Foreigners taking over our jobs in oil & gas sector, PENGASSAN cries out

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has raised concerns over the high number of expatriates in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, stating that it poses a threat to long-term national development impact.

Festus Osifo, president of the Alassociation, disclosed this at the National Executive Council (NEC) Meeting of the Association held in Abuja, on Tuesday.

According to him, while skilled foreign workers contribute to economic development, the current rate of expatriate employment demands attention as it strains the economy due to salaries, remittances, and other expenses.

“Many expatriates and alleged quota abuses raise concerns about long-term national development impact. Socially, it can fuel unrest and resentment among Nigerians who feel excluded from opportunities in the industry. We demand strengthening our regulatory mechanisms and enforcing the regulations to promote local content and ensure transparency and accountability.

“We must work towards ensuring fair sharing of our natural resources for the benefit of all Nigerians. We are holding to account a government institution called NCDMB and also, those in the Ministry of Interior, these are the people that give permits for these expatriates to come. If you go to some of these companies both vulcanizers and operators are from Indian. So, arising from this negativity, we have resolved that we will do everything possible to hold them to account.

“Because the more you send these expatriates away, the more the management of these companies will open up the system and employ more Nigerians. It is so bad that our institutions are weak. If you go to Angola, you won’t have the kind of problem we have today in Nigeria. The people who fight for the workers in Angola are not even trade unions, they are government institutions.

“If you work in Angola for a while as a foreigner, you must go back to your country and reapply again and they ensure that the jobs that they give you in Angola are technical jobs, but not minor jobs. So, our government must sit up. Our institutions must sit up, NCDMB, Ministry of Interior, they must sit up and do what they ought to do. So, it is a battle that we are much more prepared to fight,” he said.

Speaking further, Osifo commended the leadership of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for the rehabilitation and startup of the old Port Harcourt refinery, noting that it is important that the government achieve the same with the Warri and Kaduna refineries.

For him, ensuring the privatisation of these assets is of great importance, using the NLNG model to ensure effective and efficient management of the facilities.

“Over the years, PENGASSAN has been at the forefront of demanding that these refineries be rehabilitated and brought back into operation. This will not stop until the remaining three refineries are successfully rehabilitated and resume operations. Afterward, we will mount a vanguard for the refineries to be privatized using the NLNG model that has worked efficiently over the years,” he added.8

Under the NLNG model, according to him, three private companies, Shell, Total Energy, and ENI own 51 percent of shares while the government owns only 49 percent, which makes the company a private entity.

He further warned against handing the refineries to friends and political associates, stressing that potential investors must be experts in the oil and gas sector, people who truly understand what it takes to run refineries.

“But you all know that NLNG is working, year in, year out, they report dividends, year in, year out, they tell us how much they have paid into federation accounts and because that model is working. With that model, the government will not have a controlling stake. But they have 49%, which is also sufficient to watch over national energy security and national interest.”