The Ogun Government says it will partner with the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to ensure petroleum and gas marketers do not compromise public safety regulations in the state.
The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr Tunji Odunlami, said this at a consultative forum aimed at improving the operations of the petroleum and gas sector on Friday in Abeokuta.
Odunlami said that the ministry was saddled with the responsibility of granting building permits for siting of petrol stations and gas plant, while the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) regulates the sector.
The commissioner decried the arbitrary construction of petrol stations without approval in the state, stressing that the ministry had made easier the process of obtaining licenses.
“What we are saying is that people must follow due process; that is why we have reduced the time it takes to obtain permit for the construction of petrol stations and gas plant to 14 days,” he said.
Odunlami stressed the need to regulate the activities of gas retailers, saying those that were not ready to follow due process would be stopped from operating in the state.
Also, the Head of Operations, DPR, Mr Oluwafemi Adebowale, also expressed the Department’s readiness to work with the ministry to sanitise the oil and gas sector.
Adebowale stated that the DPR regulation does not recognise gas skids and retailers, but gas plant operators.