Oil Sector Records 98% Spillage From Sabotage

In a report by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, oil theft through pipeline sabotage caused 98 percent of oil spill in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector since June this year till date.

The government regulatory body said that the sector recorded 60 fatalities (deaths) and 62 injuries from 34 incidents between September 2021 and September this year.

It disclosed this in a report titled, “HSEC Practices in the Midstream and Downstream Sector: Past, Present, PIA Regulations, Guidelines and other Policies.”

The report stated that 82 oil spills in Nigeria occurred in Rivers State, while 75 were recorded in Bayelsa State.

Oil spill occurrences in Delta, Akwa Ibom and Imo states were 12, two and two, respectively, according to the NMDPRA report.

The Chief Executive of the authority, Farouk Ahmed, said the petroleum industry had been at the forefront of HSE (Health, Safety, Environment and Community) innovations in the last few decades, often in response to the peculiar challenges that the industry faces.

He said the directorate, dedicated to HSE in the oil and gas industry, had over the years played a huge role in driving HSE innovation and awareness.

“I am aware that the erstwhile regulator of the oil and gas industry has over the decades collaborated with the industry in the institutionalisation of some programmes, especially HSE related,” Ahmed stated.

He added, “This is with the aim of progressing the cause of the industry and ensuring hitch-free implementation of such programmes, operations and processes.”

He noted that in the recent past, the regulator and the industry through the Quarterly HSE Managers Forum, exchanged ideas, thoughts and deliberated extensively on topical day-to-day operational and process-related HSE issues.

Ahmed said the deliberations yielded positive results as well as fostered the relationship between the industry and the regulator, specifically on HSE issues.

“It is therefore in this regard that the authority has decided to revive this forum to enable us to build on its past achievements,” he stated.

Kehinde Ogunyale

Reporting on the data-driven economy, and investigations.

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