51 years after, no solution yet to gas flaring in Nigeria

International oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria’s multi-billion dollar oil and gas industry will continue to flare gas for a longer time than expected, according to investigations by Daily independent at the weekend.

Department of Petroleum resources (DPR), the industry’s regulator, checks revealed, is rendered incompetent to effect the zero gas flaring in the industry, which began over 50 years ago as foot dragging on the deadline for the air and environmental pollution by the government since 1969 continues.

DPR’s Director, George Osahon, who declared on a sideline of a forum in Lagos that 1.4 billion cubic feet of gas is flared into the Niger Delta air on daily basis, regrets that the punishment of N525 ($3.5) fine per 1000 cubic feet of gas flared remains a mere slap in the wrist.

Even then, the DPR only recently increased the penalty from N10 to $3.5 per 1000 standard cubic feet (scf).

The IOCs however faulted the Federal government for the continued flaring of gas over the past 50 years, blaming the non-commitment of the 60 per cent counterpart funding of the project by the government, as reason for delay in ending the circle.

As if to confirm the allegation, the Federal Government has kept mute on the new deadline for zero gas flaring after IOCs were unable to, for the umpteenth time, meet the January 2013 deadline.

For example, Executive Vice Chairman and General Counsel for ExxonMobil, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, in a keynote address at an oil and gas dispute resolution workshop recently in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, blamed government for the menace.

Osahon also said recently that government is losing N286 billion ($1.7885 billion) per year to gas flaring in the Nigeria.

Represented by Deputy Director Gas, DPR, Oliver Okparaojiako, Osahon said passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) would speed up efforts to curb the environmental pollution.

The DPR helmsman put oil reserves in Nigeria as at the first quarter of 2013 at 36.2 billion barrels while the reserves for gas also stands the country out.

“The Nigeria’s gas reserves endowment may be up to 600 trillion cubic feet (tcf).

“The country is often described as large gas haven with little oil,” he said, adding that “the PIB is here to ensure proper hamonisation of the gas potentials.

IOCs however faulted the Federal government of Nigeria over the continuous cases of gas flaring for the past Fifty years, blaming the non-commitment of the 60% counterpart funding of th project by the government as reason for delay in ending the circle of gas flaring in Nigeria.

[b]SOURCE[/b]http://dailyindependentnig.com/2013/07/51-years-after-no-solution-yet-to-gas-flaring-in-nigeria/

Billion what? nigeria why now, and I still have to fill my 7kg with #2500