PETROLEUM MATTERS

Lagos — The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), an amalgamation of over 16 existing laws covering the entire oil and gas sector in Nigeria, contains stringent guidelines that will protect the environment from oil spills and other forms of degradation, when passed into law by the National Assembly.
Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke stated this yesterday at a CNN programme monitored by THISDAY in Lagos.Speaking as a guest on CNN Business Quest anchored by Richard Quest, the minister refuted claims by environmental groups that there is more oil spills each year in the Niger Delta than in the Gulf of Mexico.
She however acknowledged that about nine million barrels of oil may have been spilled in the Niger Delta but pointed out that the spills dated back to 1938 when oil exploration and production started in the country.
Alison-Madueke, who attributed the spills to piracy and misapplication of the country's laws, assured that the country has put in place strict guidelines to address the situation.
"We have seen so many pirates. The militancy in the Niger Delta obviously created problems. There was piracy in terms of bunkering but there may have been some misapplication of laws over the years. This as we see now, has become a thing of the past because we are implementing extremely stringent laws, processes and procedures and to ensure that environmental degradation is addressed in time and is effectively remediated," she said.
The Minister assured that the PIB, which she said would be passed in the next four to five weeks, with the assistance of the members of the National Assembly will address not only the issue of environmental degradation but also ensure greater equity and participation of the Niger Delta communities in the oil and gas sector.
She noted that the inability of the country to refine enough petrol for domestic consumption was a huge problem, pointing out however that planned implementation of deregulation in the next 12 to 16 months would boost investment in new refineries and rehabilitation of the existing ones.