By Deborah Hassan
365Daily– In a bid to ensure smooth operational of oil and gas companies in Nigeria, he Senate on Tuesday mandated its committees on Petroleum Resources Upstream, Downstream Petroleum Sector and Gas to liaise with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Presidential Implementation Committee on the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), to facilitate their relocation to their various operational bases in host communities.
This was sequel to the adoption of the resolutions of a motion on the “urgent need to encourage all Multinational and Nigerian Oil and Gas Companies to relocate to their Operational Bases” sponsored by Senator Albert Bassey Akpan (PDP, Akwa Ibom North East) and 23 others.
Bassey argued in the motion that multinational and Nigeria oil and gas companies operated from their respective bases until militancy and insecurity in the host communities in the Niger Delta made them relocate.
He noted that operating outside the host communities and operational base accounts for the high cost of production in the oil and gas industry, and reduced revenue from crude oil and gas sales to the federation account.
According to him, the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021(PIA) will restore lasting peace in the host communities as it places certain responsibilities regarding the security, peace and safety of oil and gas infrastructure on the host communities to safeguard and ensure peaceful coexistence between oil and gas companies and their host communities.
Sen. Bassey said he was convinced that this is an opportunity to restore, recover and rehabilitate the massive and huge infrastructural facilities abandoned by the various oil and gas companies in their various operational bases to ensure their full utilisation.
“The relocation of these companies to their host communities will further boost development in those areas and enhance the corporate social relationships and strengthen out collective resolve to considerably reduce the contentious cost of production and ensure adequate returns to federation account,” he said.
The Senate adopted the motion and mandated its committees on Petroleum Resources Upstream, Downstream Petroleum Sector and Gas to liaise with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Presidential Implementation Committee on the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), to facilitate the relocation of oil and gas companies in Nigeria to their various operational bases to ensure smooth operations.