By Barbara Nwaiwu
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has called for a predictable, transparent and efficient regulatory framework to attract investment and promote stability and growth in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
PENGASSAN President, Comrade Festus Osifo, made the call on Wednesday while addressing participants at the 5th PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit (PELS) 2026 in Abuja.
Osifo expressed concern over alterations to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), including the removal of some fiscal provisions and their movement to the Nigeria Revenue Act, as well as the use of an executive order to amend provisions of the law.
He said frequent changes to the regulatory framework could create uncertainty and undermine investor confidence in the sector.
“Host communities need confidence. Governments need sustainable revenues. Nigerians need an industry that translates our enormous hydrocarbon resources into economic prosperity.”
“For this to happen, our regulatory environment must be predictable, transparent, efficient and fair to all. The Petroleum Industry Act of 2021 represented a significant milestone after decades of attempts to reform the industry.”
“Five years into its implementation, however, we have seen considerable alterations to the framework, including the removal of some fiscal provisions and their movement to the Nigeria Revenue Act, as well as the use of an executive order to amend provisions of the law; “Osifo said.
The PENGASSAN president also raised concerns about overlapping responsibilities among institutions regulating the industry, saying the challenge was not necessarily the number of institutions but their efficiency in delivering their mandates.
He identified the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) as responsible for upstream operations and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) for midstream and downstream operations, alongside other federal and state institutions whose responsibilities intersect with oil and gas operations.
Osifo urged regulators to streamline approval processes and eliminate unnecessary duplication, saying delays could affect new development plans, final investment decisions and production growth.
He also called for stronger protection of workers during acquisitions and divestments, saying changes in ownership of oil and gas assets should not result in workers losing their jobs, pensions, collective bargaining agreements and other established rights.
“Licensing and assets may change hands, but workers are not commodities to be discarded at will. When major acquisitions and divestments occur, jobs are not crude benefits. Pensions, collective bargaining agreements and other established life of workers must be protected,” he said.
The PENGASSAN president cautioned against the use of expatriate workers to replace qualified Nigerians where local capacity exists, calling for the enforcement of the Nigerian Content Framework through succession plans, understudies and measurable knowledge transfer.
He further said regulators should ensure that expatriate-worker approvals were justified, monitored and linked to knowledge transfer, while approval processes should be made more efficient without compromising proper oversight.
Osifo called for smarter regulations that recognise commercial realities, embrace technology and eliminate unnecessary duplication, while maintaining effective enforcement of health, safety, environmental, local-content, labour and operational standards.
He also urged stakeholders to support domestic refining, gas processing and the expansion of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure, saying Nigeria’s gas resources could support power generation, petrochemicals, fertiliser production, transportation and industrialisation.
“Without investment, there will be no project. Without projects, there will be no sustainable jobs. Without production, there will be no revenue. And without fairness and stability, none of these can endure,” he added.
