Akor Sylvester, Abuja
The President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) Festus Osifo, has called for protection of oil and gas workers and more investment in domestic refining and gas processing in the country.
Osifo who spoke at the ongoing PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit (PEALS) in Abuja on Wednesday, said worker protection must form part of the architecture of industry stability
He said: “The life of a Nigerian worker must never become the price we pay for increased production. Every worker who leaves home desires to return safely to his or her family. Nigeria possesses enormous crude and gas resources, yet our citizens and industry continue to struggle with energy availability and affordability”.
According to the PENGASSAN President: “Our frameworks must support domestic refining, gas processing and the expansion of LPG, CNG and LNG infrastructures. Our gas resources present enormous opportunities for power generation, petrochemicals, fertilisers, transportation and industrialisation. But resources beneath the ground create little value until investments are made to make them usable.
“We have witnessed encouraging improvement in production and renewed investment activities. This game must be considered. Nigeria should not merely recover lost production.
“We must unlock new reserves, attract fresh capital and sustainably increase crude oil and gas production. Over the next three days, past 2026, we provide an opportunity to re-target these issues. We have assembled policy makers, regulators, industry leaders, operators, labour leaders and experts to examine regulation, investment, production, energy security and workforce protection”.
Osifo while stating that the event, at the end, would showcase the impact of the PENGASAN Foundation since its establishment, noted that the PENGASAN Foundation is a foundation that was founded by PENGASAN to take care of the downtrodden, to take care of the under-served community.
He said: PENGASAN Foundation has built schools. PENGASAN Foundation has renovated schools. PENGASAN Foundation has paid a hospital bill for over 100 Nigerians who were detained in the hospital because they could not afford their bills. PENGASAN Foundation has brought transformers to communities that needed them.
“PENGASAN Foundation has done quite a lot for the Nigerian workers, even for the blind and the physically impaired. We brought them a lot of breathing materials and spread them across the entire country”.
Informing the gathering of the end of his tenure as the President of the association, Osifo said: “This fifth edition of PENGASAN carries special significance for me. At the conclusion of this Summit on the 22nd of August, our Association will proceed to the National Delegate Conference. Consequently, this will be the last opportunity at which I will have the privilege of addressing you as the President of PENGASAN.
“When we conceived this Summit five years ago, we had an idea and a conviction that PENGASAN would create a platform where labourers would speak with government, regulators, operators and investors, not merely to identify problems but to contribute towards solving them.
“Today, as I look at what PEALS has become, I am immensely proud. What PEALS was never a grounding CWC or even the National Executive Council is an initiative of PENGASAN, built by our collective efforts and sustained by our members, leadership, staff, partners and industry stakeholders.
“My expectation is that PEALS will continue to grow after this Administration, becoming stronger and more consequential in shaping Nigeria’s energy industry and protecting the interests of our members”
The labour leader further said: “PENGASAN will remain strong, united and focused on protecting our members and contributing positively to the industry and to the nation. Government cannot build the industry we desire alone. Regulators cannot do it alone.
“Operators at work cannot do it alone. Labour cannot do it alone. Also, we need collaboration, accountability, predictability and mutual respect, because without investment, there will be no project.
“Without project, there will be no sustainable jobs. Without production, there will be no revenue. And without fairness and stability, none of these can endure.
“This is why PEALS matters. To the capital of oil and gas industry, I say clearly, PENGASAN remains committed to an industry where both capital and labour can prosper. We understand that business requires predictable and enabling environments to invest, innovate, expand and create employment.
“At the same time, employers must recognise that workers are not mere costs of the balance sheet. Workers are the human capital upon which success, safety, productivity, innovation and sustainability of the industry depend. We therefore call for a stronger and more constructive collaboration among employers, labour and regulators.
“Today, we must build an industry characterised by international best practises, occupational safety, fair labour practises, productivity, technological advancement, skill development, responsible corporate governance and respect for collective bargaining. Industrial peace should not be understood merely as the absence of strife or industrial disputes. True industrial harmony is the presence of justice, mutual respect, effective communication, responsible engagement and shared prosperity.
“Where workers feel value, business benefits. Where employers are treated fairly, productivity improves. Where regulators are consistent and transparent, investment becomes more sustainable.
“And where government, labour and industry work together, the entire nation benefits. I salute every Nigerian oil and gas worker whose professionalism and sacrifice keep this industry running. I salute our regulators, policy makers, operators, investors and every stakeholder who believes in the enormous potential of our industry”.
Osifo who used the occasion to reel out successes recorded by the association, said: “Our resolution and communique have consistently been presented to government, regulators, operators and other stakeholders, and some of our recommendations have shaped industries, conversations, policies and operational decisions.
“These real policies are a condition that organised labour must not only navigate wages and conditions of service, we must also contribute meaningfully to decisions that determine the survival of the industries that provide those jobs.
“The theme for PEARLs 2026 Strengthening Regulatory Frameworks as a Catalyst for Stability and Growth in Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Industry was therefore deliberately chosen.
“Oil and gas is one of the most capital-intensive industries in the world. Investments made today may harm expectations extending decades into the future. Such investments require safe thinking.
“Our industry has benefited tremendously from international technology, investment and knowledge. However, expatriate water must never become a mechanism for replacing qualified Nigerians with foreign personnel in jobs for which local capacity exists. The Nigeria Content Framework requires succession plans, understudies and deliberate naturalisation of expatriate positions.
“These positions must be enforced. Every expatriate engaged should ultimately leave behind greater Nigerian capacity. We cannot breach local content in procurement while neglecting local content in employment and human capital development.
“Our regulators must therefore work with us and the operators to ensure that the expatriate approvals are justified, monitored and tied to measurable knowledge transfer and subsection. Another challenge is the length of some approval processes. Capital is mobile and investors will naturally gravitate towards jurisdictions where there are clarity and efficiency so our process must be clear and our systems must be efficient.
“Nigeria cannot afford processes that unnecessarily delay new development plans, final investment decisions and other decisions capable of increasing production. At the same time, speed must never come at the expense of proper overtime. As I said earlier, there must always be a balance.
“What we require is not weak regulations. What we need is smarter regulations. Regulations that understand commercial realities, embrace technology and eliminate unnecessary duplication.
“All operators are accountable and give investors confidence that the rules will not suddenly change midway through the game. However, good regulations on paper cannot transform an industry without enforcement. Health and safety, environmental protection, local content, good labour practises and operational integrity must be consistently enforced”.
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