The National Assembly has thrown its weight behind the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited’s ongoing efforts to boost crude oil production and grow its reserves, saying it will consider stiffer consequences for crude oil thieves and vandals of the nation’s critical hydrocarbon infrastructure.
According to a statement obtained from the Chief Corporate Communications Officer NNPC Ltd, Olufemi Soneye on Tuesday, after the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) paid an oversight visit to the NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services , an upstream arm of the NNPC Ltd, at its headquarters in Lagos, jointly led by the Committee Chairmen from both chambers, Senator Eteng Williams and Alhassan Doguwa, described the menace of crude oil theft and vandalism of critical oil and gas infrastructure as major challenges to Nigeria’s revenue generation and budget targets, which must be curtailed.
Williams said: “It is imperative for the National Assembly to come up with legislative action that will help stop crude oil theft and increase Nigeria’s crude oil production.
“What we found at NUIMS, it is duty-bound on the legislature to come up with decisive measures that will help the government to achieve its set targets in the oil and gas sector.”
