Palpable tension has engulfed Aladja, a community in the Udu Local Government Area of Delta State as sporadic gunshots overtook the area on Friday morning. Although no casualty has been reported yet, reports said the residents of the neighbouring community, the Ogbe-Ijoh community in Warri South-West Local Government were responsible for the threat. Underlying issues within the communities and the gunshot threat this morning was coming a week after a 7-day ultimatum was handed to the State Boundary demarcation committee to replace buildings allegedly destroyed. A resident of the Aladja communi ..read more

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Major General Barry Tariye Ndiomu (retd) as Interim Administrator of the Amnesty Programme. Ndiomu will replace Col. Milland Dikio as the coordinator of the Niger Delta interventionist programme The appointment was disclosed via a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Femi Adesina.The statement explained that the appointee hails from Odoni in Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, and was admitted to the Nigerian Defence Academy as part of 29th Regular Combatant Course. He was commissi ..read more

The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) recently opened the portal for the registration of new applicants into its foreign post-graduate scholarship programme which also includes Master Degree courses in Nigerian universities. NDDC Interim Administrator, Dr Efiong Akwa, in an official announcement said the scholarship programme was part of efforts to boost manpower development for the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region. Eligibility The NDDC scholarship covers disciplines in engineering, including Software/Aeronautic Space/Aeronautic Engineering, Medical Sciences/Medicine a ..read more

A former Group Executive Director, Engineering and Technology Directorate of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), Alexander Ogedegbe, has spoken on the factors behind Nigeria’s recurring woes in the oil sector. Mr Ogedegbe, who retired from the NNPC in 2003, spoke on Arise TV’s breakfast programme, ‘The Morning Show’ on Wednesday. He said the country’s oil sector has been underperforming due to the incompetence of NNPC staffers and other operators in the industry, pointing out that the oil firm has failed, for a long time, to invest in staff training for optimum capacity. He claimed ..read more

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has called on the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to shun corruption and ensure monies were used for what they were allocated for. EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa called for prudent use of government resources allocated to them by ensuring that monies released for specific projects are used for the same purpose. The anti-graft chief, represented by Uyo Zonal Commander Hamidu Bawa, gave the advise at the 5th National Council on Niger Delta in Uyo, capital of Akwa Ibom. The senior police officer vo ..read more

The Federal Government has promised that the Port Harcourt Refineries will become functional by December. The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, said this while responding to questions from State House reporters after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Asked when the rehabilitation of the refineries would be completed, Sylva said: “The rehabilitation of the refineries is ongoing. As we said earlier, the old refinery in Port Harcourt, which is about 60,000 barrels per day capacity, will ..read more

The Nigeria LNG is seeking the services of security escort vessels for tankers calling at its Bonny Terminal, in renewed efforts to wade off attacks from pirates in the notorious gulf of Guinea. The company is inviting bids for Long-Range Security Escort Vessel (LRSEV) for the provision of maritime security support to tankers calling at the NLNG Bonny Terminal, Rivers State, Nigeria, “while in transit within the Gulf of Guinea.” NLNG has been unable to meet all of its supply obligations due to rampant crude theft in Nigeria which has forced the shutdowns of key pipelines like the TPF. The bulk ..read more

People of Ogbudugbudu Itsekiri community has reiterated the need for inclusion among the host swamp Itsekiri communities of Chevron Nigeria Limited Petroleum Industry Act host communities development arrangements in Olero and Saturn 1 Oil Fields. This was disclosed in a statement signed by the community’s chairman and secretary, Mr Bawo Benson Gere and Mr William Mutokuro Ugular respectively. The letter was addressed to the chairman, the Olu of Warri Advisory Council on PIA and oil, Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL). The Itsekiri community denounced a publication on a national daily dated August 2 ..read more

The Senate Adhoc Committee on oil theft has begun an investigation into circumstances surrounding oil theft and illegal bunkering activities in the Niger Delta region. Chairman of the Committee, Bassey Akpan, disclosed this while interacting with journalists on arrival at the Port Harcourt International Airport. Akpan lamented the massive stealing of Nigeria’s crude oil, saying it’s troubling. He said the country had lost huge earnings and failed to meet the quota allocated by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. He said, “Our intention is to visit every oil terminal in the Niger ..read more

Residents of Abala kingdom, comprising several communities in Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta State, have cried out over alleged neglect by the Delta State government, just as the access roads in the area have been taken over by flood. “It is a hell accessing  communities in Abala kingdom, economic activities are virtually paralysed,  as farmers find it difficult to convey their produce to markets due to the deplorable roads,” the Odogwu of Abala, High Chief Christopher Iwale said. Iwale appealed to the state governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, who had constructed over a thousand ..read more