THE APPRAISAL OF LEGAL FRAMEWORK REGULATING GAS FLARING IN NIGERIA’S UPSTREAM PETROLEUM SECTOR: HOW EFFICIENT?

Abstract

Nigeria is ranked one of the main producers of crude oil in Africa and due to this, oil exploration activities have occasioned high rate of gas flaring which was intensified by poor enforcement of anti-gas flaring laws by the regulatory authorities. Associated natural gas is generated from oil production and it is flared in large volumes, thereby leading to the emission of greenhouse gases and a waste of natural resources which could have potentially spawned billions of dollars for the Federal government. Nigerians are apprehensive that if nothing is done to combat this menace, the environment and man will be at risk due its damaging consequences. There is therefore the need to stop gas flaring by replicating the approaches used in the relatively advanced petroleum countries like Norway to tackle the menace. The research is an appraisal of legal frameworks regulating gas flaring in Nigeria’s Upstream Petroleum Sector. It is a doctrinal legal research that adopts a library based research approach. Weak enforcement and ambiguity of some anti-gas flaring laws are largely identified as the key factors responsible for the menace. It recommends the use of more advanced technologies, sophisticated mixture of regulations and none-regulatory incentives such as fiscal policies, gas market restructuring and proffer practical suggestions.