Oil & Energy
PH Tank Farm: Residents Decry Traffic Obstruction
Some residents of Port
Harcourt City have expressed concern over traffic obstructions by petrol tanker drivers who load products from Eagle Island tank farm in the city.
Some of the residents who spoke to The Tide on the development condemned the hardship being suffered by motorists and pedestrians especially on Ikwerre Road and UTC Junction axis of the Nnamdi Azikwe Road to the Isaac Boro Park fly over.
Chidi Amadi, a bus driver, said each time the tankers come to load from the petrol tank farm at Eagle Island, they block Ikwerre Road from Education Bus Stop to the tank farm near Port Harcourt wharf and stretch to UTC axis to the Mile I flyover.”
Amadi lamented that the tanker drivers were always reckless in their use of the road and called on the government to check such unruly usage of public roads.
Another respondent, Chief Christopher White also expressed disappointment at the danger caused on the road each time the petrol trucks come to load products from the farm.
“I know that petrol is very important to all but there ought to be order and decency in the way and manner businesses should be run in the society”, he said and appealed to the authorities of the tank farm and the Rivers State Government to check the situation.
“They drive against traffic and scale the safety demarcation between the road lanes causing damages on the road and putting lives of other road users in danger”, said Chukwuemeka, a trader at Education Bus Stop.
Mr Austine Jacob, another taxi driver who plies Mile I to RSUST also condemned the attitude of the tanker drivers. “Are they above the law? he queried.
They threaten everybody with their trucks and park wherever they choose to park even in the middle of the road as if the road is their private property and other people do not matter. They cause hold-up and frustrate movement.”
He expressed surprise that the Rivers State Government has kept mute over the incursion and appealed for government’s intervention.
In a similar development, the Senior Staff Association of Communication, Transport and Corporation (SSACTAC), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) branch has called on the federal and Lagos State Governments to ban the movement of petroleum products-laden trucks and container trucks from street and residential areas in Lagos.
The association’s secretary, Comrade Akin Leosho, said activities of the tanker drivers on the Apapa-Oshodi express way had become a major headache to road users.
He urged government to stop construction of warehouses and conversion of existing structures into warehouses within streets and around residential areas and expressed disappointment that it is only in Nigeria that trailers laden with containers as well as petroleum trucks enter the streets.
He said even America which has higher number of articulated trucks engaging in petroleum products distribution than Nigeria yet they are not usually notices on the roads.
“You hardly see them because they are restricted, they carry the cargoes more at night. Secondly, their roads are very good and trailers don’t ply major highways, they have their own route, but in Nigeria everything goes”, he said.
The SSACTAC secretary called on government to fast-track the construction of pipelines to ensure proper movement and distribution of petroleum products in the country.
Chris Oluoh
Nigeria’s losses due to crude oil theft has been said to be more significant than those of some other members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries(OPEC).
The Chairman, Senate Ad- hoc Committee on Crude Oil Theft, Senator Ned Nwoko, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Abuja.
Nwoko noted with dismay the detrimental impact of the issue, which, he said include economic damage, environmental destruction, and its impact on host communities.
According to him, the theft was not only weakening the Naira, but also depriving the nation of vital revenue needed for infrastructure, healthcare, education and social development.
The Senator representing Delta North Senatorial District described the scale of the theft as staggering, with reports indicating losses of over 200,000 barrels per day.
Nwoko disclosed that the ad hoc committee on Crude Oil Theft, which he chairs, recently had a two-day public hearing on the rampant theft of crude oil through illegal bunkering, pipeline vandalism, and the systemic gaps in the regulation and surveillance of the nation’s petroleum resources.
According to him, the public hearing was a pivotal step in addressing one of the most pressing challenges facing the nation.
‘’Nigeria loses billions of dollars annually to crude oil theft. This is severely undermining our economy, weakening the Naira and depriving the nation of vital revenue needed for infrastructure, healthcare, education, and social development.
‘’The scale of this theft is staggering, with reports indicating losses of over 200,000 barrels per day more than some OPEC member nations produce.
‘’This criminal enterprise fuels corruption, funds illegal activities and devastates our environment through spills and pollution.
‘’The public hearing was not just another talk shop; it was a decisive platform to uncover the root causes of crude oil theft, bunkering and pipeline vandalism.
‘’It was a platform to evaluate the effectiveness of existing surveillance, monitoring, and enforcement mechanisms; Identify regulatory and legislative gaps that enable these crimes to thrive.
‘’It was also to engage stakeholders, security agencies, host communities, oil companies, regulators, and experts to proffer actionable solutions; and strengthen legal frameworks to ensure stricter penalties and more efficient prosecution of offenders”, he said.
Nwoko noted that Nigeria’s survival depended
Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Ltd. (SNEPCo) has called on Nigerian companies to position themselves strategically to take full advantage of the growing opportunities in upcoming offshore and shallow water oil and gas projects.
The Managing Director, SNEPCO, Ronald Adams, made the call at the 5th Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF) Conference, held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, last Thursday.
Adams highlighted the major projects, including Bonga Southwest Aparo, Bonga North, and the Bonga Main Life Extension, as key areas where Nigerian businesses can grow their capacity and increase their involvement.
“Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Ltd. (SNEPCo) says Nigerian companies have a lot to benefit if they are prepared to take advantage of more opportunities in its offshore and shallow water oil and gas projects.
“Projects such as Bonga Southwest Aparo, Bonga North and Bonga Main Life Extension could grow Nigerian businesses and improve their expertise if they applied themselves seriously to executing higher value contracts”, Adams stated.
Adams noted that SNEPCo pioneered Nigeria’s deepwater oil exploration with the Bonga development and has since played a key role in growing local industry capacity.
He emphasized that Nigerian businesses could expand in key areas like logistics, drilling, and the construction of vital equipment such as subsea systems, mooring units, and gas processing facilities.
The SNEPCO boss explained that since production began at the Bonga field in 2005, SNEPCo has worked closely with Nigerian contractors to build systems and develop a skilled workforce capable of delivering projects safely, on time, and within budget both in Nigeria and across West Africa.
According to him, this long-term support has enabled local firms to take on key roles in managing the Bonga Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel, which reached a major milestone by producing its one-billion barrel of oil on February 3, 2023.
The Emohua Local Government Area Administrator, Franklin Ajinwo, has pledged to improve electricity distribution in Oduoha Ogbakiri and its environs.
Ajinwo made the pledge recently while playing host in a courtesy visit to the Oduoha Ogbakiri Wezina Council of Chiefs, in his office in Rumuakunde.
He stated that arrangements are underway to enhance available power, reduce frequent outages, and promote steady electricity supply.
The move, he said, was aimed at boosting small and medium-scale businesses in the area.
“The essence of power is not just to have light at night. It’s for those who can use it to enhance their businesses”, he said.
The Administrator, who commended the peaceful nature of Ogbakiri people, urged the Chiefs to continue in promoting peace and stability, saying “meaningful development can only thrive in a peaceful environment”.
He also charged the Chiefs to protect existing infrastructure while promising to address the challenges faced by the community.
Earlier, the Oduoha Ogbakiri Wezina Council of Chiefs, led by HRH Eze Goodluck Mekwa Eleni Ekenta XV, expressed gratitude to the Administrator over his appointment and pledged their support to his administration.
The chiefs highlighted challenges facing the community to include incessant power outage, need for new transformers, and the completion of Community Secondary School, Oduoha.
The visit underscored the community’s expectations from the LGA administration.
With Ajinwo’s assurance of enhancing electricity distribution and promoting development, the people of Oduoha Ogbakiri said they look forward to a brighter future.
By: King Onunwor