Oil & Energy

Ogoni Clean-Up: Monarch Makes Case For Local Contractors

Published

7 years ago

April 22, 2019

The Acting King of Eleme Kingdom in Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State, Emere (Dr) Philip Osaro Obele, has appealed to the Federal Government and the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) in particular to involve local contractors from Eleme ethnic extraction in the clean-up of oil spill impacted sites in the area.
Obele, who made the appeal during a courtesy call on him by the Minister of Environment, Surveyor Suleiman Hassan Zarma and HYPREP team at his palace in Aleto Eleme recently, stressed the need for the agency to deliver on its mandate of total remediation of impacted sites in the area as well as provision and restoration of the livelihoods of the people.
He equally stressed the need for HYPREP to engage contractors from the area in all its activities as well as offer scholarship to deserving sons and daughters of the area as a way of empowering the people.
The monarch said the provision of emergency measures like clean water was paramount, as it would go a long way to cushion the effects of pollution and degradation of the Eleme environment, pointing out that the entire underground water in the area was badly affected.
While assuring HYPREP of Eleme people’s support, he lamented that the people’s means of livelihood had been completely destroyed, as they were now prone to diseases like cancer, blindness, among other ailments.
“You people should do your best for us. You know what we are passing through. No water. The rain water is acidic. In Ogale, we barely live for each day. There are certain crops you can’t find here. You can’t get any good fish in our area,” he said.
HYPREP ‘s Project Coordinator, Dr Mavin Dekil, assured the monarch of the agency’s commitment to implement the UNEP Report to the letter and congratulated him on his elevation, stressing that the agency had recently trained some Ogoni youths and plans were underway to train additional 400 Ogoni women.
The Minister of Environment, Surveyor Suleiman Hassan Zarma, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Environment, Mrs Ibukun Odusote, assured the monarch of the agency’s commitment to the remediation project and thanked him for Ogoni people’s support for the project.
Meanwhile, the company handling the clean-up project in Obolo community in Eleme Local Government Area, Basic Nigeria Limited, has given an assurance of delivering the job according to international standard.
Managing Director of the company, Mr Masi Bright who gave the assurance recently when the Minister of Environment, Surveyor Suleiman Hassan Zarma and HYPREP team visited the Lot 2 clean-up site, said the firm was doing everything within its capacity to restore the polluted site to its original state.
Briefing the Minister, represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Environment, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, an environmental expert and HYPREP’s Head of Operations, Prof. Philip Shekwolo, said the contractors had adopted the right methodology to completely restore the environment, adding that signs to that effect would start manifesting within three months, with the sprouting of fresh and healthy crops at the site.
HYPREP also organised a town hall meeting with stakeholders in Ogale to sensitise the people on the clean-up project.

Donatus Ebi

Oil & Energy

NERC, OYSERC Partner To Strengthen Regulation

Published

15 hours ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has stressed the need for strict adherence to due process in operationalizing state electricity regulatory bodies.

It, however, pledged institutional and technical support to the Oyo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OYSERC).

The Chairman, NERC, Dr Musiliu Oseni, who made the position known while receiving the OYSERC delegation, emphasised that the establishment and take-off of state commissions must align fully with the law setting them up.

Oseni said that the NERC remains committed to partnering with State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERC) to guarantee their institutional stability, operational effectiveness and long-term success.

He insisted that regulatory coordination between federal and state institutions is critical in the evolving electricity market framework, noting that collaboration would help to build strong institutions capable of delivering sustainable outcomes for the sector.

Also speaking, the Acting Chairman, OYSERC and leader of the delegation, Prof. Dahud Kehinde Shangodoyin, said that the visit was aimed at formally introducing the commission’s acting leadership to the NERC and laying the groundwork for a productive working relationship.

Shangodoyin said , the acting members were appointed to provide direction and lay a solid foundation for the commission during its transitional period, pending the appointment of substantive members.

“We are here to formally introduce the acting leadership of OYSERC and to establish a working relationship with NERC as we commence our regulatory responsibilities,” he said.

He acknowledged NERC’s readiness to provide technical and regulatory support, particularly in the area of capacity development, describing the backing as essential for strengthening the commission’s operations at this formative stage.

“We appreciate NERC’s willingness to support us technically and regulatorily, especially in building our capacity during this transition,” he added.

Oil & Energy

NLC Faults FG’s 3trn Dept Payment To GenCos

Published

15 hours ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Association of Power Generation Companies have engaged in a showdown over federal government legacy debt.

NLC president Joe Ajaero has faulted the federal government’s move to give GenCos N3 trillion from the Federation account as repayment for a power sector legacy debt, which amounts to N6.5 trillion.

In a statement on Thursday, Ajaero said the Federal Government proposed the N3 trillion payment and the N6 trillion debt as a heist and grand deception to shortchange the Nigerian people.

“Nigerians cannot and should not continue to pay for darkness,” Ajaero stated.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Power Generation Companies, APGC, Dr. Joy Ogaji, said Ajaero may be ignorant of the true state of things, insisting that the federal government is indebted to GenCos to the tune of N6.5 trillion.

She feared the longstanding conflict could result in the eventual collapse of the country’s power.

According to her, the federal government’s N501 billion issuance of power sector bonds is inadequate to address its accumulated debt.

Oil & Energy

PENGASSAN Rejects Presidential EO On Oil, Gas Revenue Remittance ……… Seeks PIA Review

Published

15 hours ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

The Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria(PENGASSAN) Festus Osifo, has faulted the public explanation surrounding the Federal Government’s recent oil revenue Executive Order(EO).

President of the association, Festus Osifo, argued that claims about a 30 per cent deduction from petroleum sharing contract revenue are misleading.

Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, last Wednesday, February 18, signed the executive order directing that royalty oil, tax oil, profit oil, profit gas, and other revenues due to the Federation under production sharing, profit sharing, and risk service contracts be paid directly into the Federation Account.

The order also scrapped the 30 per cent Frontier Exploration Fund under the PIA and stopped the 30 per cent management fee on profit oil and profit gas retained by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

In his reaction, Osifo, while addressing journalists, in Lagos, Thursday, said the figure being referenced does not represent gross revenue accruing to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

He explained that revenues from production sharing contracts are subject to several deductions before arriving at what is classified as profit oil or profit gas.

Osifo also urged President Bola Tinubu to withdraw his recently signed Presidential Executive Order to Safeguard Federation Oil and Gas Revenues and Provide Regulatory Clarity, 2026.

He warned that the directive undermines the Petroleum Industry Act and could create uncertainty in the oil and gas industry, insisting that any amendment to the existing legal framework must pass through the National Assembly.

Osifo argued that an executive order cannot override a law enacted by the National Assembly, describing the move as setting a troubling precedent.

“Yes, that is what should be done from the beginning. You can review the laws of a land. There is no law that is perfect,” he said.

He added that the President should constitute a team to review the PIA, identify its strengths and weaknesses, and forward proposed amendments to lawmakers.

“When you get revenue from PSC, you have to make some deductibles. You deduct royalties. You deduct tax. You also deduct the cost of cost recovery. Once you have done that, you will now have what we call profit oil or profit gas. Then that is where you now deduct the 30 per cent,” he stated..

According to him, when the deductions are properly accounted for, the 30 per cent being referenced translates to about two per cent of total revenue from the production sharing contracts.

“In effect, that deduction is about two per cent of the revenue of the PLCs,” he added, maintaining that the explanation presented in the public domain did not accurately reflect the structure of the deductions.

Osifo warned that removing the affected portion of the revenue could have operational implications for NNPC Ltd, noting that the funds are used to meet salary obligations and other internal expenses.

“That two per cent is what NNPC uses to pay salaries and meet some of its obligations.The one you are also removing from the midstream and downstream, it is part of what they use in meeting their internal obligations. So as you are removing this, how are they going to pay salaries?” he queried.

Beyond the immediate impact on the company’s workforce, he cautioned that regulatory uncertainty could affect investor confidence in the sector.

“If the international community and investors lose confidence in Nigeria, it has a way of affecting investment. That should be the direction. You don’t put a cow before the horse,” he added.

According to him, stakeholders, including labour unions and industry operators, should be given the opportunity to make inputs at the National Assembly as part of the amendment process saying “That is how laws are refined,”