Nigerian oil industry at risk of collapse

The ongoing attacks on oil and gas industry infrastructure in Nigeria’s oil-producing regions are putting the industry at risk of total collapse, a group of former Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) group managing directors said on Sunday.

The statement was made at a brainstorming session hosted by NNPC group managing director Maikanti Baru with eight of his predecessors, who urged the company and the government to implement the necessary reforms in order to prevent Nigerian oil and gas industry from grinding to a halt.

“They … agreed that If the current situation remains unchecked, it could lead to the crippling of the corporation and the nation’s oil and gas sector, the mainstay of the Nigerian economy,” NNPC said in a statement, which added that Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu was also present at the gathering.

The group also touched upon the negative impact of the attacks on the environment and NNPC’s reputation in the eyes of the general public, stressing the “urgent need for government and security agencies to refocus as well as engage the various host communities as well as established social and traditional structures to develop an actionable partnership framework toward finding a lasting solution to the present unrest.”