NUPRC Inaugurates Implementation Teams For Metering Audit, Advanced Cargo Declaration Projects
By Sunday Etuka, Abuja
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has Inaugurated teams to oversee the effective implementation of two key projects in the nation’s upstream petroleum sector.
Commission Chief Executive of the NUPRC, Mr. Gbenga Komolafe who inaugurated the teams on Wednesday in Abuja, remarked that the technologically driven projects collectively present a game-changing solution for transparency in production monitoring and crude oil accounting.
Recall that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) recently approved the implementation of the projects as proposed by the NUPRC, to strengthen the Commission’s regulatory oversight in line with the current administration’s vision and renewed hope agenda.
The projects which are: Audit of Upstream Measurement Equipment and Facilities in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry, and Advance Cargo Declaration Solution, are intended to check crude oil theft, increase oil production, and generate more revenues to the federation account.
Speaking during the inauguration of the teams, Mr. Komolafe said, one of the Commission’s objectives as specified in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021, is to “ensure that upstream petroleum operations are carried out in a manner to minimise waste and achieve optimal government revenues”.
To achieve this, he said, it was important that, in addition to the measures already established by the Commission, the measurement and reporting of oil and production is regularly reviewed and improved upon to keep pace with the rapidly evolving industry.
The NUPRC boss explained that the “Audit of Upstream Measurement Equipment and Facilities in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry” will ensure that some of the identified gaps in the system are resolved.
These, he highlighted to include the presence of obsolete and non- serviceable measurement equipment at some allocation or measurement points in the industry, lack of a comprehensive database or information about all the installed measurement equipment in the industry, and lack of real-time production measurement across many locations.
He said, the project has been carefully scoped by the Commission to establish reliable and comprehensible baseline data for all measurement points, systems and measurement equipment, carry out a formal Gap Analysis for production, allocation and custody transfer measurement requirements, propose and implement appropriate and targeted intervention actions to enhance production measurement, and flare metering including recommendations to procure, install and commission new metering infrastructure.
He said the second project, “Advance Cargo Declaration Solution”, which complements the former has been designed to establish a robust system for the declaration and tracking of crude oil transportation and export from Nigeria, monitor and account for the movement of crude oil within Nigeria from production to delivery points, prevent disruptions, theft, and under-declaration of crude oil within Nigeria and at export terminals, establish a comprehensive database and control center for monitoring and tracking crude oil exports from Nigeria, ensure that only certified production related to upstream crude oil operations are exported from Nigeria, ensure accurate accountability of hydrocarbons for calculating crude oil revenue accruable to the Government, and enable real-time tracking, reconciliation, and reporting for crude oil exported to facilitate appropriate revenue billing and generation.
For effective implementation, he said, the Commission has carefully assembled a team for each of these projects to be overseen by the Executive Commissioner, Development & Production, Engr. Enorense Amadasu, but would directly provide daily report and feedback to his office.
The team members for the “Audit of Upstream Measurement Equipment and Facilities in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry” project are: Manuel Ibituroko – Deputy Director, Facilities Engineering & Optimization, Mohammed Sirajo – Manager, Facilities Engineerin, Ike Chidi – Manager, Facilities Engineering, and Bashir Shariff – Principal Regulatory Officer.
While the team members for “Advance Cargo Declaration Solution” project are: Bello Shehu – Assistant Director, Crude Oil & Gas terminal Operations, Abdulrahman Idris – Manager, Petroleum Accounting, Omeje A.Desmond – Deputy Manager, COTO PHC, Dimkpa I. H. – PRO, COTO Warri, and Olatunji Babatunde – NDR.
The CCE gave their duties to include liaising with the Contractor to ensure the fulfillment of the Commission’s specified obligations and monitoring the implementation of the projects to ensure alignment with the scope and specifications.
He said, the projects would be delivered in four (4) months, as he is personally committed to their Implementation, noting that the management would frown on any request to extend the projects timeline.
He, therefore, appealed for the cooperation of all relevant stakeholders -the Contractor, Industry Operators and staff of the Commission to ensure the successful implementation of the projects.
While extending his heartfelt gratitude to
President Bola Tinubu and members of the Federal Executive Council for considering and approving the projects, Mr. Komolafe affirmed that the projects when completed, will entrench transparency in the upstream sectors and combat the menace of illegal crude oil export which are in tandem with the Commission’s Regulatory Action Plan and ease of doing business.
