Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The National Assembly on Wednesday announced that it will pass the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB before the end of April 2021.
The Joint National Assembly Ad-hoc Committee on PIB, disclosed this while inspecting the Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC in Eleme, Rivers State, as part of activities towards the passage of the Bill.
Speaking on behalf of the Committee, Mohammed Mongunu, Chiarman Ad-hoc Committee on PIB, House of Reps, said there was need to make the country’s oil and gas sector competitive, in order to attract investment.
Mongunu said the visit to PHRC was imperative to ascertain how the challenges bedeviling the nation’s four refineries can be tackled within the ambit of the PIB.
“Our intention is to pass the PIB with the speed of light before the end of April 2021 so that Nigerians can get the benefit of a reformed oil and gas industry that is much more competitive and attract foreign direct investments.
“We are here at the Port Harcourt refinery to see their constraints and how best these constraints can be tackled within the ambit of the PIB and leverage on same, with a view to attract the much needed Investment in the oil and gas industry.
“Especially against the backdrop of the fact that the world is moving from fossil fuel to renewable energy, so there is need to make our oil and gas sector competitive.”
Earlier, the Managing Director of PHRC, Engr. Ahmed Dikko, disclosed that plans are underway to commence the rehabilitation of the two refineries in Port Harcourt by April 2021.
“We are going to bring this facility to optimum production capacity in a very short time. We have a very dedicated team, who are committed to this work.
“Rehabilitation works will commenced within the next one or two months, the whole EPC are almost complete and approval are almost gotten.
“By and large, by next month or April at almost, we must have mobilized contractors to site and we hope to run it about second quarter of 2023, where we will continue to commission them in phases.”
