Wedoany.com Report-Dec 12, The Bauchi State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the actualisation of crude oil exploration at the Kolmani Oil Field, pledging to provide the necessary support for the project’s success.
Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Auwal Jatau, gave the assurance on Monday while addressing journalists during an inspection visit to the Kolmani Oil Field alongside members of the Crude Oil Committee of the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission.
Jatau emphasised the government’s readiness to collaborate with the Federal Government, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, and other stakeholders to ensure the Kolmani Integrated Oil Field becomes fully operational, benefiting the state, neighbouring states, and the nation.
“As a government, we have already assured the federal government and whoever is working here, be it a company or multilateral, of our holistic support, be it security, social amenities, or logistics.
“This has been our stand right from the day that the idea of the development of Kolmani was conceived through to this day,” he said.
The acting chairman of the RMFAC Crude Oil Committee, Hassan Mahmoud, expressed concern over the delay in the full-scale lifting of crude oil from the Kolmani Oil Field years after its inauguration.
He highlighted the potential of the discovered crude oil deposits to contribute significantly to national revenue.
“We were thinking it wouldn’t take time like this. Proceeds from this location should go to the purse of the federal government and then the 13% derivation to the two states that own this place,” Mahmoud said.
He continued, “We were waiting, and then apparently, the waiting was too long, so we decided to write to the state governments that we wanted to visit the location to see for ourselves because it is always said that seeing is believing. Honestly, we are not satisfied with the level of progress at the Kolmani oil field. We will sensitise them to do more.
“Also, the Bauchi State Deputy Governor is here. They are going to discuss with the government and will keep visiting this place until we can see the level of development that we are okay with.”
On his part, Abdulhamid Aminu, a representative of the construction firm Sterling Global, disclosed that the ongoing efforts are focused on drilling two additional wells to complement the existing PL809 and OPL810.
He noted that the commencement of crude oil lifting from the site depends on the completion of these wells.
The inspection underscores the urgency of ensuring the Kolmani Oil Field reaches full operational status to unlock its economic benefits for Bauchi, Gombe, and Nigeria at large.
