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Sopuruchi Onwuka
More trouble is underway for indigenous Sahara Group as both the National Assembly and petroleum industry value regulator, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) vowed on Tuesday to deal decisively with upstream petroleum players evading mandatory contributions to the pan-industry purse.
Oracle Intelligence reports that Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act of 2010 which established the NCF requires operating companies in the upstream petroleum industry to contribute to the fund.
According to new measures pledged by the NCDMB at the first conference day of the 2025 Practical Nigerian Content Forum on Tuesday, Sahara Energy and other companies that default in the mandatory remittance of one percent of their project budget will not get further approvals from the board.
In his opening address at the event, the Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engr Felix Ogbe, declared that part of the initiatives evolved by the agency is to begin issuance of NCDF Compliance Certificate by January 1, 2026 to qualify operating companies for seeking approval from the board.
“The Board has completed the framework for the issuance of the NCDF Compliance Certificate. This instrument will confirm companies’ compliance to the 1% remittance obligations.
“The certificate will become effective 1st January 2026 and will be required to get key permits and approvals from the Board,” Engr Ogbe declared.
Besides, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content, Senator Joel Onowakpo Thomas, berated Sahara Energy for standing out in the list of companies that reneged obligation to be pooling of the Nigerian Content Fund (NCF).
He declared at the conference that Sahara Energy has fail to make any payment to the NCF in clear contravention of the NOGICD Act.
In pledging the support of the National Assembly to the NCDMB in driving and delivering full industry goals, Senator Thomas made it clear that his committee was examining the right measures to deploy against companies that evade remittance to the NCF.
The senator specifically called out Sahara Energy for failing to contribute even a dime to the NCF, citing documents extracted from records of remittances at the NCDMB.
He vowed that all provisions of the law must be actionable and must be delivered in full. He warned regulators to stop granting frivolous waivers that hurt the objectives and intents of laws that govern the industry.
