NUPENG WARNS NNPC ON JOINT VENTURE PARTNERSHIP ON REFINERIES, DEPOTS AND JETTIES
NUPENG WARNS NNPC ON JOINT VENTURE PARTNERSHIP ON REFINERIES, DEPOTS AND JETTIES
The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) warns the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of the dangers on the advertisement placed in some national dailies of engagement of investors as joint technical partners for the rehabilitation and operations of NNPC refineries. The Union is also worried at similar adverts placed by the NNPC inviting prequalification for rehabilitation, upgrade, operatorship, management, maintenance and security of NNPC Jetties, storage depots and pipeline infrastructure on joint venture partnership basis. NUPENG believes that the current move by the NNPC is a form of privatization through the backdoor of our national assets which is doomed to fail and bring about more hardship to the citizens, just the way the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) privatization failed to bring the desired results but darkness all over the country. It states that for security reasons and in the interest of protecting the jobs of oil and gas workers that the present joint partnership bid will be resisted by NUPENG. The Union adds that no investor will want to put its money in the joint venture Partnership arrangement without having a say in the running of the refineries, storage depots and jetties. The Union warns that it will resist the move as the fate of the oil and gas workers cannot be guaranteed. More so that the Unions in the Oil and Gas sector were not consulted. NUPENG states that the panacea of these challenges is not in joint partnership basis that will alter the ownership and operatorship structure but the need have the political will to make the refineries, pipelines, storage depots work optimally. The Union reiterates that the potential bidders will turn out to be front men who have all along been interested in buying these national assets. The Union believes that the plan to sell these national assets through this method goes to show a total failure on the part of the NNPC management and portends grave danger to the oil and gas industry. It is also negates the federal government plans to set-up a special task force to tackle pipeline vandalisation and encourage investors to build refineries within the old refineries and use their facilities. NUPENG calls on President Muhammadu Buhari to call the Minster of State, Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu to order and rescind the decision and concentrate on re-streaming the refineries, rehabilitate the depots instead of this new plan of partial privatization through the backdoor that will result to job losses, which may lead the Union to embark on a national-wide action.
Joseph Ogbebor Acting General Secretary – NUPENG