Bauchi and Gombe state governments at loggerheads over the ownership of oil fields

BAUCHI and Gombe state government have become embroiled in a protracted dispute over the ownership of a lucrative oil well which is believed to contain up to 1m barrels of crude and 500bn cubic feet of gas.

Of late, oil and gas reserves gave been discovered by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in northeast Nigeria at the Kolmani oil field. However a crisis us now brewing over the ownership of the Kolmani Oil and Gas field as both Bauchi and Gombe States are laying claims to the oil wells.

Officials of the two states have also accused each other of attempting to appropriate the site which is said to contain 1bn barrels of crude oil reserves and 500bn standard cubic feet of gas. Kolmani reportedly has oil in commercial quantities with Oil Prospecting Licences 809 and 810, cutting across Kolmani One, Two, Three, Four and Five.

Opening the oil field recently, President Buhari disclosed that the project has attracted over $3bn in investment so far. With signs that the fields mat contain lucrative deposits, the two governments have begun fighting over their control.

President Buhari said: “We are pleased with the current discovery of over 1bn barrels of oil reserves and 500bn cubic feet of gas within the Kolmani area and the huge potential for more deposits as we intensify exploration efforts. It is, therefore, to the credit of this administration that at a time when there is near zero appetite for investment in fossil energy, coupled with the location challenges, that we are able to attract investment of over $3bn to this project.”

At the unveiling, President Buhari noted that the governors of Bauchi and Gombe states had given assurances of their unwavering commitment and willingness to ensure support and cooperation in the localities. However, the governors’ assurances seemed to have been forgotten as the two states declared that they were the rightful owners of the oil-rich field.

Alhaji Ahmed  Gara-Gombe, the special adviser to the Gombe State governor on information, said: “The truth of the matter is that the Kolmani oil well is in Gombe State, in Akko Local Government Area, in Pindiga emirate, Tai district, Kaltanga Mamuda ward. It has nothing to do with Bauchi State or Alkaleri Local Government Area.

 “If putting the records straight is what is seen as a crisis, so be it. The National Boundary Commission and  the NNPC are hypocrites in this matter, they know the truth and they should come out clean.

"Again, we need an independent jury to determine and verify our claims. Our people whose land was dubiously taken in the name of access road and were paid between N64,000 to N117,000 as compensation by the NNPC must be paid appropriately."

Echoing the governor’s aide, lawyer, Abdullahi Inuwa, blamed a former NNPC group managing director who passed on recently, for awarding the land to Bauchi State. He added that the late NNPC boss was an indigene of Misau in Bauchi State, hence his bias in allocating the well to his state.