The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have raised strong objections to alleged plans by the Federal Government to sell significant portions of Nigeria’s equity in some high-performing joint ventures (JVs) operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the unions expressed concern that the planned divestments—reportedly coordinated by the Ministry of Petroleum Incorporated (MOPI) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI)—would see the government offload large stakes in key oil ventures to private investors. They warned that such a move could weaken national energy security, reduce federal revenue, and threaten jobs in the sector.
The unions further criticised proposed amendments to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), alleging that the changes would strip NNPC Limited of its commercial independence and hand excessive control to regulatory bodies and the Ministry of Finance. They argued that this would undermine the spirit of the PIA, which was designed to make NNPC a profit-driven global energy player.
Calling the plans “an economic equivalent of selling seed corn to pay today’s bills,” the unions urged President Bola Tinubu to halt any attempt to dispose of the assets or alter the PIA, insisting that such measures would reverse hard-won reforms and jeopardize Nigeria’s long-term energy future.
They also appealed to the National Assembly to reject any executive bill seeking to amend the PIA until its implementation has been fully tested.
