16th April, 2016
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has said that the federal and state government are committed to ensure the quick repair of the vandalized 48 crude pipeline at Focardos Export Terminal to ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians.
Speaking during an interview with journalists on Friday after an inspection visit to the terminal, Osinbajo condemned the act of vandalism, explaining that it is as bad as any kind of terrorism and would not be tolerated by government because it is criminal and as an adverse effect on the economy.
According to him “Federal government is working with the state and Shell Petroleum Development Company to ensure that the damaged pipeline is repaired quickly because government is losing a lot of money since that terminal stopped working. About 300,000 barrels of crude oil daily is shut in which is a great loss to our economy,” he said.
“Pipeline vandalism is what we are trying to curtail and we are beefing up security in the area to ensure that such incidents do not happen again because it has also affected gas production in the country resulting in the epileptic power supply being experienced in the country.”
Also speaking, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, said that the Focardos Terminal was important to the state and federal government as it was the Export Terminal used by Shell Petroleum development Company to evacuate product for sale, stressing that, “all production on land both crude and gas by Shell have been reduced, this is affecting power supply in the country.”
He expressed hope that the repair works on the damaged pipeline would be completed by end of May for operations to commence saying “we were briefed by Shell that the repair works on the pipeline will be completed by May ending, it means that the terminal will become functional soon.”