A pipeline surveillance contractor operating in the Niger Delta has asked the Federal Government to restart crude oil production in Ogoniland after more than three decades of shutdown, saying the country has lost huge revenue from idle oil wells in the area.
At a stakeholders’ meeting in Port Harcourt, Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) said production from Oil Mining Lease 11 in Ogoniland should resume with strong community involvement, environmental responsibility and transparency.
Oil operations in the area stopped in 1993 following unrest and environmental concerns linked to years of exploration. PINL estimates that the closure of 96 oil wells over 32 years has cost Nigeria more than $226 billion in lost earnings. The firm added that the oil block has the capacity to produce over 500,000 barrels per day if activities resume.
The company’s General Manager for Community and Stakeholder Relations, Akpos Mezeh, said the losses show why urgent action is needed and stressed that any restart must carry host communities along.
According to him, four conditions are key to a successful resumption: involving host communities in decision-making, sustaining environmental clean-up efforts, adopting a community-based security model similar to PINL’s pipeline surveillance approach, and ensuring residents benefit through employment, contracts and skills development.
He noted that the call aligns with growing demands across the Niger Delta for oil production to return in a way that protects the environment while improving livelihoods.
PINL also announced that it has distributed more than N2 billion in education grants to students from pipeline host communities across Rivers State, Bayelsa State, Imo State and Abia State.
Over 1,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students benefitted from the grant drawn from 216 communities along the Trans Niger Pipeline and Eastern Gas Network. Undergraduate students received N500,000 each, while postgraduate students were given N1 million.
Mezeh described the initiative as a way of appreciating communities that have supported the protection of oil and gas infrastructure. He also urged youths to avoid pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft and instead cooperate with efforts to safeguard the facilities.
He said community support has helped the company record zero infractions across its areas of operation and has contributed to efforts to meet the Federal Government’s oil production target.
One of the beneficiaries, Donald Justice, a postgraduate student at Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, said the grant has made it easier for him to continue his studies.
