Sorry, Nigerians, we will continue to embark on massive importation petroleum products in the foreseeable future. That was the message from the Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia (SAN), yesterday.
A combination of factors ranging from �underestimation of the scope of work and community problems� are slowing down the completion of the works on the feeder pipeline that conveys crude oil to the Warri and Kaduna refineries, he told Nigerian journalists in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ajumogobia said owing to these factors, the refineries would no longer commence operation next month as announced in September by the Group managing director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp-oration, Engr. Abubakar Yar’Adua.
The return to full capacity by the refineries by December 2007 was one of the first major promises of this administration.
Shedding more light on the causes of the delay, the Minister said it might not have been anticipated that these issues would still linger as at the time the acting group managing director of the NNPC gave the assurance.
�As at the time the GMD made that statement, it was feasible and probable. There have been some delays in terms of the execution of the contract for the renovation of the Chanomi Creek pipeline which is one of the impediments to the refineries working.
�So, I don�t think the December deadline will be met. This is not unusual� it is not unusual for an estimate to be made unfortunately journalists have a way of wanting people to commit to deadlines and whether you want to or not they will extract a deadline from you and they extracted a deadline from the group managing director and I think due to factors beyond his or anyone’s control the deadline is likely to be delayed,” he said.
He explained that apart from that, the scope of the work was slightly underestimated, an incident in the Patani area of Delta State has not helped matters.
The minister however stated that there are still concerns about ensuring that the work could still be done in a timely and in a sustainable way, adding that engaging the communities is also part of the process.
Investigations by THISDAY revealed that the contractor might not have conducted an assessment of the vandalised pipeline as at the time the pronouncement was made.
It was learnt that there were about 80 vandalised portions of the pipeline which could only be accessed through aerial view from NNPC helicopters.
Besides, the contractors were said to have discovered that there were more vandalised portions which the NNPC could not discover during its own assessment.
The Chanomi Creek pipeline, the main feeder pipe that supplies crude oil from the Escravos oil fields to both the Warri and Kaduna refineries, was blown up early last year by militants in the Niger Delta area.
Since then, Nigeria has been importing all its fuel, a development which has ripped the country of enormous wealth.
The planned repair work was earlier frustrated by the youths who prevented contractors� access to the vandalised pipeline. It was not until recently after series of negotiations that the communities reached an accord with the management of NNPC which awarded the contract for the repairs a Niger Delta company.
On the proposed gas grid, the minister said it is a welcome development, observing that a lot of people still use firewood.
“I think a gas grid is a good idea because a lot of our people today are still using fire wood. I think a gas grid would give us a more efficient and cleaner fuel for our people. The whole idea of domestic utilisation of gas must be tied to development of a gas grid. Obviously it has some challenges but I think that is the future and that is the way we should go,” he said.
On the Wilbros scandal, the minister said the corruption is a bane of our society and that President Umar Musa Yar’Adua is fighting it headlong.
“I think we all know that it has been the bane of our society and the last administration did a lot to stem the trend by setting up a few specialised agencies such as the EFCC, ICPC to deal with cases of corruption and I think to a large extent we have made a lot of progress in the entire strata of government in terms of due process. I cannot just wake up today as minister of petroleum and give a directive for a contract for X millions of dollars to be given to my brother or a company that I know.
�There is a process for giving out contracts and that is new, it hasn’t always been the case. I think we are making progress, maybe not as fast as everyone will like. With regard to the Wilbros matter, the investigation started in the United States. The Attorney-General of the Federation has been to the US to familiarise himself with the investigation and he was acting on the directives of Mr. President.
The President has made it clear that he would not condone corruption and he has stated this in policy statements publicly and privately to his ministers and that corruption would not be condoned and anyone found to be corrupt will be brought to book. That is the policy of the government and we will see it playing out,” the minister said.
Source: This Day