President Muhammadu Buhari had on Tuesday flagged off the commercial production of crude oil and gas from the $3billion Kolmani Integrated Development Project.
The Governor of Gombe State, Inuwa Yahaya, on Tuesday, said his administration would make efforts to ensure environmental and economic stability in the state in the wake of oil exploration.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on Tuesday flagged off the commercial production of crude oil and gas from the $3billion Kolmani Integrated Development Project.
Located along the fields of Gombe and Bauchi, the Kolmani project, with Oil Prospecting Licence 809 and 810, lie in the Gongola Basin of the Upper Benue Trough, straddling the two northern states.
The field, according to its promoters, will produce about 50,000 barrels of crude oil per day and holds over one billion barrels of crude oil reserves, shooting up Nigeria’s oil reserves to over 38 billion barrels.
However, Governor Inuwa of Gombe while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday said they had learnt their lessons, with the developments and what had been happening around the Niger Delta and other oil-producing areas of the world.
He expressed the commitment of the state government to observe the lessons of the Niger Delta in its oil exploration at the Kolmani River located between Gombe and Bauchi states.
The governor noted that there would be job and business opportunities for the people of Gombe.
He explained that from the exploratory stage, the state government had begun engaging local communities in all the activities.
He said; “We’ve learnt our lessons. With the developments and what has been happening around the Niger Delta and other oil-producing areas of the world, naturally, no government will allow things to follow the same track.
“With regard to the issue of the environment, our Ministry of Environment is working hand in hand with the Federal Ministry of Environment and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) so that we will avoid all the mistakes and pitfalls that have been the big challenge of oil exploration and implementation in the southern part of the country.
“Going forward, Gombe State will be working with some consultants that have been guiding us as to what we need to do, especially by providing the required skill, workmanship, and labour that is needed in order to be useful and exploited in the oil operations.
“There is nothing opaque. We are transparent and I believe the company and the NNPC itself are so transparent that these days no activity will be taken off the shelf.
“So, we shall make sure that from the environment to the impact on society and the community, there will be no cause for alarm. As a state government, we are ready to partner with any investor.
“There is a window for us to discuss; we are ready to engage our local business community so that along the value chain, anybody that is interested will identify where to fix and where to invest so that eventually, economic activity will be kick-started and it will be enjoyed by the people of the state,” he added.