Tag: General News

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said it is taking all necessary steps within the prescriptions of the Petroleum Industry Act (2021) to ensure adequate and consistent supply of feedstock to operators.

It cautioned that there would be consequences for sabotaging the process.

The pre-emptive steps, according to the Commission, are being taken because it would send wrong and unbecoming signals to the international business community if operators of domestic refineries in one of the world’s largest crude oil-producing countries start importing feedstock for their production.

It was in contemplation of this that Section 109 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 introduced the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) to Nigeria’s oil industry in a bid to ensure that domestic refineries are not starved of crude oil supply for their operation.

The Commission said in a statement on Saturday that it has already taken some steps in furtherance of this goal by developing and signing the Production Curtailment and Domestic Crude Oil Supply Obligation (PC&DCSO) Regulation 2023, in line with the provisions of Section 109(2) of the PIA 2021.

The Commission said it is also preparing for approval and implementation the DCSO framework and procedure guide, processing of application for refinery feedstock approval, requesting all oil producing companies to provide information on their planned crude oil off-take and existing sales purchase agreement, and advising the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to furnish it with the domestic crude oil requirement of refineries in operation.

The statement said, “NUPRC is determined to take further necessary steps required to avoid inadequate supply of crude oil to domestic refineries and would not hesitate, where necessary, to enforce the stipulated penalties for violations and non-compliance to the provisions of the Act.

“In pursuance to Section 109(2) of the PIA, the Commission gazetted the PC&DCSO Regulations which provides clarity on the obligations of the stakeholders.

“The law stipulates that the supply of crude oil to the domestic market shall be on a ‘willing buyer and willing seller’ basis and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Agency (NMDPRA) shall report to the Commission where there is inadequate supply to the refineries.

“The Commission has a responsibility to publish on a biannual basis, the domestic crude refining requirements of operating refineries in Nigeria as received from NMDPRA, in line with Section 109(3) of the PIA.

“Where there is a reported crude supply shortage from the Authority, the Commission is under obligation to issue a Request for Quotation (RFQ) to producers asking for submission of quotation for bridging the shortfall, whereupon the Commission will contact affected refineries to facilitate contract negotiations between the stakeholders.

“Failure to meet the terms will attract from the Commission an obligation on the oil producers to supply the required volumes and notify the Authority accordingly.”

In furtherance of this, and in line with the Commission’s mandate of ensuring crude oil supply to licensed refineries in Nigeria as enshrined in Section 109 (4) of the PIA, it said all the 52 exploration and production companies have been invited to a meeting on November 1, 2023, for alignment on the implementation of domestic crude oil supply obligation, operator’s compliance status and operator’s response.

By October 27, the Commission said 11 of the operators had responded, while that of the remaining 42 operators is still being awaited.

Those that have so far responded are Dubri Oil Limited, Heirs Energies Limited, Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited, Midwestern Oil & Gas Company Limited, Frontier Oil Limited, Mobil Producing Nigeria Limited, All Grace Energy Limited, Green Energy International Limited, Enageed Resources Limited and Pillar Oil Limited.

“The Commission reiterates its determination to apply all required penalties for default and has emphasised that a company that fails to respond to the Request for Quotation (RFQ) within the specified period is liable to pay an administrative fine of $10,000, while a company that has not complied with its DCSO, where willing buyer(s) exist will not be granted an export permit.

“A company that fails to comply with the DCSO would be made to pay a penalty of 50% of the Fiscal Price per barrel not delivered,” the statement concluded.

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Special counsel to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, Barr Aloy Ejimakor, ha explained how the ruling of Enugu State High Court that the Indigenous People of Biafra is not a terrorist organization will save thousands of lives and also liberate Nigerians from government excesses.

Speaking exclusively with THE WHISTLER, Ejimakor said the judgement has shown that IPOB is not doing anything wrong.

“There many youths being persecuted on the ground of being members of IPOB. With this judgment, IPOB, founded for self-determination, is not doing anything wrong.

“Members are not committing any wrong, and therefore, you cannot grant arrest, detention and prosecution of any IPOB member, including Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, on the basis of self-determination.

“The South East governors fired the first salvo in September 2017, followed by an executive decision by the federal government to proscribe IPOB, and then the declaration of IPOB as a terrorist organization.

“Such actions are prohibited expressly under Section 42 of the Nigerian Constitution. It is a fundamental right of every Nigerian not to be discriminated against in the exercise of government decisions, policies and actions.

“Many Nigerians are not aware of it. We are vigilant to that. We noted that the action of South East governors was an executive action, which was followed three days later by the federal government raising a memo through the Attorney General of the Federation to the President, approving the proscription of IPOB and the declaration of the group as a terrorist organization.

“All of these combined constitute the executive actions and decisions which Section 2 of the constitution prohibits. It is a fundamental right, meaning you cannot violate it, and get away with it.

“Our case in chief is that there are other ethnic organizations across Nigeria that pursue one interest or the other. Nigerians know them. There is a proliferation of ethnic organizations, with some of them being evidently violent.

“The FG never took any step to proscribe anyone of them or declare any of them a terrorist group. It took this proactive step, supported by Southeast governors in targeting IPOB in particular.”

He said the legal team which he led took the matter to court to interrogate the actions of South East governors in line with the provisions of the constitution.

In his words, “You can make all these allegations in the media, but if you don’t take them to court to be adjudicated, they remain mere allegations. So we decided that the best thing to do is to test the rightness or wrongness of this decision taken against IPOB. We did and we prevailed today, by the glory of God.

“We asked for many things, and they were granted, except that the court doesn’t have the jurisdiction on the ongoing criminal proceedings against Kanu because it is already before the Supreme Court. But it graciously granted our requests on those reliefs it feels that it has jurisdiction.”

THE WHISTLER reported that Justice A.O. Onovo, on Thursday, declared that the proscription of IPOB by South East governors and the FG was unconstitutional and a violation of fundamental rights of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. The judge also ruled in favour of Kanu that self-determination is not a crime.

The court also granted the reliefs that a public apology be tendered to Kanu in three national dailies, and awarded N8bn monetary compensation to the IPOB leader. The court did not order his release because it was before the Supreme Court.

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The Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has called on Dahiru Binani and other litigants involved in the election tribunal case to set aside their differences and work for the good of the state.

Fintiri made this statement in a speech he delivered immediately after the election tribunal in Adamawa declared him winner of the 2023 gubernatorial election.

Recall Senator Aisha Dahiru Binani, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a petition marked No. EPT/AD/GOV/1/2023, APC joined the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri and the PDP, as 1st to 3rd respondents respectively.

Binani and APC jointly filed the petition on the 6th May, 2023, alleging that the election conducted on the 18th March, 2023 and 15th to 18 April, 2023 was marred by thuggery, ballot papers and BVAs snatching, harassment of the electoral officers and several other offences and therefore seek to be declared winner.

However, during the tribunal sitting on Saturday, the Chairman of the 3-member panel, Theodora Obi Uloho dismissed the petition stating that the petitioners were unable to prove their allegations and went ahead to declare Fintiri winner of the election.

Reacting to his victory at the tribunal today, Fintiri said: “I call on all the litigants and everyone that has Adamawa at heart to set aside whatever misgivings and move on.

“The State is greater than each of us. The task ahead is enormous, requiring unity of purpose, a pooling of resources, integration of talents and leveraging the unique attributes of each of us, to reinvent a better society for our people.

“On a personal note, this moment calls for a sober and even ecclesiastical reflection. I am at that point where I must recommit my faith in the sanctity of God and His powers.”

The Governor therefore said the Nigerian judiciary has demonstrated once again that its “adjudicative role is not a stock on the shelf.”

He described the judgement as fair and just, adding that it has reaffirmed the people’s belief in the judiciary as the last hope of the common man.

He noted that his victory is for exponential growth of the people of Adamawa, and reaffirms the sovereignty of the will of the people over political “brinkmanship and an entitlement mentality.”

Fintiri said: “This victory is therefore a tonic that would spur us to rededicate our commitment to the call of our democratic mandate by ensuring that in Adamawa State we leave no one behind and nothing untouched.

“Our 8-Point Agenda is on course and firing with the required speed and precision. This is a victory for doing more. It is a victory for massive development for Adamawa State.

“There is time for everything under the sun. A time to strife and a time to unite. Indeed, politics is over. We have begun governance since May 29. With this ruling, our hands are wide open.”

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