The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR)

  • ‘Envonmental guidelines ‘ll grow oil, gas sector’

    THE Department of Petroleum Resources  (DPR) on Tuesday stressed the need for Environmental Guidelines and Standards for the Petroleum Industry in Nigeria (EGASPIN).

    The oil industry regulator said it is an imperative document for achieving efficient, safe, orderly and environmentally responsible development for the sector.

    Its Deputy Director/ Zonal Operations Controller, Lagos Zonal Office, Wole Akinyosoye spoke at a one-day workshop for stakeholders in the industry on: Quality Improvement of Environmental Impact Studies in line with the Current Oil and Gas Regulation in Lagos.

    He said the workshop was specifically designed for registered consultants among other stakeholders was to avail them with the practical data gathering methodology in accordance with the downstream and upstream industry reviewed environmental impact assessment guidelines.

    Read Also: DPR assures of fuel supply

    He said EGASPIN has been reviewed in the light of the advancements in the current treatment and pollution control technology. He lamented that compliance level on regulation has  been low, saying it was the reason for the forum.

    “Data is very essential in this industry so also is research and evaluation. All  these have to be done in tandem with international best practices as reflected in the reviewed regulatory document,” he said.

     

  • DPR shuts 30 filling stations

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has shut 30 fillings stations in Cross River State for selling petrol above the approved price of N145 per litre and other offences.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that three suspects were also arrested for various offences and were later released after writing an undertaking to adhere to DPR guidelines.

    DPR Operations Controller in Cross River, Mr Philip Awolu, briefed NAN on Sunday in Calabar after an intensified surveillance across the state led by Mr SirCham Musa-Mohammed, Head of Operations of DPR in Calabar.

    Awolu said the filling stations were sealed for cheating the public in violation of stipulated rules guiding operations in the petroleum sector.

    He said no marketer had a right to increase pump price, irrespective of the distance from which the product was lifted from.

    According to him, it is a serious offence for anyone to unseal the ‘DPR seal order’ without its permission, adding that violators will be fined N1 million.

    He frowned at some marketers still operating without a valid licence, saying DPR will ensure that they are licensed or be made to face the sanctions.

    Read Also: Another 11 filling stations sealed in Kogi

    “Our team visited 82 filling stations, 30 were sealed and out of that number, 12 of them have paid the fine of N100,000 each.

    “Any station that is selling above the pump price will be sealed and made to pay a fine; after paying the fine to the remeta, such a station will be unsealed with a warning not to indulge in price hike again.

    “We sympathise with marketers, especially those lifting the product from Calabar to northern and central parts of Cross River.

    “They are supposed to be part of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund sponsored by the Federal Government to cushion the effect of transportation fare of the petroleum product. As it stands, they are not part of that regime.

    “I will advise the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) to come together and make an appeal to the government with a view to benefiting from the fund,’’ he said.

    On gas dispensing in the state, the controller said notices have been given to some operators, whose stations were not properly sited for the business to relocate to safer areas.

    Awolu added that DPR was monitoring such stations to ensure compliance, standard and environmental safety.

    He called on the public to report to the DPR any sharp practice being perpetrated by any filling station within the state.

  • Another 11 filling stations sealed in Kogi

    THE Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) in Kogi State has closed eleven filling stations across the state.

    According to the DPR State Controller, Amos Jokodola, the filling stations that were shut in an exercise during the week spread across the capital Lokoja, Obajana, lsanlu, Okene, Yagba East and Yagba West due to infraction.

    He stated that “their pumps were not accurate (under-dispense) or cheating the general public. The eleven marketers have been sanctioned in accordance with the regulation. The sealed stations shall remain closed until the marketers pay the penalties and submit a written undertaking not to cheat the consumers anymore.”

    Read Also: Kogi 2019: ‘Why we insist on direct primary’

    He added that 53 filling stations were visited in the state during the recent surveillance exercise.

    The shut outlets included Oduanyo Business Enterprises Investment (Egbe), Olubush (Isanlu), Ardor Oil and Gas (Obajana), Ebugrap (Obajana), NNPC Mega 1(Lokoja), Royal Confluence (Lokoja), Always (Okene), Total Plc (Okene), Nice Mohammed Petroleum Company (Lokoja), A.Y.M Shafa (Lokoja) and Sunchy Global Investment Resources (Lokoja).

     

  • DPR shuts 17 illegal LPG outlets in Ibadan

    THE Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on Monday in Ibadan said it has closed down 17 illegal Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) outlets.

    It also issued warning to nine petrol stations in the second quarter of 2019 in Ibadan.

    The DPR Operations Controller of Ibadan Field Office, Mr. Oluyemi Olaonipekun, while speaking with reporters in Ibadan, said the agency has succeeded in monitoring the operations of Retail Oil Marketers (ROM), Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) retailers and depot operators.

    He said: “The exercise is ongoing  and we will continue to improve as well as carry out the necessary assignments as stipulated by the regulations and oil guidelines.

    “In the other two areas, LPG and filling stations, we have been able to curtail people selling at forecourt below the required volume being paid for by the motorists and other buyers to a greater extent in Oyo State.

    “To this end, we have not been able to close down any filling station due to unnecessary under-dispensing of the pumps.

    “The only area we had closed down filling station is where they have installed skid without our approval.

    Read Also: DPR seals LPG stations in Lagos

    “In the last three months, we have been able to stop illegal installation of LPG skid and closed down 17 illegally installed skid from operating within our area of operations, that is Oyo State.

    “To forestall future occurrence during our routine visit and surveillance, we have gathered data of illegal outfits and their gas suppliers.

    “We believe that if they had not been supplied gas, they will not be able to sell or have the products. We now have the data of the licensed legal operators, who are supplying the illegal operators.

    “We have thereafter written warning letters to nine major LPG plant owners. If they further supply any unlicensed, unapproved LPG site, we will close down their own plants too.

    “The law gives us the power to do that based on the conditions in which they got their licences.

    “They have some responsibilities and duties to perform and if they fail, we have the power to suspend or revoke their licences.”

    According to him, the meeting would seek ways to curb unnecessary supply of products to unlicensed and unapproved sites.

  • DPR seals LPG stations in Lagos

    THE Department Of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on Thursday sealed two Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) stations in Lagos safety reasons.

    The first was Petrocam in Ayobo, Alimosho Local Goverment Area of Lagos. It was totally sealed by DPR officials for allegedly operating without approval; operating in a residential area, and in a building under direct high tension cable.

    The downstream oil sector regulator also partially sealed  Gasland Nig Ltd for allegedly operating under a risky and unsafe condition.

    Head, Gas Section, DPR Lagos Zonal Office, Williams Ateukudoh who led the team during the clampdown said the exercise was part of Department’s routine inspections to forestall fire outbreak, and general compliance to safety standards in the domestic service stations.

    He said through the inspection and surveillance routine on gas stations, DPR has been able to stop illegal operators to the detriment of the general public.

    He said: “Today, we are on surveillance inspection of gas facilities and what we have seen is very very unsafe. We realised that Petrocam is an illegal entity. The site is unsuitable for operation, so we effect the closure.

    Read Also: DPR, NSCDC arrest five illegal cooking gas retailers

    “We had sealed it off some five months ago but in violation of DPR mandate, they  continued to operate, so we effect another closure to ensure this time they cease to operate.

    “At Gasland, the operation is very unsafe; we shut it down because safety has been thrown overboard. And it was not like that when we licensed them.”

    Head, Corporate Service, George Ene-ita who was part of the team, appealed to  members of the public to always furnish DPR with useful information on suspicious illegal operators and those that have thrown safety and precautionary measures to the wind.

    “We want to appeal to the public to help ensure that proper and standard procedures are in place and adhere to by reacting out to us when stations default. We have a dedicated line for this and the DPR website is also there,” he said.

     

  • DPR seeks South African investment in oil, gas

    The Federal Government, on Thursday, urged South African government to explore investment opportunities in the nation’s oil and gas sector for growth.

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) Director, Mr. Ladan Modecai, gave the advice at the Nigeria – South Africa Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting in Lagos.

    He said the development became necessary in order to impact on the economy of South Africa and other countries in the continent.

    He said the country’s oil and gas sector boasts of $50billion investment, adding that the cash is huge enough to bring about growth in African countries, including South Africa.

    He said there are investment opportunities in areas such as 37.4 trillion cubic feet of gas deposit,Trans-Nigeria gas pipeline project, Gas Revolution Industrial Park at Ogidigben Free Trade Zone (FTZ ), three power plants for additional 3.2GW capacity, licensing and  establishment of several modular refineries. Others are collocating a refinery within Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company, rehabilitation/upgrade of the refineries, revamp of Liquefied Petroleum Gas  and building of new Compress Natural Gas (CNG) plants across the country  as well as pipeline and storage tank construction.

    Represented by Deputy Manager, Gas Exploration and Production, Joseph Ogunsola, Modecai urged South Africa to leverage Nigeria’s gas potential for growth.

    Read Also: DPR bans sale of LPG in shops, homes

    He said: “The National Gas Policy, Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Program      and Gas Network Code are key enablers in charting our path towards Optimum Gas Development and Gas-Based Industrialisation. Most of the erstwhile constraints are being addressed in a holistic manner  through  government policies, reforms, and gas monetisation drive. Hitherto, absence of robust legislative, physical and commercial structures for gas and mono product nature of economy have militated against the achievement of gas utilisation.’’

    He stressed the need for stakeholders in the nation’s economy to shun blame game over the lingering incidence of gas flaring in the country, saying Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme remains the best panacea to stop flaring in Nigeria

    He further said   over 170 flare locations spread across the Niger Delta ,reiterated that achieving zero flares in Nigeria by 2020 will require up to $3 billion in investments. He added that the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP) will  ensure positive impact to communities in the Niger Delta  and monetise wasted gas resources in Nigeria

    ’’Elimination of flared gas is a win for all parties across Nigeria .There is need to  Promote collaboration between private, public, and social sectors  with a view to ensuring a  commercially viable investments with positive returns  and minimise government’s  action to streamline implementation,’’ he said.

    He reiterated Federal Government’s aspirations  to grow oil and gas  reserves  to 40 billion barrels  and 200 trillion cubic feet  by 2020  and  promote domestic gas supply sufficiency in the country.

    In his remarks, Country Manager,Nigeria,Sasol Chemicals, Oscar Mdluli,emphasised the need for Nigeria to  make  the abundance of its gas potential centerpiece of its economic growth.He also  lauded the  roles the DPR is playing  in  re positioning   the country’s gas secto

     

  • DPR issues license to establish Ajaokuta LNG Project

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has issued a License to Establish (LTE) for the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility in Ajaokuta, Kogi State.

    The LNG project is being developed via a joint venture between Transit Gas Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Axxela Limited, and Nigerian Gas Marketing Company (NGMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The Federal Ministry of Environment has also approved the project’s Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA).

    DPR’s issuance of the LTE and the Federal Ministry of Environment’s ESIA approval are significant project milestones demonstrating the critical regulatory support for the LNG facility development. The project is on a fast track to completion as it recently received a Gas Purchase Order (GPO) for its feed gas from the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN).

    Read Also: DPR bans sale of LPG in shops, homes

    NGMC and Transit Gas have adopted a world-class development approach in collaborating with a global team of experienced Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractors, technology providers, and other professionals to ensure project delivery in accordance with international best practices and safety standards.

    The establishment of the LNG facility in the strategically located industrial hub of Ajaokuta will assure the safe supply of natural gas in liquefied form via specialised cryogenic trucks across Nigeria. The largest block of beneficiaries are commercial and industrial businesses in the North which have been considered stranded so far due to the absence of gas pipeline infrastructure.

    LNG is an environmentally-friendly fuel for power, process and feedstock needs that provides up to 40 per cent in cost savings, compared to alternative liquid fuels such as diesel.

  • Why Anambra, Enugu, Kogi can’t be declared oil bearing states, by DPR

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on Thursday said that Anambra, Enugu and Kogi States can only be declared oil- producing states if necessary conditions are met.

    DPR, in a letter to the Senate Committee on Petroleum (upstream), said the three states could only be declared oil- bearing states if the oil firm in the area, Orient Oil, scales up its operations from oil prospecting to oil mining lease.

    DPR insisted that Anambra, Kogi and Enugu States cannot be categorised as oil- producing states for now because they have not met necessary requirements.

    Chairman of the Committee, Senator Tayo Alasoadura, said that the issue at hand had to do with a referral to the committee   on the contentious boundary between Anambra, Kogi and Enugu States.

    He noted a report titled “FG confirms Anambra oil producing ‎status” threw up the matter to the front burner.

    Alasoadura said that his committee lacked the power to declare a state oil -producing.

    He said that the committee believed that the agency in the best position to settle the matter is the National Boundary Commission.

    The Ondo Central senator said that the committee wrote to the DPR “but their response was not quite satisfactory. That is why we want to hear from your commission.”

    He noted that the committee decided to hear from the National Boundary Commission because “when we had a similar issue in Ondo State in the past, it was your commission that resolved it.”

    Senator Chukwuka Utazi (Enugu North) in his contribution noted that the issue of OPL 915 and 916 dated back to antiquity.

    Utazi said: “I didn’t know that this motion would come up, because we had already resolved the issue when Senator Isaac Mohammed Alfa was away.

    “Kogi and Enugu State do not have problem; the two are in agreement. But Enugu and Anambra are not in agreement.

    “We in Enugu want to be declared as oil -producing state too. Let that be done pending when the boundary commission finishes its work.”

    He added that Orient Oil within seven years moved from 3,000 to 10,000 barrels a day.

    According to him: “An oil company that had been able to move from 3,000 to 10,000 barrels per day should have graduated from oil prospecting to oil mining lease.”

    He said that they would go to the DPR to find out why Orient Oil refused to move from oil prospecting to oil mining lease.”

    Read Also: DPR vows to stop petrol diversion

    Senator Alfa in his contribution said that there was no contention on the desire to recognise the affected communities as oil producing communities.

    Adamu Adaji, Acting Director General, National Boundary Commission, Adamu Adaji said that the issue is a tripartite one involving the three states.

    Adaji noted that the commission had been on the issue for some time.

    He added that the challenges were related to legal framework.

    Adaji said: “We carried out preliminary field work on Kogi-Anambra boundary, but the challenge we have is the document we are using, which was produced before independence.

    “We had to use a provincial boundary map produced by the colonial masters. We discovered that the descriptions on the map are not too clear.

    “We scaled out seven points, and about five of them were discovered, but the remaining two resisted.

    “Some youths from Ibaji community accosted our staff at some point that they will not agree with the legal document we were using. We are relying on Legal Instrument of 1954.

    “The work was stalled because the people of Ibaji were of the view that we must identify the points between Anambra, Kogi and Enugu before we could do anything.

    “When we made an attempt in 2015, our effort was aborted. We met with the then governor of Kogi State and he promised to talk to the community to cooperate with us.

    “What we want now is to get the states to cooperate so that we can work.

    “The three states were not quite forthcoming for us to do the job. That is what we have been trying to do now.

    “If we cannot rely on the map, we plead that the states should cooperate for us to come to a boundary that is acceptable to all.”

    Senator Magnus Abe noted that from what the commission said: “It is already doing something, but the problem is except the commission does what some people want, the work can’t be done. Except there is the right atmosphere for them to work, nothing can be done.”

    Abe suggested that the only way the issue could be resolved is for the committee to invite the states to come and “we set up a joint team with the boundary commission so that we can have adequate security ‎before they can go and do their job.”

    He insisted that the states must be prepared to accept the realities on the ground.

    Senator Gershom Bassey said that the National Boundary Commission cannot completely be exonerated from the blame. He noted that in his state, Cross River, “there have been communal clashes because the commission has not done its job.

    “It appears to me that the commission has been doing one job for 10 years. You can’t convince me on that.

    “The commission has to be held responsible for what is happening. You must do your job no matter what.”

    Philip Gyunka said that it appeared the commission does not want to hurt some communities.

    “I want to advise here that whatever you think can solve the problem, please try and do it.”

    Alasoadura however explained that the Boundary Commission cannot do anything without the cooperation of the states.

    States, he said, should also establish their own boundary commissions so that they can work directly with the National Boundary Commission.

    Utazi suggested that a political solution should be a way out of the problem

    Alasoadura said that the committee will meet with the oil firm to find out why they could not meet up with the requirements.

  • Motorists, commuters to DPR: sanction stations hoarding petrol in Yobe

    Motorists and commuters in Damaturu, have urged the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to sanction petrol stations not selling the product and creating artificial scarcity.

    The respondents spoke with the News the Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews on Monday, alleging that some petrol stations deliberately closed their stations in anticipation of hike in price.

    Alhaji Usman Kachalla, a motorist, said most of the petrol stations closed for business in spite of the availability of petrol in their stations.

    “Even when government made it clear that, it will not remove subsidy and prices will remain the same, they have refused to sell the products hoping for increase in price.

    “This is an economic sabotage which must be dealt with accordingly; such stations should be forced to sell their products and sanctioned,” he said.

    Bukar Mohammed, another motorist, said the law must take its cause against erring petrol stations working against national interests.

    Read Also: DPR vows to stop petrol diversion

    “This is how it starts, first artificial scarcity then prices of goods and services will suddenly jump up most especially now that government has announced the N30,000 new minimum wage,” Bukar said.

    Hajiya Hafsatu Sule, a house wife, urged government to take early measures against inflation following the signing of the new minimum wage bill.

    “If hoarding of petrol is allowed to persist, it will set in inflation on prices of other commodities before the implementation of the new minimum wage,” Sule said.

    Some commuters traveling to different places, told NAN that transport fares have not been increased but the petrol scarcity should not be allowed to continue because, it may lead to increase in fares.

    NAN reports that, a four liter gallon of petrol is sold at N800 by roadside vendors against N580 official price at the filling stations.

  • DPR seals five petrol stations for selling above N145

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on Tuesday shut down five filling in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, stations for selling fuel above N145 per litre.

    The Head of Operations, DPR, Ibinabo Jack, led a team of the department to investigate the activities of the stations following warning issued to them independent marketers recently to stop selling the product above the regulated price.

    Some of the stations sealed were Sobaz, Emily and two NNPC stations located in different parts of the capital city.

    Ibanabo, said the operation was part of the duties of DPR to ensure that the public were not shortchanged by petroleum retail marketers.

    He said: “Actually we are out on a surveillance over the abrupt increase in pump price prevailing in the state. We visited some stations and anyone we saw selling above pump price we sealed such station with strident penalties.

    Read Also: FEC approves N1.4b for DPR building design

    “Some that were sealed were actually meant to receive some numbers of trucks of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), but we discovered that those trucks loaded with PMS never arrived.

    “Some of them were under dispensing. An NNPC filling station was selling at NNPC price of N142 but we discovered that some of the pumps were faulty and we sealed them up.”

    Ibinabo urged the public to bear the temporary scarcity their action could cause to ensure permanent solutions to the problems.

    “People have to bear with us because we want to bring permanent solution to public suffering. The price of PMS has not changed at the depot and we won’t tolerate any increase in price”, he said.