Lagos — Oil workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) have concluded arrangements to hold a stakeholders' engagement forum on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

According to the oil workers, stakeholders expected to present their positions at the forum aside PENGASSAN and NUPENG, include the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), International Oil Companies under the aegis of Oil Producers Trade Sector (OPTS), Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) and Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN). The Centre for Public Policy Alternatives (CPPA) will serve as facilitators of the forum while Professor Yinka Omorogbe, a professor of oil and gas law and former corporation secretary of the NNPC will chair the forum. The forum is expected to be declared open by the governor of Cross River State, Sen. Liyel Imoke.

PENGASSAN National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Zaid Kolawole, said the PIB, which was recently submitted to the National Assembly, will have far-reaching implication not only to the oil and gas industry but also the nation's economy.

He explained that the session is therefore planned to receive inputs from key stakeholders on the bill's impact on the oil and gas industry.

According to him, the inputs received from the session will inform PENGASSAN and NUPENG's position on the bill, while the workers position collated from the session will be submitted to the National Assembly during the public hearing of the bill.