Niger Delta Congress Urges FG To Extend PINL’s Pipeline Surveillance Contract

The United Niger Delta Congress (UNDC) has urged the Federal Government to extend the pipeline surveillance contract of Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL), citing improved crude oil delivery, the restoration of shut-in oil assets and employment opportunities in the Niger Delta.

The group made the call on Saturday following the recommendation of the House of Representatives Committee on Host Communities, through its technical subcommittee, which investigated allegations against PINL and its Managing Director, Dr Osahon Okunbo.

In a statement issued in Abuja and signed by its national president, Mallam Julius Obi, the UNDC said the subcommittee found the allegations against the company and its leadership to be unsubstantiated and recommended that the petition be dismissed and that further investigation be discontinued.

The group said the panel also recommended commendation for PINL’s operations in protecting oil and gas infrastructure, a vote of confidence in the pipeline surveillance arrangement and an extension of the company’s contract.

According to the UNDC, the committee’s findings underscore the importance of performance and evidence in assessing contractors responsible for protecting critical national assets.

The group said PINL presented a written account of its operations, supported by geotagged photographic evidence, while the petitioners failed to appear before the subcommittee on September 14, September 22 and October 5, 2026.

The UNDC’s statement highlighted improvements in crude oil delivery through the Trans Niger Pipeline, noting that when PINL commenced operations in August 2022, only 3% of the crude pumped through the pipeline reached the Bonny Terminal.

By September 2026, the figure had risen to 98 per cent, according to the group.

It also said Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11, which had been shut in for 18 months, was restarted within 90 days of PINL’s engagement.

The company was further credited with remediating 2,049 illegal pipeline connections and destroying 1,010 illegal refinery clusters.

The UNDC said PINL’s operations cover 215 host communities, with more than 35,600 surveillance guards recruited from the Niger Delta.

Its operational assets include 28 forward bases, 130 boats, 175 vehicles and 25 drones deployed to monitor pipelines and other oil and gas infrastructure across the region.

The group argued that the scale of the operations demonstrated the economic importance of community-based surveillance in reducing crude oil losses and improving the security of petroleum infrastructure.

Beyond security operations, the UNDC said PINL had provided more than 5,000 scholarships to children in host communities and trained over 4,000 women and girls in vocational skills.

It added that the company had also provided flood relief to more than 10 communities in Rivers State.

The group maintained that extending the contract would help preserve employment opportunities, sustain improvements in crude oil production and strengthen economic activities in host communities.

It urged the Federal Government to provide a longer contract tenure, arguing that continuity would consolidate the gains recorded in the Eastern Corridor and provide greater certainty for workers and other stakeholders.

The UNDC also highlighted the leadership of Okunbo, who succeeded his late father, Captain Idahosa Wells Okunbo, founder of Ocean Marine Solutions, from which the group said PINL’s operational foundations emerged.

According to the statement, the younger Okunbo sustained the company’s operations following the leadership transition and expanded its community engagement and pipeline surveillance activities.

The group urged the government to create more opportunities for young Nigerians capable of managing strategic national assignments, describing PINL’s performance as an example of youth leadership in the oil and gas industry.

It also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Security Adviser and the management of NNPC Limited for their roles in supporting efforts to protect the country’s oil and gas infrastructure.

However, the company’s operational performance figures and the details of the legislative panel’s recommendations were contained in the UNDC’s statement and were not independently verified for this report.

The call for an extension comes amid ongoing efforts to protect oil infrastructure, curb crude oil theft, and improve production and revenue generation in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.

The Federal Government’s decision on the contract’s future will be significant for PINL’s workforce, host communities and the wider oil industry, where sustained production and reduced losses remain important to government revenue.