Senate Kicks Against Chevron, Ohers Turning Nig To Extractive Zone

The Senate committee on Local Content has kicked against the extractive operational model carried out in Nigeria by Chevron, Exxon and other oil companies without manufacturing content as done in other climes.

This explains why the National Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, told the committee to invite the oil companies for explanations on their extractive mode of operation without manufacturing content.

The committee during its interactive with management of NCDMB specifically lamented that Chevron apart from crude oil exploration in Saudi Arabia also manufactures Polypropylene one of the waste products from Gas to produce Syringe which fetches Saudi Arabia $6billion annually.

It added that Exxon oil does same in United States of America, by making the country the third largest producer of Polypropylene (PP) .

The Committee Chairman, Senator Natasha Akpoti – Uduaghan wondered why the same international oil companies exploring crude oil in Nigeria don’t go the extra mile of using waste products from crude oil for manufacturing of needed products in the country.

The lacuna in the operational model of the International Oil companies according to the committee, led to the collapse of Jubilee Syringe Plant in Bayelsa due to lack of the needed raw material ( Polypropylene) .

According to the Chairman of the committee, since NCDMB said it doesn’t have the power to make the international oil companies diversify their mode of operations they should be summoned to give explanations on why they are turning Nigeria to an extractive zone and not a manufacturing one as done in other climes.

The committee was however impressed with the disclosure made by the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Felix Ogbe on the $50m grant for research and $20m for women in oil and gas.

By James Itodo, Edited By Grace Namiji