OpeOluwani Akintayo
28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos —More reactions have continued to trail the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC’s recent declaration that the country is looking into importing crude oil from neighbouring countries, Chad and Niger Republic for refining at the Kaduna refinery which has lacked supply.
NNPC had said the reason for the decision was due to militancy attacks on pipelines in the Niger Delta.
Sweetcrude Reports had reported that Chairman cum Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tee Mac Petroleum Nigeria Ltd, Dr. Tee Mac Omatshola Iseli (MFR), said that it was a “political decision” for the Federal Government to have cited a refinery in Kaduna State in the first instance.
“First whoever had the idea to build a Refinery in Kaduna should have had his head inspected. To build a refinery where there is no feed stock is absolutely ridiculous. A political decision by some power mad politicians! Just to have a refinery up north”, he said.
According to him, importing crude oil from Chad and other countries amounts to wasteful spending.
“So if they want to import crude Oil from Chad, it is part of wasting our hard earned Naira. It is part of the charade we call politics. Our image cannot be affected more negative. We are already looked upon as a failed state, so what ever the political class decides is a continuation of their clueless way of Governing”.
He said a lasting solution to the militancy in the Niger Delta is a better way out instead of importing resources domicile in the country.
“Instead I would have suggested finding a solution to the vandalism and the unrest of the militants”, he said.
On Friday, the Nigerian Officer at the Natural Resource Governance Institute, Dr. Dauda Garuba, told Sweetcrude Reports that, NNPC’s decision would have been more acceptable if it was for reasons of “proximity and price”, adding that the Corporation would not make such buys permanent.
According to him, even though the Federal Government is citing militancy as the reason behind the decision yet, Chad and Niger Republic too, are prone to experiencing same attacks from militants.
“I would have been more receptive to this if the decision is informed by factors of proximity and price. Outside of that, I want to believe that it is only proposed as a temporary measure, even though it does not guarantee that the same factors that make Chad and Niger the next option, are entirely free from experiences in the Niger Delta,” he said.
According to him, the government should rather negotiate and resolve the conflicts with the militants, not forgetting that both countries have been accused of being house to stolen crude oil from Nigeria.
“Let’s do more with negotiations and conflict resolutions in the Niger Delta. It will be too bad if what we think we are running from in the Delta region resurfaces along the routes to Chad and Niger. Let’s not forget that these two countries were or still are recipients of stolen products from Nigeria,” he said.
Energy Analyst, Dolapo Oni also lent his voice to the issue.
According to him, it was best for the federal government to think of alternatives because of pipeline vandalism in the Delta.
“There is nothing wrong importing crude oil from those countries because we have a shortfall in the country. If importing can make refining consistent then, why not? This would mean that Nigeria will have more fuel in the country so, it is a welcomed idea,” he said.