The Urhobo Nation has expressed outrage over the planned establishment of five mini LNG plants in Kogi State, with gas pipelines to be run from Urhobo land in Delta State without any of the plants being hosted by the Urhobo Nation. In a statement, National Chairman of Urhobo Oil and Gas Nationality (UROAGAN), Olorogun Dr Obiuwevbi Ominimini, described the move as oppressive and unacceptable.

Olorogun Dr Obiuwevbi Ominimini stated that the Urhobo Nation has the highest reserve of gas and crude oil in Nigeria, yet its people have nothing to show for it. “Our children who turn out from the tertiary institutions yearly are roaming the streets of Delta with many riding okadas, while the children of the top-class Northerners are being engaged into the oil and gas parastatals owned by the Nigeria government,” Dr Ominimini lamented. He emphasized that the Urhobo Nation has been taken for granted for too long and that this injustice cannot be accepted anymore.

The Urhobo Nation has been devastated by oil exploitation activities, with its environment destroyed and its people suffering from diseases caused by gas flares. Dr Ominimini pointed out that despite the gas flare penalty paid by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to the federal government, the Urhobo people have not benefited from it. He called on President Tinubu, the Managing Director of NNPCL, and the Chief Executive of Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission to reconsider the project and include the Urhobo Nation in hosting some or one of the mini LNG plants.

Dr Ominimini argued that one of the key factors in establishing industries is proximity to the source of raw materials, and that Urhobo has abundant gas reserves. Additionally, Urhobo has access to the sea with seaports at Sapele and Warri, which would facilitate the transportation of LNG for export purposes. Ominimini warned that the Urhobo Nation would take legal and spiritual action if excluded from the project. He noted that the Urhobo oil and gas Nationality, UROAGAN, had previously called on the federal government and NNPCL in 2024 to establish LNG plants in Urhobo land, but received no response.