By John Ikani
Finally, Nigeria’s House of Representatives on Thursday passed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) after considering and adopting the bill’s 318 clauses.
The House’s decision comes as the Senate began considering the bill after committee work earlier on Thursday.
The session was presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Idris Wase.
What you should know
President Muhammadu Buhari sent the reworked bill to the National Assembly in September last year after many delays in the legislative review process over the past 15 years.
The Bill, which is intended as a complete overhaul of the Nigerian oil and gas sector, seeks to, among others, ensure an increased level of transparency and accountability in the sector by strengthening the governing institutions to attract investment capital through changes to the governance, administrative, regulatory and fiscal framework of the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
The key objectives of the fiscal aspect of the Bill is to encourage investment in the petroleum industry while optimizing revenues accruing to the Government. It also seeks to ensure that transparency is achieved in the administration of the petroleum sector and Nigerian content is promoted through an efficient and effective regulatory framework.
