National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Ltd (TE&PNL) have re-affirmed their commitment to ensuring environmental sustainability in Nigeria’s petroleum industry operation areas.
This assurance was given when the new Executive General Manager, Health Safety and Environment (HSE) of TE&PNL, Mr Eragbue Aikhoje, paid a familiarization visit to NOSDRA at its headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, 5th May,2021.
In his welcome address, the DG/CEO of NOSDRA, Idris O. Musa, said the Agency has a record of good working relationship with the multi-national oil company. He commended TE&PNL for always ensuring sustainability in its operations.
Apart from using the opportunity of the visit by the officials of TE&PNL to enjoin oil companies to proactively respond to oil spills in their areas of operation, regardless of the cause, he also called on the companies to help educate the host oil communities on environmental management, essentially with regard to reporting oil spillage and avoiding oil industry crimes that pollute the environment like pipeline vandalism and illegal refining.
In his words: “Oil firms should do what is right at the right time. Anytime there is a spill at their facility, whether it is caused by third party interference or sabotage by vandals, it should be cleaned up to the best practical extent”.
The DG/CE, expressed hope that NOSDRA would continue to have good working relationship with Total in the interest of environmental conservation in the country’s petroleum industry.
In his response, the new Executive General Manager (HSE) of the company, Mr. Eragbue Aikhoje, said the essence of the visit of his team to NOSDRA was to deepen cooperation with the agency. While reiterating the willingness and readiness of TE&PNL to be carried along by the environmental regulatory body in the petroleum industry, Mr. Aikhoje assured that his company was implacably committed to exploring other areas of cooperation, apart from capacity building.