Uchenna Izundu
OGJ International Editor
LONDON, Aug. 5 -- Russia’s Ruscorp, a maintenance and security company, agreed to help improve Nigeria’s oil pipelines and construct new distribution lines under a memorandum of understanding signed with the nation’s government.
Nigeria’s pipelines have been attacked and vandalized by oil thieves and militants,
killing thousands of civilians and creating a shortfall of million of dollars in revenues from lost sales over the past decade.
Petroleum Minister Rilwanu Lukman said the memorandum would enhance the integrity and monitoring of the Nigeria oil transportation network. The parties did not reveal which parts of Nigerian National Petroleum Corp.’s network would be targeted under the plan or how much it would cost.
"The overall benefits to Nigeria will include a drastic reduction in the environmental damage that occurs during oil transportation," said Aleksey Danilyants, Ruscorp’s vice-chairman.
NNPC owns 6,000 km of pipelines, but these have been poorly maintained.
Contact Uchenna Izundu at [email protected]
