PIA: Oil Firm Awards Contracts for Community Development in Rivers

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

Indigenous oil company, Lekoil and Gas Limited, in collaboration with its JV partners, Green Energy International Limited has awarded developmental contracts to three of its host communities in Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The contracts, which are in line with the provisions of Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) for oil companies to set aside 3% of its profit for the development of host communities, include internal road projects, completion of town hall building project, construction of culvert and scholarship and bursary schemes from primary to postgraduate levels in Ukama Ekede, Asukama and Asukoyet communities respectively.

Speaking with journalists shortly after the contract signing in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Thursday, the Chairman, Board of Trustees, Ukama Ekede, Ayama Ekere, Asukama, Asukoyet Host Communities Development Trust Fund (HCDT), Asuk Sampson, stated that the contracts were selected in consultation with the communities.

He said: “What happened today is the manifestation of a series of activities from the signing into law of the Petroleum Industry Act. Immediately after the signing, Green Energy International Limited and its technical partners, Lekoil and Oil Services Nigeria Limited, in consultation with the communities and in line with the PIA engaged the communities to identify their needs.

“The needs were identified and were incorporated into the communities development plan of the four communities. From then, we started working in the boardroom trying to put things together. Today is actually the manifestation of those things that we did long time ago. 

“Today is the signing and award of contracts. Those projects that communities have identified as their needs, that we see as interventions that could be achieved, that could be given to the communities for the improvement of their lives is what we have just done.”

Asuk stated that the contract award went through a competitive bidding process, pointing out that the contracts were awarded to local contractors in line with the PIA Act and further to drive economic development in the communities. 

He also revealed that no contract was awarded for Ayama Ekere community because the money in the pool was not enough to execute the 1.4 kilometres of road project nominated by them. 

Asuk said that each community currently has N84 million in its pool, adding that the community has been directed to chose another project that can be executed within the available resources. 

“There are four communities in the HCDT. Quite unfortunately, the contract today are for three communities because yesterday we engaged the other community to tell them that the project they actually want the resources in the pool will not be enough to executive 1.4 kilometre road which runs into over N700 million. 

“We engaged them to tell them that they should go home and in consultation with the board identify other needs. Now for the other three communities, Ukama Ekede has two projects, the contract for implementation of scholarships scheme and bursary from primary school to post-graduate levels. The other project is the construction of about one kilometre link road to Ukama Ekede.

“The next community, Asukama, has three projects. They have a town hall that they have been on for a while now. So we are awarding contract to enable the completion of that project. They also have a cross culvert that will link the two segments of the community together,” he said.

Asuk also listed scholarship and bursary for their youths and children from primary to post graduate levels. 

“The other community is Asukoyet where we awarded contract for internal roads of about one kilometre. Those were the projects we awarded today.

“The PIA also advocated for local content. So the award of contracts to local contractors was, one, in compliance with the local content, two, for development. Everybody needs opportunity to develop. So this contractors that were selected today, may be at the end of the execution of these contracts, some of them must have learnt a lot to improve on their capacity to deliver in the future.

“We are having a time frame of about three months for the execution of the projects. Each of the communities has about N84 million to its credit for the execution of their projects,” he stated.

On his part, the Base Manager, Lekoil and Gas Limited, Mr Chris Okoli, expressed the commitment of the company and its JV partners to work with the communities in line with the provisions of the PIA. 

He also solicited the assistance of the leadership of the communities to prevail on their youths to avoid sabotaging their operations.