Mohammed Shosanya
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company ( NNPCL) has disclosed that there are 4, 800 illegal connections on over 5,000 kilometres of oil pipelines across the country.
The company also said NNPCL between July and November this year, remitted N406billion into the Federation Account as dividend.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, who spoke during an interface with the members of the committee on Appropriations on Friday in Abuja, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for removing the subsidy.
He said,if the President had not remove it, NNPCL would have liquidated at the end of June.
On the workability of 1.78million oil production per day and $77.96 oil price benchmark for the 2024 budget, Kyari said that the oil component of the budgetary projections are realistic and realizable despite the fact that the country presently produces average of 1.5million barrels of oil per day.
He said: “As it is today, about 4,800 illegal connections are made on the over 5,000 oil pipelines across the country .
“The illegal connections on oil pipelines in the Niger Delta is so rampant that within 100kilometres of the affected pipelines, 300 insertions are made on them, which eventually made the pipe to be weakend to the point of not being able to hold pressure of oil pumped, let alone, delivering it to targeted destination.
“Additionally , it is abnormal to engage non – state actors to protect critical assets like oil pipeline. We have however responded abnormally and getting results, because unlike as it was in July 2022 when less than 1.2million barrels of oil were produced by day, it has been 1.5million barrels per day within the last two to three months.”
He,however,disclosed when asked if the projected oil production per day, can be jerked up to 1.8million from 1.78million , that the projections and parameters set in the proposed budget, are okay for NNPCL and realizable .
He also told the committee members that the 1.78million barrels per day oil production for the 2024 budget, include condensate, which are 200,000 to 300,000 barrels per day .
He added that as a fully commercial entity now, NNPCL between July and November this year , remitted N406billion into the Federation Account as dividend.
The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Solomon Adeola, said Kyari has strenghtened their convictions on workability of the assumptions and projections of the 2024 budgetary proposals.
