Joy Emmanuel The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, has expressed confidence that the revoked licence for OML 46 (also known as Atala Oilfield), belonging to Bayelsa state, will be returned to the state.
The federal government had in controversial circumstances revoked the licence in April 2020 when another son of the state, Timipre Sylva, was the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.
However, Lokpobiri, during a visit to Governor Douye Diri at the Government House, Yenagoa, Wednesday, Lokpobiri expressed regrets that the Atala oilfield, a common patrimony of the state, was taken away.
The minister said he would do everything within his power to bring back the asset.
He said the menace of oil theft had resulted in the reduction of revenue from the federation account to oil-producing states, adding that Bayelsa had zero derivation for about four months in 2023.
Lokpobiri also expressed concern over the level of pollution caused by illegal bunkering activities, noting that if the trend was not checked, it could be an existential threat.
He said: “Bayelsa State is more polluted than Ogoni in Rivers State and we are the only people that can put a stop to it. We need to do something to protect our water and land resources.
Responding, Governor Douye Diri congratulated Lokpobiri on his appointment and appreciated President Bola Tinubu for appointing a worthy son of Bayelsa as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.
Diri assured the federal government of his administration’s preparedness to partner with it to check oil theft and illegal bunkering, which had adversely affected the ecosystem.
He stressed the need to involve governors of the Nigeria Delta states working together to stamp out the menace.
He said: “We want to see the positive impact of your office. We are on a new journey to change the trajectory of your office. That is why l am pained that it was in your time that the office was balkanized. Bayelsa has more gas than oil. So we would have been happier if you were presiding over gas as well.