The House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), chaired by Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu, has wrapped up its three-day retreat in Owerri with a demand for a long-term renewal of the pipeline surveillance contract awarded to Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL).
In a statement released to Blueprint Thursday in Abuja, the Committee formally commended the Joint Committee of the National Assembly for its principled and dispassionate stance on the Tantita pipeline surveillance contract, noting that the alignment of both chambers on this security matter sends a powerful message to all stakeholders.
A key resolution of parley was the endorsement of the immediate and long-term renewal of the Tantita contract and the recommendation that the company be designated as a Company of National Strategic Importance.
Chairman of the committee, Ugochinyere opened the retreat by formally saluting Alhaji Aliko Dangote, whose refinery he described as “a national treasure built by Nigerian capital for the Nigerian people.”
He however expressed serious concern over the persistent failure to ensure consistent crude oil feedstock supply to indigenous refineries – a failure the Committee called not a market problem, but a governance failure it intends to legislate upon.
The committee, in another resolution, formally condemned World Bank’s Nigeria Development Update of 7th April 2026 which recommended the reinstatement of petroleum import licences on the basis that imports are twelve percent cheaper than the Dangote Refinery’s product.
While rejecting the recommendation as contrary to Nigeria’s national economic interest and an unacceptable interference in sovereign petroleum policy, the committee gave the Bank thirty days to issue a public retraction and written apology.
The DSS, EFCC, and NIA was also directed to investigate agents of foreign petroleum trading interests operating against Nigeria’s domestic refining sector. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also advised to register Nigeria’s formal diplomatic protest.
Furthermore, the Committee disclosed that credible information has established that certain IOCs and indigenous companies have connived to pay below-market prices for crude oil at a time of elevated international prices, causing significant revenue loss to the Nigerian Federation.
Consequently, a sub-Committee on Crude Pricing and Revenue Integrity has been established with a mandate to report within 45 days.
The Chairman was blunt: “The nation is losing revenue. We will find it.”
The retreat also recorded that the Committee has advanced considerably on the PIA amendment agenda, with six legislative priorities now at advanced drafting stage, including a new Crude Pricing Oversight and Revenue Protection Framework.
Another significant decision was the formal summoning of the NNPCL Group CEO by the committee.
In his closing remarks, Chairman Ugochinyere stressed: “Owerri has spoken. We will follow up. We will hold accountable. We will not relent.”