The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission has reconstituted an Inter-Agency Technical Committee to verify the coordinates of disputed and newly drilled oil and gas wells from 2017 to date.
The commission said the exercise would promote fiscal transparency and support the equitable distribution of the 13 per cent derivation fund among oil and gas-producing states.
The Chairman of RMAFC, Mohammed Bello Shehu, spoke on Wednesday at the inauguration of the committee in Abuja.
He said the exercise was part of the commission’s constitutional mandate to monitor revenue accruing to and distributed from the Federation Account.
Shehu said RMAFC had discarded an earlier draft report on the verification of oil and gas wells after various states raised claims, counterclaims and complaints.
He said the major concerns centred on the need to recheck the coordinates of disputed and newly drilled wells and accurately plot them on approved maps.
The chairman directed the committee to take relevant court decisions into account and rely strictly on approved maps.
He also ordered physical verification of affected wells where necessary.
The committee comprises technical officers and experts from RMAFC, the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation, the National Boundary Commission and the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission.
Shehu said the committee would conduct field inspections, ground-level verification and technical analysis before preparing an initial report.
He added that an Executive Committee led by the RMAFC leadership would provide strategic direction, coordinate the participating agencies and supervise the final approval of the findings before their formal ratification.
The commission is also expected to work with relevant security agencies to obtain administrative clearances and provide security for field operations, especially in complex and coastal areas.
Surveyors-General from affected states and representatives of the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) will participate in the exercise as observers.
Shehu urged members of the committee to carry out the assignment with integrity, objectivity and fairness.
He said the exercise was intended to help resolve disputes among states over the locations and ownership of oil and gas wells used in determining derivation allocations.
The Secretary of RMAFC, Tosin Adeyanju, also urged members to put the national interest first.
Adeyanju called for diligence and objectivity, noting that the committee’s work would attract close scrutiny because of lessons from previous verification exercises.
He expressed confidence that the new committee would produce a credible outcome.
The inauguration was attended by the Chairman of the Crude Oil Monitoring Committee and Federal Commissioner representing Kano State, Adamu Abdu Fanda, and commissioners representing Osun, Edo, Yobe, Taraba, Zamfara, Jigawa and Ogun states.
Representatives of relevant government agencies also attended the event.