From Uche Usim, Abuja

A major decision towards ensuring energy security in Nigeria has been taken by the federal government through the integration of Artisanal Refiners into the mainstream crude oil refining.

The move aside from providing sustainable energy sources for Nigerians, also advances responsible practices in the oil and gas sector to guard against environmental degradation.

To this end, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Gabriel Aduda, on Wednesday in Abuja, inaugurated a Technical Committee charged with the responsibility of fashioning ways and means of integrating local Artisanal Oil Refiners (AOR) in the larger production ecosystem.

In his opening remarks, Aduda stated that the persistent request by the Artisanal Oil Refiners was brought to the attention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who directed the Ministry to review and propose the way forward.

Aduda subsequently approved the proposal to constitute a Technical Committee on subsidy removal without tears/integration of mini/Artisanal Refinery Operations into the In-Country Oil Refinery Programme.

The Committee’s Terms of Reference (TOR) are as follows: to develop materials/framework for the sensitization and integration of the mini/Artisanal Refiners into Midstream crude oil refining; to ascertain the technology, skills, safety and environmental global best practices in the petroleum industry and facilitate the mainstreaming of Artisanal refineries to boost in-country refining capacity at the required specifications; to identify the sources of fund for the integration and establishment of the Artisanal refiners into the economy and structure the refund mechanism; to facilitate the provision of crude oil for experimental and research purposes to institutions with prototype refineries for testing their equipment; and, to review and make recommendations to Mr. President on ways to task our national technical institutions in building standard refineries for refining the crude in-country.

Aduda chairs the technical committee.

Members are; Director Upstream (MPR) Kamoru Busari,

Director Midstream & Downstream (MPR) Muhammed M. Abubakar; Dr Adamu Abubakar Ahmed from Petroleum Training Institute (PTI); Zuhumben Paul from Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB); Dr. Isa Sambo from Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA);

Basaka Hussaini Aminu from Nigerian Midstream & Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA),

John Terry Vanduhe from Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPCL);

SatiyaMutazu Ahmed from Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget & National Planning (FMFBNP).

Other members are; Uno Ogban Uno from Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC); Flight Lieutenant Terry Ajobena (rtd) from Presidential Amnesty Programme; Dr Omonigho B. Otanocha from Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun (FUPRE); Anthony Abiye George from Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI);

Godwin Sunday from Domestic Refineries Owners Association of Nigeria, among others.

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