Senate Confirms Appointment Of Petroleum Regulatory Authority Board Members

AS part of activities towards the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) signed into law recently, Nigeria’s Senate has confirmed the appointment of four board members of Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

The upper legislative arm did the confirmation of the nominees on Thursday after consideration of a report by the Senate Committee on Downstream Petroleum Sector during plenary session.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Sabo Mohammed (Jigawa South-West), who presented the report, stated that their appointments were in accordance with provisions of section 34(3) of the PIA, 2021.

The nominees are, Idaere Gogo Ogan, Chairman; Farouk A. Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer; Abiodun Adeniji, Executive Director, Finance and Accounts; and Ogbugo Ukoha, Executive Director, Distributions System, Storage and Retail Infrastructure.

Mohammed said, “the nominees possess the technical knowledge and professional expertise to be Chairman, Chief Executive and Executive Directors of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.”

In his remarks, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, pointed out that the confirmed nominees are positioned to lay a good foundation for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority.

Commenting on the appointment, Senator Ajibola Basiru (Osun Central), said the synergy between the executive and legislature is helping out in terms of making policies and decisions that boost Nigeria’s economy, especially in the Oil and Gas sector leading to passage of the PIA 2021.

He said, “I think this should be noted for Nigerians to know that the country is ready for full utilization and optimization of the benefits in the oil and gas sector.”

Ajibola, urged the confirmed nominees to work hard with a selfless mindset in order to create a significant impact in the industry.

He also stressed the need for them to work in collaboration with relevant committees of the National Assembly to ensure positive outcomes in the oil and gas sector.