By KUNLE KALEJAYE

As part of activities marking the World Environmental Day, WED, Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, has reiterated its commitment to the preservation of the environment as a condition for doing business anywhere in the world.

Chevron said that its long term partnership with a non-government organization, Nigerian Conservation Foundation, NCF, which is at the fore of environmental conservation efforts in Nigeria, is a clear demonstration of the company’s commitment.

In commemoration of the World Environment Day, the Chairman/Managing Director, CNL, Mr. Andrew Fawthrop, gave the assurance of a responsible treatment of the environment as a condition for doing business anywhere adding that the long term partnership between the company and the NCF is a clear demonstration of that commitment.

“We have a record of responsible environmental stewardship everywhere we operate and have also established enduring partnerships with governments, non-governmental organizations, business organizations and communities. These partnerships and efforts have been recognized and rewarded within and outside the country,” he said.

In response to global initiatives against climate change, Fawthrop explained that Chevron has developed and is implementing a strategy toward eliminating flared gas.

“The strategy, including the three-phased Escravos Gas Project (EGP), the Escravos Gas-to-Liquids project (EGTL), and the West African Gas Pipeline project (WAGP), are all aimed at ending routine gas flaring in its operations, while delivering other important values for Nigeria, NNPC, and for CNL. The Agbami project was also developed with zero flare.

“CNL has developed and is implementing processes to identify, assesses, mitigate and manage potentially significant risk and impacts to human health and the environment (including natural resources) associated with existing operations and capital projects, including emissions, releases and wastes. The company effectively engages its stakeholders ensuring that its projects and proposals are acceptable to all.

“CNL has upgraded all its production facilities to ensure that they maintain their high level of safety and efficiency. This platform upgrade project modernized the older installations to bring them to the highest international safety standards. The gains from the upgrade include cleaner effluent discharge from the production platforms, with performance consistently surpassing the statutory limits.

“The company is rigorously implementing process safety management standards, in addition to its existing Operational Excellence processes, to ensure that our operating facilities are always safe, and the new ones are built with high safety consideration that assures zero-possibility for operational spill release.

“CNL is a member of the Clean Nigeria Association, and the Oil Spill Response Limited (OSRL) of the United Kingdom, two co-operatives through which members pool resources to combat spills that cannot be handled by the individual companies. CNL continues to hold a leadership position in the association,” he said.