…Stakeholders urge FG to replace 60-year-old oil pipelines

Stakeholders in the Niger Delta have urged the Federal Government and oil industry operators to replace ageing pipelines and address environmental risks associated with abandoned wellheads and gas flaring.

This is as Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) reported two consecutive months without pipeline vandalism across its operational areas.

The stakeholders made the call at PINL’s October 2026 Stakeholders’ Engagement Forum, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

At the meeting, traditional rulers, youth leaders, environmental advocates and community representatives renewed their commitment to protecting critical oil and gas infrastructure.

The forum, organised under the leadership of PINL Managing Director, Osahon Okunbo, formed part of the company’s engagement with host communities along the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) and Eastern Gas Network (EGN), with discussions focusing on pipeline security, environmental protection, community development and Nigeria’s oil production targets.

Speaking at the event, PINL’s General Manager, Community and Stakeholders Relations, Dr. Akpos Mezeh, attributed the two consecutive months without pipeline vandalism in the company’s operational areas to cooperation among host communities, security agencies, surveillance personnel and industry operators.

Mezeh called for sustained collaboration to protect critical national infrastructure, maintain peace and promote development in the Niger Delta, stressing that the benefits of oil and gas production depended on the security of the facilities.

“Sustainable production and development depend on peaceful communities and trust among industry operators, government and host communities,” he said.

He said communities along the two pipeline networks would play a significant role in helping Nigeria achieve its oil and gas production targets for 2027 and 2030.

Citing the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s audited results for 2025, Mezeh said the company recorded a profit after tax of N7.2 trillion, representing a 33 per cent increase from N5.4 trillion in 2024.

He added that crude oil and condensate production averaged 1.77 million barrels per day in 2025, the highest in five years, while natural gas production averaged 7.2 billion standard cubic feet per day, its highest level in three years.

Mezeh said PINL’s surveillance operations had also created employment opportunities for more than 35,000 youths, while its scholarship programme had awarded over N2 billion to more than 1,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students.

He urged stakeholders to sustain their support for the company and cautioned against presenting allegations against individuals and institutions as established facts without adequate evidence.

Meanwhile, stakeholders at the forum expressed support for PINL’s operations and called on the Federal Government to sustain and expand its pipeline surveillance contract.

The Head of Field Operations, Eastern Corridor, at the NNPC Project Monitoring Office, Engr. Omojevwhe Akponime, said the corporation’s daily reviews showed that pipelines within PINL’s area of coverage were operating satisfactorily.

He said the performance of the company had been acknowledged during a recent NNPC management session.

At the community level, the Eze Eberi-Ugo IX of Omuma Kingdom, Onyekachi Amaonwu, said achieving Nigeria’s oil production targets would require the cooperation of communities where the pipelines were located.

“For you to achieve these targets, there is no pipeline in Abuja; the pipelines are located right here in our communities,” he said,