Go back to work, PENGASSAN tells members

The strike consisting of about 10,000 members of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), including refinery workers and office staff, began on Thursday over issues that included oil sector reforms and pay.

Nigeria’s energy sector has been hit hard by a prolonged drop in global crude prices and a spate of attacks by militants on oil and gas facilities in its southern Niger Delta region over the past few months, which briefly pushed oil production to 30-year lows.

The officials, who asked to remain anonymous, said that an agreement to suspend the strike was reached after talks between trade union leaders and government officials, including Labour Minister Chris Ngige, ended in the early hours of Wednesday.

The NNPC official, who was involved in the negotiations, said a resolution was signed by the two parties and the industrial action had been suspended. PENGASSAN officials could not immediately be reached to confirm the suspension.

Last week NNPC cautioned members of the public against any form of panic buying. There have been no signs of fuel shortages so far.