President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the Petroleum Industry Bill 2021 into law.
The president’s assent to the bill is coming few weeks after the bill was passed by the national Assembly.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, the President assented to the Bill on Monday August 16, in his determination to fulfill his constitutional duty.
Femi Adesina said, “Working from home in five days quarantine as required by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 after returning from London on Friday August 13, the President assented to the Bill Monday August 16, in his determination to fulfill his constitutional duty.
“The ceremonial part of the new legislation will be done on Wednesday, after the days of mandatory isolation would have been fulfilled.”
The Petroleum Industry Act provides legal, governance, regulatory and fiscal framework for the Nigerian petroleum industry, the development of host communities, and related matters.
The Senate had passed the Bill on July 15, 2021, while the House of Representatives did same on July 16, thus ending a long wait since early 2000s, and notching another high for the Buhari administration.
The bill, which, has now been passed into law by the President, will boost oil-sector investment, help in stabilising the sector, which has long suffered from underinvestment, and potentially reverse the downward trend in oil production.
