Buhari Orders NNPC to Intensify Oil Exploration in North-East

Buhari Orders NNPC to Intensify Oil Exploration in North-East

Group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Maikanti Baru on Monday revealed that President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the corporation to intensify oil exploration in the northeast.

Vanguard reports that Baru made the disclosure while receiving Bauchi state governor, Mr Mohammed Abubakar who paid him a congratulatory visit.

Baru said the NNPC is currently engaged in oil exploration activities going on in the frontier basin in Chad and also in some area close to the Kolmani River, in Bauchi State. Shell is said to have made some indicative discovery of hydrocarbons in the latter region.

According to him, the President has directed the NNPC to go into that area to improve and further explore the magnitude and prospect of those finds.

In response to the directive of the President, Baru disclosed that the NNPC is currently taking steps to re-strategise and get into those regions to step up crude oil exploration activities.

“We will reinvigorate the Frontier Exploration Services and see how they collaborate with the Northern Nigeria Development Company, NNDC, that is holding block 809 where some of the finds have been found and also the Department for Petroleum Resources, DPR, for the other blocks that have not been assigned,” Baru added.

The Governor said he paid a visit to the recently appointed NNPC boss to assure him of the support of the state government and his kinsmen in Bauchi state.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Senate on Monday said President Buhari had not committed any impeachable offence.

Senate majority leader, Senator Ali Ndume told newsmen in Abuja that there was no plan to impeach the president.

“The impeachment process is a National Assembly matter not Senate. Senate alone cannot impeach the president. It is the National Assembly that can impeach the president.

“It is the National Assembly and it is by a two-third majority and by clearly stating impeachable offences served on the person if he fails to respond.

“It is a process, is a long tedious process and in this country we don’t even need that; we are not even contemplating it.

“Even if anybody contemplates on it, it is not going to work because this is APC Senate; we have the majority. We don’t have a president that has issues of corruption, integrity, mismanagement.” he said.