Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva said the Federal Government has approved a partnership deal that will enable the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to establish a depot in Akwa Ibom.
He said an approval for the establishment of NNPC oil and gas logistic Centre in the state has also been granted.
Sylva said the federal government would partner with the state government to build a base that would be the first in Akwa Ibom.
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The minister said this on Saturday at a Gala night organised by the Akwa Ibom Government in honour of a delegation of stakeholders who attended the oil and gas industry retreat in Uyo.
He urged the governor to set up a team to work with the NNPC in drawing up the process for the collaboration.
“I have the full support of NNPC to announce to you that we are very interested to partner you to build a base here. It will be the first here.
“It has also approved immediate establishment of an oil and gas logistics facility in the state,” Sylva said.
Sylva noted that the visit was a response to Governor Emmanuel Udom’s laudable efforts in maintaining peace and security in the state.
He said, the President Muhammadu Buhari has already approved and signed a 50,000 hectares free trade zone status for that area.
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He explained that Buhari does not play politics with development, hence his initiatives in Akwa Ibom, despite being a PDP state, and urged for more support to him.
“We request that you cooperate with the President so that the weight of governance on him would be lighter,” Sylva explained.
The Governor earlier expressed appreciation for the planned NNPC oil and gas logistics centre for the state and proposed that the groundbreaking be done in September to mark the state’s 33rd anniversary.
Emmanuel faulted the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) statistics of unemployment for the state and announced that a car assembly and manufacturing plant and other projects gearing up in the state would generate massive employment opportunities for the state.
Recall that on Friday, August 21, Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State has demanded the establishment of petroleum depots in the state, saying that a State sitting on 25 percent of Nigeria’s oil and gas reserve deserves at least a depot to rejig economy and open up job opportunities for the youths.
