Federal Govt Shuts Scorpion Oil Over Irregular Diving Operations

The federal government has shut down the diving operations of Scorpion Oil Services onboard MV African Installer offshore Lagos for operating without the requisite approvals and violating the provisions of the Factories Regulations, 2018.

This followed a monitoring exercise conducted by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, led by the director of factories of the Federation who is also the director, Occupational Safety and Health department of the ministry Mrs Lauretta Adogu and the chief inspector of diving, Julius Ugwala.

A statement by the ministry’s head of press and public relations, Olajide Oshundun, yesterday in Abuja said that the monitoring exercise was aimed at ensuring full compliance with Nigeria’s Factories Regulations, 2018.

Adogu disclosed that the diving operations being carried out by the contractor, Scorpion Oil Services, posed huge threats to the divers, as an on-the-spot assessment also revealed that the company was using inappropriate equipment and unqualified personnel.

She added that t Scorpion Oil Services also disregarded the Local Content law, with the operations wholly dominated by foreigners.
She said, “The operators did not comply with the Factories (Diving at Work) Regulations, 2018, the Regulations stipulate that before any diving operation commences within the Nigerian territorial waters, there must be an authorization approval issued by the director of factories of the federation .