketing/commercial, and Production and exploration managers, out of which, a total of 112 copies of the questionnaire were retrieved and used for analysis. Thereafter, data were collated and analyzed using SPSS version 21.0 and the Spearman Rank correlation statistics was used to test the relationship between the predictor and criterion variable. The findings revealed that supplier integration has a positive and significant relationship with competitiveness in the oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Niger Delta. We therefore conclude that supplier integration affects competitiveness of oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria and the authors therefore recommended that the management of oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Niger Delta region should improve on their Supplier Integration strategies in other to continuously improve their supply chain performance, remain consistently competitive and ultimately outwit their competitors.