UROAGAN Opposes Federal Government’s Plan to Establish LNG Plants in Kogi

…Demands Inclusion of Urhobo Land

By Francis Sadhere, Warri

The National Chairman of the Urhobo Oil and Gas Nationality (UROAGAN), Chief Obiuwevbi Ominimini, has strongly opposed the Federal Government’s plan to establish five mini Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plants in Kogi State using gas sourced from Urhobo land without including any of the plants in the Urhobo region.

Ominimini, in a press statement obtained by our reporter on Sunday, called on President Bola Tinubu, the Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and the Chief Executive of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to halt the project, describing it as oppressive and unjust to the Urhobo people.

Ominimini expressed deep frustration over what he called the neglect of the Urhobo ethnic nationality, which he said holds the largest reserves of gas and crude oil in Nigeria but has received little to no benefits from these natural resources.

“Our graduates are left roaming the streets, some riding okadas, while top northern elites secure employment in the oil and gas sector,” he lamented.

The UROAGAN leader also Emphasized the environmental devastation caused by oil exploitation in Urhobo land, drawing a comparison to the environmental catastrophe in Ogoniland.

He criticized the lack of environmental remediation efforts and pointed out that the penalties paid by international oil companies (IOCs) for gas flaring had failed to benefit the Urhobo people, despite the severe health risks they face.

“This is another evil against the Urhobo Nation. We can no longer farm or fish because our environment has been destroyed,” Ominimini said.

Arguing that proximity to raw materials is a crucial factor in the siting of industrial projects, Ominimini insisted that at least one of the mini LNG plants should be established in Urhobo land. He noted that the region’s access to the sea through the Sapele and Warri seaports could facilitate LNG export.

In addition, Chief Ominimini recalled that in 2024, UROAGAN had proposed the establishment of LNG plants in Ughelli North and Ethiope West but said the Federal Government and NNPCL had failed to respond to their request.

He expressed his belief that Urhobo should not be left out of such an important project, especially considering the region’s vast gas deposits in areas such as Ughelli, Kokori, Orogun, Agbarha-Otor, Evwreni, Otujeremi, Udu, Jesse, Oghara, and Mosogar.

“We have been taken for granted for too long. Those with solid minerals like gold, lithium, and tin are allowed to control them, but Urhobo oil and gas are being siphoned for the entire country’s benefit,” he stated. “We will act fast if the Federal Government refuses to include us in this LNG project. Enough is enough.”

Chief Ominimini warned that the Urhobo people would resist the exclusion through both legal and spiritual means if the government did not reconsider its plans.

He urged the Federal Government to ensure fairness and inclusion in the allocation of LNG projects, stressing that Urhobo land must not be sidelined in the distribution of Nigeria’s oil and gas wealth.