…To get 13% derivation fund
By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Federal Government yesterday approved four oil wells for Lagos State which joined other oil producing states with a recent find in Badagry area of the state.
The approval was announced by the Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Indices and Disbursement Committee, Mr. Aliyu Muhammed, during a courtesy visit to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.
The approval to become an oil producing state also comes with the disbursement of 13 per cent derivation fund as spelt out under Section 162 (2) of the 1999 Constitution, as well as the provision of the allocation of Revenue Act 2004.
Mohammed, who was accompanied by members of the committee, said they were on a working visit to Lagos to verify crude oil and gas production from Aje oil wells for the purpose of disbursing the 13 per cent derivation fund.
He said the commission had set up an inter-agency technical committee comprising the RMAFC, DPR, office of the Surveyor General of the Federation and the National Boundary Commission to determine the location of the wells.
Mohammed said the committee recommended that number 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the Aje oil wells fall within 200m isobaths and therefore should be attributed to Lagos State.
The Aje Field, which was discovered 20 years ago and located in Oil Mining Lease 113 achieved its first oil some months ago.
Yinka Folawiyo Petroleum Company Limited, a wholly-owned indigenous firm and operator of the OML 113 offshore Lagos, had in May announced the commencement of production of crude oil from the field. Other partners are New Age Exploration Nigeria Limited, EER (Colobus) Nigeria Limited, Pan Petroleum (Panoro Energy) Aje Limited and PR Oil & Gas Nigeria Limited.
Responding, Ambode said that it was significant for the Nigerian economy that the state has emerged as the first oil producing state outside the Niger Delta basin.
“We are very glad to receive this delegation. We also want to thank the Federal Government, most especially President Muhammadu Buhari, for making this to happen very promptly,” Ambode said.
“I want to say that this has been the quickest action that has been taken by RMAFC since I have known the commission. I used to be a former Account General so I had a lot of transactions and relationship with the institution called RMAFC.
“Within a span of about 60 days of when we wrote our letter, and even before we wrote the letter, this technical committee was set up. It gladdens me to say that the institution works and is working for the good of Nigeria.”