THE Senate will soon investigate the disruptions that have hampered Nigeria’s oil and gas industry in the last 10 years.

The Senate majority leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, disclosed this at a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, July 25.

He said the Senate would also wade into the face-off between Aliko Dangote and the regulators in the petroleum sector.

Dangote Refinery has been facing regulatory hurdles that have affected its plans to start petroleum production, setting its owner, Aliko Dangote, against the regulators over the control of the petroleum downstream market in the past couple of months.

Bamidele, who is chairman of the ad-hoc committee set up to investigate alleged sabotage in the petroleum sector, noted that its committee’s public hearings would start on September 10 to interrogate key stakeholders about the poor state of the country’s petroleum sector.

He said the committee would in the course of its investigation examine the pre-shipment and pre-discharge standard test parameters adopted by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMPDRA) to uncover if loopholes were being exploited to get toxic cargoes into the country.

It will determine the level of compliance of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s (NNPCL) direct sale and direct purchase arrangements in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, including the extent of transparency and accountability in the oil sector.

He stressed that the committee would beam its searchlights on the activities of NMDPRA, including payments made to transporters in the last 10 years.

It will equally inquire from the NNPCL the state of the 22 depots built by the defunct NNPC to eliminate road distribution of petroleum products.

Further terms of reference include engagement with stakeholders within the oil and gas industry to identify possible gaps in regulating and strengthening the surveillance and monitoring structures in place to enable it to detect violations of best practice standards in the importation of products before entering the domestic supply chains.

It is also expected to engage with the NNPCL to understand the extent of its determination and timelines for the start-up of government-funded oil refineries.

The committee will also investigate how institutions across the importation and distribution chain failed to conduct quality sampling, shipped in products without auditing, and performed port validations by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), NMDPRA, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

Bamidele said further that the committee would interact with the minister of state for petroleum, finance minister, trade and investment minister, and NNPCL, among others.

The Central Bank of Nigeria, National Engineering and Technical Company Limited and Contractors, NMDPRA, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, and SON are expected to testify before the committee.

Others include the Dangote Group, NIMASA, NCS, Nigerian Navy, Obat Oil and Petroleum, Matrix Energy Depot, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), International Oil Companies (IOCs), Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), NPA, modular refineries, and Capital Oil.

As part of its assignment, the committee will visit the facilities of some identified stakeholders, especially the state-owned refineries, to ascertain their status, considering the huge funds already invested in their various turnaround maintenance over the years without commensurate results.

“The committee is particularly interested in understanding why local refineries are not working despite the substantial amounts of money spent annually on their maintenance and operations. We will closely examine what the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) has been doing to address this persistent problem.

“Additionally, the committee will meet with stakeholders in their various zones to gather localised insights and feedback. To ensure broad participation and transparency, the committee will create a platform for the general public and stakeholders to submit memoranda before the public hearings.”

“Our investigation seeks to identify and hold accountable parties involved in the importation and distribution of adulterated petroleum products (PMS and AGO). This includes suppliers, importers, regulatory bodies, and any other entities that may have contributed to this serious lapse in quality control,” Bamidele was quoted to have said.