Nigeria’s lower chamber aims to pass the long-awaited Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which seeks to overhaul the West African nation’s energy sector, in second-quarter 2018, a lawmaker said Oct. 23.
The sprawling bill, which has been discussed for more than 10 years following several redrafts and covering issues that included the state oil company’s breakup and taxation, seeks to address problems that have beset the OPEC member for decades. Oil sales provide 70% of government revenue in Africa’s biggest economy.
It was broken into separate parts to help quicken debate. The governance bill was passed by the upper house in May and needs approval from the House of Representatives before being passed to the president, who would sign it into law.
Akinlaja Joseph, chairman of the Petroleum Resources Committee (Downstream) in the House of Representatives, said lawmakers aimed to pass all three parts of the bill at the same time.
“Our target is the second quarter of 2018,” he said on the sidelines of a conference in Lagos.
“We want to pass all three together,” Joseph added, referring to the governance, fiscal and community bills that make up the PIB.
Passing the PIB is central to President Muhammadu Buhari’s reform plans. Backers of the PIB say Nigeria’s oil sector has been hobbled by mismanagement.
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