PIPELINE TRANSPORTATION AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE TO THE MARKETING OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS IN SOUTH EAST, NIGERIA
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Pipeline transportation is the newest among the other means of transportation in South East, Nigeria. Much attention has not been given to it owing to the following factors; firstly, it is relatively a recent origin secondly, its’ operations and services are not in the lands of private individuals and companies. Hence, everything about pipeline transportation in Nigeria is strictly in the hands of the Federal Government.
Nigeria’s economy is dominated by the oil and gas sector. In 2004, this sector accounted for about 80% of all government revenue, 90-95% of export revenues, and over 90% of foreign exchange earnings (Aluko, 2004).The country is Africa’s leading oil producer and at a global level, ranks among the top 10 oil producers (Olokesusi, 2005). Most of the oil and gas is produced in the Niger Delta Region, presently defined by the political boundary of nine statesi – Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross-River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo and Rivers.
According to Kupoliyi (2000: 98), pipeline has been in use for transporting materials for centuries. He further stated that, pipeline are used for distributing potable water in urban areas. Though the pipelines network for the transportation and distribution of water in urban areas are usually short, they use the same basic principles as the ones for distributing petroleum products.
From the above, it is ascertained that pipelines were first used for distributing potable water, later; they were used for moving gases and a variety of liquids within plants as well as locations apart. Today pipelines are widely used for transporting petroleum products and some liquids over long distances.
