Trouble Looms The Semate House

Trouble Looms The Semate House

Posted by Sylvester on Saturday, May 21, 2016 0

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Trouble in the Senate Yesterday as Senator Ita

Enang Reveal that Northerners own 80% of oil

blocks
Supporters of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB)
pushed their case further yesterday at the

Senate, with startling facts on the sector.
Senator Ita Enang (Akwa Ibom North East)
described the opposition to the 10 per cent
host community fund by mostly northern
senators as “misplaced”.
Enang, who is also the Chairman, Senate
Committee on Rules and Business, said that
those opposed to the fund should know that
over 83 per cent of oil blocks are owned by
northerners.
But he did not give the number of oil blocks
Nigeria has.
Senator David Mark, who seemed to have been
shocked by what Enang said, said the Akwa
Ibom lawmaker should not be distracted
(some senators were grumbling) because he
was making an important point.Mark asked
Enang whether he could substantiate his
claim.
Enang promptly pulled out a document from
his folder and reeled out oil blocs and their
owners.
He said he did not intend to divide the country
but to guide those who wanted to contribute to
the debate to be truly informed.
He listed northerners who own oil blocks to
include Alhaji Mai Deribe, Borno State and
owner of Cavendish Petroleum, which operates
OML 110 with an average of about N4billion
monthly.
He also listed Seplat/Platform Petroleum,
operators of the ASUOKPU/UMUTU Marginal
Field with Mallam (Prince) Sanusi Lamido,
Kano , as a major shareholder and director.
South Atlantic Petroleum Limited (SAPETRO)
established by General T. Y. Danjuma, Taraba
State , who is also chairman of Eni Nigeria
Limited.
SAPETRO partnered with Total Upstream
Nigeria Limited (TUPNI) and Brasoil Oil
Services Company Nigeria Limited to become
operators of the OPL 246.
AMNI International Petroleum and Development
Company is owned by Alhaji (Colonel) Sani
Bello of Kontangora , Niger State.
“They are operators of OML 112 and OML
117,” he said.
He said that a former Petroleum Minister and
former OPEC Chairman, Rilwanu Lukman,
another northerner manages AMNI oil blocks
“with very key interest in the NNPC/Vitol
trading deal.”
He said that Oriental Energy Resources
Limited, a company owned by Alhaji Indimi,
runs three oil blocks – OML 115, the Oldwok
field and the Ebok field.
He said that Alhaji Aminu Dantata’s Express
Petroleum and Gas Limited, operates OML
108.
Enang said that OML 113 allocated to Yinka
Folawiyo Petroleum Limited is owned by Alhaji
W.I. Folawiyo. Alhaji Saleh Mohammed Gambo,
North East Petroleum Limited, is the holder of
the OPL 215 Licence.
North East Petroleum was awarded blocs OPL
276 and OPL 283 and closing thereupon a
Joint Venture Agreement with Centrica
Resources Nigeria Limited and CCC Oil and
Gas.
He said that INTEL is owned by former Vice
President Atiku, the late Gen. Shehu Musa
Yar’Adua and Ado Bayero. It has substantial
stakes in Nigeria ’s oil exploration industry
both in Nigeria and Sao Tome and Principe .
He said that Mike Adenuga’s Conoil is the
oldest indigenous oil exploration company with
six blocks. OPL 291 was awarded to Starcrest
Energy Nigeria Limited, owned by Emeka Offor,
which was sold to Addax Petroleum.
Enang urged the Senate to cause the
immediate revocation of all oil blocks licences
and their redistribution, in accordance with the
Federal Character Principle.
He said: “My submission is that when you look
at the distribution of those who own oil blocks
and the amount of money that comes from the
different oil blocks to the Federation Account
and you see the owners of these oil blocks,
you will agree with me that there is inequity in
the distribution of oil blocks.
“The oil is produced in the Niger Delta yet it is
the people of the Northeast and the Northwest
and a little of the Northcentral, almost nothing
of the Southwest and the Southeast, that are
the persons owning and controlling these oil
blocks.
“Almost nothing for the Southsouth, Niger
Delta oil producing areas.
“They are quarreling with the area that takes
just 13 per cent when you are producing the
entire 100 per cent, you give some to the
Federation Account and they give only 13 per
cent of what you give and, of course, it is
whatever you declared that you have
produced. It is actually produced by you.
“I did not want to introduce something that is
divisive.
“It is not intended to divide the country, it is
intended to say ‘look, let us be realistic’.
“What some of the oil wells and the owners of
the oil wells produce in a month and take as
profit is sometimes more than what two or
three states receive from the Federation
Account.”
Enang noted that “when a group of people are
richer than a state and then it is produced by
you, then there is so much opposition that
even the people who suffer the effect of the
oil production should not be give host
communities’ fund; and we have explained that
the host communities fund is not only for the
oil producing; it is for any of the communities
that hosts oil infrastructure, which includes oil
pipelines, refineries, gas pipelines and
anything that is capable of causing danger.”
“If we had the host communities fund, the
danger that we have been having in Arepo in
Ogun State, the area would have benefited
from the host communities fund.”
Enag said that other areas, such as Kaduna
and some other states, will benefit from it.
He went on: “If you are producing and
declaring only what you like and only the 10
per cent now being provided for the host
communities and the 13 per cent which is
after deducting everything, that cannot be in
the interest of the country.
“What I am asking now is that oil blocs in the
whole country should be revoked and
redistributed according to Federal Character
Principle.
“We are not saying that we in the Southsouth
should have all or the Southeast should have
all or the Southwest should have all.
“In fact, if there are 18 oil blocs or 36 oil
blocks, we don’t mind that you give us at least
four, Northeast four, Southeast four, Northwest
four.
“At least, let there be equity, but then there
should be the principle of who owns it and
then you give us more.
“But at this time, we don’t even have it. The 13
per cent is what we are even suffering to
sustain.”
Senator Olufemi Lanlehin (Oyo South) praised
the maturity of Senators in considering the
bill.
He urged the Senate to look at the “absolute
and sweeping powers” granted the President in
Section 191 of the bill.
The Section, he said, gives the President
absolute and unqualified powers to grant
petroleum licences to whoever he pleases.
Lanlehin prayed the Senate to use the
opportunity of the bill to design a template
that would grow the economy.
Senator Adegbenga Kaka (Ogun East) said he
was supporting the bill with mixed feelings.
He noted that the trend of the debate seemed
to indicate that senators were more concerned
about how to share the cake and not how to
bake it.
Kaka said the power granted the minister of
petroleum in the bill should be reconsidered
“so that we don’t give too much power to the
minister.”
The lawmaker who insisted that the bill should
be finetuned, said certain percentage of
earnings should be set aside to fix electricity,
agriculture and other infrastructure.
Senator Mohammed Goje (Gombe Central) said
before the debate, he was completely against
the bill.
He said the trend of the debate showed that
the Senate was poised to do justice to the bill
by removing offensive sections.
To him, it seems a consensus is being built
around certain sections of the bill.
He noted that most contributors agreed that
the power of the minister should be reduced,
such that the minister will just be like any
other minister.
Goje said: “We should not create a super
minister.”
He said that definite provision should be made
for frontier exploration, especially adequate
funding.
He opposed 10 per cent host community fund.
Senator Barnabas Gemade (Benue North East)
described the bill as very important and long
overdue.
Gemade said an adage says: “Wherever you
find oil, corruption creeps in and wherever you
find diamond war emerges.”
He said the adage had been proved to be true.
Gemade said the bill contained good and bad
provisions. He listed the good sections to
include development of the gas sector,
increase in promotion of local content and the
unbundling of the Nigeria National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC).
The bad sections, he said, include the
minister’s economic power.
On the host community fund, Gemade said
efforts should be made to ensure that it does
not degenerate to very poor management of
resources as it is, according to him, in the
Niger Delta Development Commission, 13 per
cent derivation and others.
On the frontier exploration, he said more effort
should be geared towards discovering oil in
other places.
Senator Akin Odunsi ( Ogun West) described
the bill as the most important legislation
before the National Assembly.
Odunsi noted that the bill becomes even more
important when it is recognised that the
country runs a mono economy based on oil.
The lawmaker cautioned against undue
sentiment in the consideration of the bill.
He agreed that the bill was not perfect but
posited that it could be fine-tuned to engender
development.
Senator Abdulahi Adamu (Nasarawa West)
said he was giving the bill “a reserved
support”.
Adamu expressed worry about the absence of
transparency and accountability in the oil
sector.
He said the bill appears to contradict the
Constitution (as amended), especially when it
is recognised that oil and gas as well as other
minerals are in the Exclusive List and under
the control of the Federal Government.
The lawmaker cautioned about the unbundling
of the NNPC in order not to put up the
corporation for outright purchase by wealthy
Nigerians.
On the host community fund, Adamu said the
provision would create the fourth tier of
government.
To Senator Gbenga Ashafa (Lagos East), the
bill will be counter productive in its present
form. He demanded the definition of host
community.
Ashafa said pipelines burst at times not
because of vandalisation but because of the
integrity of the pipes.
Senator Ayogu Eze said his support for the bill
stemmed from the realization that the oil
sector should be reformed.
Eze highlighted issues of details in the bill,
which, he said, should be addressed at the
committee and public hearing levels.
It was obvious that most northern Senators
were not comfortable with what Enang said.