As part of the Petroleum Industry reforms, the Nigerian National Assembly recently held a public hearing on the Petroleum Host and Impacted Communities Development Bill 2018 (the “Bill” or “Host Community Bill”) amongst other bills to be enacted by the National Assembly with regards to the Nigerian Petroleum Industry. The objective of the Bill is to provide direct social and economic benefits from petroleum operations to host and impacted communities. Also, the Bill seeks to enhance peaceful and harmonious coexistence between E & P companies on one hand and host and impacted communities on the other.
In this briefing note, we examine key provisions of the Bill highlighting grey areas in the Bill including the Bill’s potential impact on both producing companies and the host and impacted communities especially in light of the fact that this is the first ever legislation geared specifically towards the protection of host communities since the discovery and exploration of crude oil in Nigeria.
