1,500 undergraduates, postgraduates receive N2bn scholarship grant from PINL

From Tony John, Port Harcourt

Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL) has disbursed scholarship grants totalling over N2 billion to more than 1,500 students drawn from pipeline host communities across Rivers, Bayelsa, Imo, and Abia States.

The grants, covering 216 host communities along the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) and Eastern Gas Network (EGN), were allocated at N500,000 per undergraduate student and N1 million per postgraduate student.

The cheques were presented ceremonially at PINL’s April monthly stakeholders’ meeting in Port Harcourt, where Dr. Akpos Mezeh, General Manager, Community and Stakeholder Relations, described the initiative as a direct expression of gratitude to communities that have supported the protection of the pipelines.

Mezeh said: “This is our own way of saying thank you to our host communities. The beneficiaries total over 1,500 and we have disbursed over N2 billion — and this is exclusive of women empowerment and skill acquisition programmes.”

Mezeh used the occasion to appeal to community youths to reject pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft, urging them instead to take advantage of opportunities the company provides.

“We are thanking them for supporting us to protect the pipelines, and we are using this medium to appeal to youths in our communities to shun pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft. They should endeavour to provide us with vital information to maintain the momentum,” he said.

He also highlighted the operational gains that community cooperation has helped sustain, noting that the company is on course to support the Federal Government’s production target.

“There is zero infraction across all our areas of operation. We are approaching the 2 million barrels per day projection of the Federal Government — we have already achieved 1.8 million, and the target is doable,” Mezeh stated.