Skip to main content

IOCs Lying About Number Of Gas Flaring Sites In Nigeria - Petroleum Ministry Official

An official of Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources has revealed that multinational oil companies in Nigeria routinely underreports the number of gas flaring sites under their spheres of operation.

The official who spoke during a presentation at a workshop on oil and gas policies organized by a coalition of civil society organizations in Port Harcourt said the ministry has so far discovered 34 unreported gas flaring sites.

He added that this is in addition to 178 gas flaring sites already recognized by the federal government.

Image

He however added that to stop the falsification and end gas flaring in the country, the National Gas Flaring Commercialization Program, (NGFCP) through which federal government will use its constitutional powers to freely collect flared gas and auction it to off-takers- persons who will gather and sell the gas has been developed.

‘These third parties,’ as the policy terms them, will sell or sell and refine the commodity on a “Willing Seller, Willing Buyer Basis.”

He added that is a $3 billion to $3.5 billion investment that will create 300,000 direct and indirect jobs for the host communities and other Nigerians.

According to him, Nigeria loses about $300 million to $350 million from revenues that can be earned from flaring 110 million Standard Cubic Feet (SCUF) of gas annually.

He assured the stakeholders that flared gas will be refined locally into gas products like, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) and other chemical plants.

Participants however expressed doubts on the capacity and the willingness of the government to see the implementation of such policy through. In the same vein, they also lambasted the government for going ahead to develop such a scheme without seeking the views of the host communities.

According to them, failure to sit down and formulate policies with the neighborhoods where the resources will be exploited will ultimately sets the government on a course of non-achievement.

But the MPR official assured that stakeholders a sensitization workshop will be held next month where the host communities and other interests will have the opportunity of making input into the new initiative.

Topics
Oil