(Reuters) – Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan sent the latest draft of the country’s wide-ranging Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to parliament for debate on Wednesday, the oil minister said.

“I am happy to announce to you that this morning Mr President forwarded the Petroleum Industry Bill to the national assembly,” Diezani Alison-Madueke told reporters at the presidential villa.

The long-delayed and complex bill could be one of the most important pieces of legislation in the history of Africa’s biggest crude oil exporter, changing everything from fiscal terms to the make-up of the state-oil firm.

Several drafts have been drawn up in recent years but have been scrapped or re-written because government, lawmakers and foreign oil companies couldn’t agree on details.

(Reporting by Felix Onuah; writing by Joe Brock; editing by James Jukwey)