FG finds new oil wells in Lagos, approves 4 for the state

– The Federal Government (FG) of Nigeria has approved 4 of 5 oil wells discovered in Lagos– FG says the state 5th oil well could not be approved for Lagos because it lies outside the boundaries of the state– Governor Ambode says the findings paves a new path for the state’s economic growthThe Federal Government has said four of the five oil wells discovered in Lagos belong to the state, adding that the fifth oil well could not have belonged to the state since its location fell outside the approved distance.Governor Akinwumni Ambode of Lagos stateThe chairman, Indices and Disbursement Committee, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Alhaji Aliyu Mohammed, on Wednesday, August 17 explained that the disproved oil well fell beyond 200 metres isobaths and could not have legitimately belonged to Lagos state.Mohammed spoke at the Lagos Governor’s office, Lagos House, Ikeja, during the visit of a delegation of the committee, adding that the delegation was in the state for the purpose of verifying crude oil and gas production from the recently discovered Aje oil wells.He said the verification by the committee and its recommendation would facilitate the disbursement of 13 per cent derivation fund to the state in line with the Nigerian Constitution.According to Mohammed, as part of procedure and in pursuant to its constitutional mandate, the commission set up an inter-agency technical committee which comprised the commission, the Department of Petroleum Resources, Office of the Surveyor General of the Federation and the National Boundary Commission to determine the location of the Aje oil wells.He said:“The technical committee recommended that for the purpose of derivation as spelt out under Section 162 (2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), as well as the provision of the Allocation of Revenue Act, 2004, Ajeoil wells 1, 2, 4 and 5 fall within the 200m isobaths and therefore should be attributed to Lagos State.“As a result, the commission and members of the inter-agency committee had to embark on this working visit to conclude the process. Please, note thatAje oil well 3 falls beyond the 200m isobaths and therefore cannot be legitimately attributed to Lagos state.”He added that the commencement of oil production from Aje oil field by YinkaFolawiyo Petroleum Company Limited was the first time oil was being produced outside the Niger Delta.Governor Akinwunmi Ambode described the visit as historic. He pointed out that the visit marked the beginning of the official step that would take Lagos to the final destination as an oil-producing state.Ambode said:“The discovery of oil in Lagos State is significant for Nigeria. It is the first time that oil would be produced outside the Niger Delta.“It means that a new path to diversification is what we are now witnessing. We will also encourage other states to start activating their mineral deposits to expand the Internally Generated Revenue.”With the latest development, the Lagos state government will soon join other states of the federation enjoying 13 percent derivation from oil production.Meanwhile, the Lagos state government (LSG), yesterday, unfolded fresh projects aimed at boosting security and revenue generation in the state.Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Steve Ayorinde, who led other colleagues at an inter-ministerial briefing in Alausa, Ikeja, said the mega projects were designed to enhance investments as well as improve the living standards of residents in particular and Nigeria in general.Other commissioners at the briefing were: Ministry of Transportation, Works and Infrastructure, Energy, Science and Technology, Dr Dayo Mobereola, Ganiyu Johnson, Wale Oluwo, Femi Odubiyi, respectively.The projects include: Approval for the construction of Fly-over Bridge at Pen Cinema, installation of 13, 000 Closed Circuit Television, CCTV, Cameras and security sensors, removal of three roundabouts in Lekki axis. Ayorinde, said government was set to decongest traffic along the Lekki-Epe Expressway through the removal of three roundabouts namely the 4th Roundabout (Elegushi); 5th Roundabout (Jakande) and the 8th Roundabout (VGC).According to him, the affected roundabouts would be replaced by traffic lights, expansion of the roads and provision of dedicated turning lanes and additional lay-bys.Ayorinde noted that the state government had commenced the implementation of the Lagos Enterprise, Geographical Information System, GIS, upgrade and the Integrated Land Administration Automation System, which when implemented, would ensure proper monitoring of government infrastructure for optimum benefit, fast-track the ease of doing business and improve government-citizen relationship.On the Pen Cinema flyover bridge, Johnson said the 700 meter bridge would span from Oba Ogunji Road into Agunbiade.He said:“The concept is that at Oba Ogunji, we will expand the road and create a barrier that will discourage motorists from parking indiscriminately on the road.The bridge will help easy traffic in that axis and complement the ongoing flyover bridge in Abule-Egba axis. 13, 000 CCTV, 6,000 streetlights Odubiyi, explained that the project was part of the Smart City project, projected by the state government to boost security in the state.”“We are installing 6, 000 streetlights to support the light Lagos initiative. And we are also providing 13, 000 CCTV cameras across the state,”explaining that the deployment of the CCTV would start at the last quarter (September) of this year.According to him,“We have a window of 18 months to complete the project. And the reason for this period is that the installations require laying of metro fiber cables that will aid easy transfer of captured images.”