The Senate has passed the Petroleum Industry Bill known as PIB.
The bill was passed during the plenary on Thursday after careful consideration of each of the clauses.
The upper chamber passed the PIB 2021 after the clause by clause consideration of the report of its joint committee on Petroleum (Upstream, Downstream and Gas) on PIB.
However, the Senate approved three per cent for the host communities despite protests from the South-South lawmakers, who advocated 5 per cent.
READ ALSO: House of Reps pass Petroleum Industry Bill, pegs 5% for host community trust fund
The Senate before passing the bill met behind closed doors with the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan also congratulated the lawmakers saying that the Ninth National Assembly has achieved one of its fundamental legislative agenda.
“The demons (of PIB) have been defeated in this Chamber. We have passed the bill,” he said.
The passage of the bill comes exactly 13 years after it was first presented to the National Assembly in 2008.
On 28 September 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari presented the PIB to the National Assembly for reconsideration.
The Bill seeks to introduce changes to the governance, administrative, regulatory, and fiscal framework of the Nigerian oil and gas industry, in order to ensure transparency, strengthen the governing institutions, and attract investment capital, among other objectives.
Follow the Neptune Prime channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va74ZvU2v1IqKByXoX3d
Do you have breaking news, interview request, opinion, suggestion, or want your event covered? Email us at neptuneprime2233@gmail.com
