The Federal Government has commenced a fresh physical verification of disputed crude oil and gas wells across nine states to address disagreements over their locations and ensure fair distribution of the 13 per cent derivation fund.

The exercise is being coordinated by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), following disputes involving newly drilled oil and gas well coordinates in Delta, Ondo, Edo, Anambra, Imo, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross River and Akwa Ibom states.

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Speaking at the flag-off ceremony in Owerri, Imo State, the RMAFC Chairman, Dr Mohammed Bello Shehu, described the exercise as essential to ensuring accuracy, transparency and fairness in the administration of derivation revenue.

He explained that the commission has a constitutional responsibility to monitor revenue accruing to and distributed from the Federation Account, including ensuring the equitable allocation of derivation funds to oil and gas-producing states.

According to Shehu, establishing the precise coordinates and geographical positions of disputed wellheads is important because the findings directly affect the legal and financial entitlements of the states concerned.

He therefore urged members of the Inter-Agency Technical Committee (IATC) and other technical officers involved in the exercise to carry out their duties with diligence, precision and professionalism.

The RMAFC chairman stressed that every coordinate, technical assessment and observation recorded during the field exercise must be sufficiently accurate to withstand statutory scrutiny.

The verification process will involve examining disputed and newly drilled oil and gas well coordinates, physically inspecting affected wellheads and plotting their locations using approved maps.

The committee will also consider relevant court decisions as part of efforts to resolve the disagreements.

Shehu directed that the committee’s harmonised technical report and findings should be submitted exclusively to RMAFC for ratification and formal adoption.

The Inter-Agency Technical Committee comprises relevant government institutions, including the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation, the National Boundary Commission and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.

According to a statement by the Head of RMAFC’s Information and Public Relations Unit, Mrs Maryam Umar Yusuf, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma was represented at the ceremony by the Commissioner for Petroleum, Emeka Mgbudem.

Several RMAFC commissioners also attended the event, including Adamu Abdu Fanda, Chairman of the Crude Oil Committee; Oladele Semiu Gboyega, Chairman of the Gas Committee; and Ismail Mohammed Agaka, Chairman of the Public Affairs and Communication Committee.

Other dignitaries included the Imo State Commissioner for Lands, Surveyor Clement Nwabichie; Commissioner for Finance and Coordinating Economy, Chucks Chukwuemeka; and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Lands, Dr Angelina Ohiri.

The commission said the verification exercise had been conducted previously but was being repeated to ensure that issues raised during the earlier process were adequately addressed.

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The outcome is expected to provide a clearer basis for determining the affected states’ oil and gas revenue entitlements and reducing disagreements over the allocation of derivation funds.