NEWS UPDATE: LAGOS STATE GETS N3.9 BILLION OIL DERIVATION FUND

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The Lagos State Government has said that since the state became an oil-producing one, N3.911 billion has been realised; however, the difficulties the corporation overseeing the exploration has faced have hindered output.

This was announced on Wednesday during the 2024 Ministerial Press Briefing, held in Alausa, Ikeja, to commemorate Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term. The state’s Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Biodun Ogunleye, made this announcement.

Lagos State, which became a member of the nation’s oil-producing states in 2016, earned N3.911 billion as its portion of the 13% Derivation Fund, according to Ogunleye.

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States that produce oil are entitled to a derivation fund of 13% from the Federation Account. The others are Rivers, Edo, Imo, Ondo, Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom, and Abia.

He claims that crude oil production from the field was started by the wholly-owned indigenous company Yinka Folawiyo Petroleum Company Limited (YFP), which also operates the OML 113 offshore Lagos.

The commissioner said, “Between 2018-2019, the state government received N131 million as part of oil derivation from the Federal Government. And between 2020-2021, the Lagos State Government received N3.78 billion.

“But the owners of the assets have been having issues among themselves. And as long as they could not produce, there would be no money for Lagos.

“The state government is engaging them to ensure that they return to the field. And we hope that before the end of the year, they will find new technical partners and they can go back to production.”

Regarding the community electrification scheme, the commissioner reported that the governor had given his approval for the state to purchase 20,000 prepaid energy metres for low-income neighbourhoods.

The commissioner expressed disapproval at the state’s rising gas explosion death toll and declared that stricter regulations governing the activities of liquefied natural gas sellers would be implemented shortly by the state government.

According to Ogunleye, a petrol station that is not authorised to operate in the state will be subject to the full force of the law.