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Reps to probe petrol subsidy regime

The House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) has announced plans to conduct a comprehensive audit of the subsidy regime of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, in the country.

The chairman of the committee, Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere, made the announcement at the committee’s inauguration in Abuja on Friday, November 3, 2023.

Ugochinyere said the committee’s legislative priorities included ensuring energy security, enhancing professionalism in the petroleum sector and driving economic transformation.

Others, he said, included fostering accountability, institutional reforms, and focusing on revenue recovery and generation.

“The committee’s specific objective is to assist the Federal Government in recovering the 20 billion dollars revenue lost in the sector,” the lawmaker added.

He said the committee would also prioritise early remittance of federal revenues and the recovery of unremitted funds in the coming days.

Ugochinyere emphasised the importance of addressing the challenges faced by Nigerians due to the removal of the subsidy on petrol, saying the committee would also probe the subsidy beneficiaries, scrutinise loan transactions and pre-export financing arrangements, and to review loans related to crude oil.

The lawmaker said the committee would examine the direct sales, direct purchase method, which he said involved using crude for importing refined petrol and other associated value chains.

He said the committee would collaborate with other relevant committees in the upstream, mainstream, gas, and petroleum training fund sectors to achieve its objectives.

In reviewing the PIA, Ugochinyere said the committee would assess the actions taken before and after its implementation, the status of national assets, and the achievement of energy security.

He added that the committee would examine competition in the downstream sector, as originally intended in the PIA.

Ugochinyere said the committee would also address the issue of NNPCL being the primary petrol importer, contrary to the PIA’s vision of diverse downstream operators.

The lawmaker said the committee would address the challenges related to domestic crude supply for modular refineries and local refineries, which is a constitutional provision under the PIA.

“The committee will also ensure adequate supply of domestic crude to achieve energy security,” he added.

Ugochinyere expressed confidence in the committee’s ability to fulfill its mandate and urged stakeholders in the petroleum sector to cooperate in the discharge of its functions and embrace positive changes.

The Star