The Senate on Thursday said that the country was losing about 1,000 megawatts of gas-generated electricity as a result of the blowing up of major oil pipelines in Warri, Delta State by persons suspected to be Niger Delta militants.

It condemned the recent attacks on pipelines in the Niger Delta region, saying the development was causing colossal damages to the National Integrated Power Plants (NIPPs).

Addressing Senate correspondents, after Plenary on the development, the joint Senate Committees on Gas, Downstream, Upstream, led by Senator Tayo Alasoadura described as unpatriotic the action of vandals.

According to him, it is disheartening that the vandals have decided to blow up pipelines at this time of national emergency, when the dwindling price of oil and the insurgency in the North-East of Nigeria is confronting our nation.

He said, “It is very disheartening that at a time when all hands should be on deck to revive the economy and ensure the survival of the country. Some people could decide at this point in time in the history of the nation to further sabotage the efforts of the present administration to bring some sanity into our country.

“It is, therefore, apt for the Senate to condemn strongly, and make an ambiguous language this dastardly act that portends to send the hands of the clock backwards”.

The committees regretted that the sabotage has led to the shutting down of the two refineries that had just started working in few months, even as they appealed to the militants to stop this mindless act by giving Nigerians the respite to allow this present administration to stem the tide of poverty and want ravaging our people.

“They should give respite to Nigerians so that we can see some governance. It is not good enough for an administration to be fighting one war there, and they are waging another there. When will he have time to govern? So, please help us appeal to them so that Nigeria can move forward”, Alasoadura said.

On his part, Chairman Senate Committee on Gas, Senator Albert Bassey, added that the explosion affected the major gas pipelines in the country.

He said, “The Committee on Gas had invited the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), and they have made us to understand that the country will be loosing over 200 million scores of cubic feet of gas on a daily basis, which is equivalent to 1,000 megawatt of electricity.

“This is the gas terminal that supplies Egbin and most of the NIPPs along the South Western region of this country. In a period, where we are grappling with the challenges of domestic gas supply, we believe very strongly that it should be condemned”.