The Nation Newspaper

Category: Energy

  • Total’s Egina field begins to pump oil

    Total Upstream Nigeria Limited (TUPNI) and partners have said the Egina field in the oil mining lease (OML 130), 1,500 metres of water depth and 150 kilometres offshore the southeast coast, will begin production today.

    According to a report by the Africa Oil+Gas Report, the start-up production is, however, scheduled to start with about 170,000 barrels of oil per day.

    Egina is Total’s second largest deepwater oil project to be inaugurated in Africa and within the space of six months, the field will produce at plateau of about 200,000 barrels of oil per day, a figure higher than 10 per cent of Nigeria’s total output.

    The first Egina production well opened on the South loop on December 29, 2018.

    The sail-away of the Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel that produces the Egina deepwater oil field began in August from the SHI-MCI Yard, LADOL Island in Lagos where the  integration of the six locally fabricated modules took place. The Egina FPSO has been designed for 25 years.

    The 330-metre long FPSO left the quayside on August 26 at 5:00am to start a three-day journey that took her to the Egina field its final location and according to the firm’s External Relations Manager, Charles Ebereonwu in a statement, it was a major milestone towards the completion of the Egina project.

    He said with the successful sail away of the vessel, the company and its partners were on track for a start-up of the production by the end of 2018.

    “I wish to congratulate the Egina project team on the safe and timely completion of the onshore works in SHI-MCI yard. Let me also thank our partners on Egina – NNPC, SAPETRO, CNOOC and Petrobras – for their constant cooperation and the Nigerian authorities – DPR, NCDMB and NPA – for their support,”said Country Chair and Managing Director, Total E&P Nigeria Limited, Mr Nicolas Terraz.

    Upon arrival on the field, the mooring and hook-up operations started to connect the FPSO to the subsea facilities.

    The Egina project involved a record level of local content and local contractors. Six of the eighteen modules on the FPSO were built and integrated locally, and 77 per cent of hours spent on the project were worked locally Total officials told Africa Oil+Gas Report, adding that start-up has been achieved at a significant cost below the initial budget, “due in particular to excellent drilling performance where the drilling time per well has been reduced by 30 per cent”.

    Initially discovered in 2003, the Egina field is the second development in production on the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 130 following the Akpo field which started-up in 2009. The Preowei field is another large discovery made on this prolific block for which an investment decision is scheduled for 2019.

    TUPNI operates the OML 130 with a 24 per cent interest in partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), South Atlantic Petroleum (SAPETRO), 15 per cent, CNOOC Limited 45 per cent and Petrobras Oil and Gas BV, which has 16 per cent.

  • How we tackle power challenges, by NDPHC

    Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC), established by an Act of the parliament, is owned by the three tiers of government. It is created to lift Nigeria out of darkness through various interventions across the power supply value chain – generation, transmission and distribution – as the primary service provider, the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) and later Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) – failed to provide regular supply before it was unbundled. NDPHC has presented scorecard on its website, EMEKA UGWUANYI reports.

    POOR power supply hurts the economy of any nation. Nigeria was once, unfortunately, named to occupy the 70th position on the global electricity production chart by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook, despite Nigeria’s multiple electricity generation sources, such as hydro, thermal, solar and wind.

    Therefore, what caused Nigeria’s huge power deficit? Primarily, the major problems have been attributed to lack of political will to do the right things and improper management of government- owned power firms.

    According to records, the first 132KV line in Nigeria was built in 1962, to link Ijora power station in Lagos to Ibadan power station. Later, there were no commensurate deliberate activities on a major scale to boost supply infrastructure, regardlessof the fast-growing population.

    Even when some efforts were made, they were largely lethargic and not holistic until the return of constitutional rule in 1999 and the setting up of the National Independent Power Project (NIPP) in 2005. Through the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) and Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) era, epileptic power supply was the norm and the expectation for stable power supply in the country was continually dashed.

    Hydro-electric dams went abandoned and the transmission and distribution equipment and lines became obsolete. The coming of the NIPP was a most patriotic plan to confront Nigeria’s huge energy crisis and to end it. The National Council of State (NCS) and the National Assembly approved an initial funding of US$2.5 billion for the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) from the Excess Crude Oil Account.

    The Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) was thereafter incorporated as a limited liability company to serve as the legal vehicle to hold the NIPP assets. In 2008, the National Economic Council (NEC) voted US$5.375 billion from the excess crude account as Power Emergency Fund (PEF) to complete the NIPP. NEC also inaugurated the NIPP Steering Council in January 2009, chaired by Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, then the country’s vice president with six governors and four ministers as members.

    The NIPP Steering Council, which has transformed into the board of directors of NDPHC, is headed by the Vice President. In February 2009, the council approved a budget of US$2.213 billion from the PEF of US$5.375 billion to complete the first phase of the NIPP projects. It also approved US$423.639 million to PHCN as special intervention fund. In June 2010, the council approved US$123.110 million to augment the phase one budget and N1.750 billion to buy the NDPHC corporate headquarters in Abuja.

    The NDPHC, a child of necessity and baby of the three arms of Nigeria’s government, built several world-standard gas turbine plants, distribution and transmission equipment and lines across the country. This intervention project was monumental. Under the NIPP, more power stations have been built for the first time since the country’s independence. These plants have added more megawatts (MW) to the national output.

    However, the journey of the NIPP became longer than expected, but then it has become a pillar in Nigeria’s power stability.

     

    Interventions in generation, transmission and

    distribution

    In the generation value chain, NDPHC has completed the following power plants: Olorunsogo 11 (750MW), Sapele 450MW, Geregu 11 (434MW), Omotosho 11 (450MW), Ihovbor 450MW, Alaoji 450MW, Calabar 563MW and Gbarain 225MW. The NDPHC has completed 2,194km of 330KV transmission lines and 809km of 132KV transmission lines; an increase of 46 per cent and 13 per cent over the pre-NIPP status of grid infrastructure.

    It has further constructed a total of 2,600km of 11kv and 1,700km of 33kv distribution lines for improving access to electricity. There is heavy dependence on the NIPP plants in bringing electricity supply to Nigerians. In grid instability, NIPP plants provide about 265MW of spinning reserves to facilitate grid responsiveness during disturbances on the transmission network.

    Spinning reserve is practised all over the world. The NDPHC assets are the backbone of the country’s power infrastructure. A transparent privatisation for credible international investors will push the NIPP to the finishing line.

    Nigeria’s power generation capacity has risen. So also has been a huge exponential growth in population and the demand for electricity supply. Merging these two has not been easy. But Nigeria’s power distribution system has been enhanced with hundreds of injection sub-stations, 11KV lines and 33KV lines added. Work is also in progress in many more transmission and distribution projects. The massive construction of these power projects by the NDPHC has prevented the total collapse of electricity supply in Nigeria. Although a 100 percent supply is yet to be attained, supply is being stabilised while work on incremental power supply is ongoing. Achieving stable electricity supply from almost nothing is not a day’s work. It take times and huge efforts, especially where economic sabotage of gas pipelines persist and transmission lines are being vandalised, NDPHC Managing Director, Mr. Chiedu Ugbo said. When most all of the NIPP projects are completed and become operational, power supply to Nigerians is expected to be better and drive the economy of Nigeria, he added.

    “One recurring snag with power supply in Nigeria is in the distribution chain. Despite the targeted increase in generation if there is no efficient distribution to the end users in their homes and businesses, there will still be disappointment with all the efforts made. There has been huge improvement in gas supply to the built thermal power plants, adequate power is being generated and despite some challenges, the transmission network has improved. The most nagging point is power as distributed.  Power Distribution companies should be able to take more than what the transmission gives out. This is to allow reduction of redundancies at the various levels and reduce losses while transmitting power from one location to another. The farther you travel with power, the more the quality and the efficiency of the power is reduced. Another problem with the distribution network has been poor town and urban planning which has made it difficult to regulate power distribution and downstream activities, thus overloading the grid.

    “Some other challenges that the NIPP has had to grapple with include security and community issues; right-of-way challenges for distribution equipment and transmission lines; port clearing coordination hitches and contractor performance-related problems. Even though the three tiers of government own the NIPP, equipment imported for the power projects are often delayed or seized at the ports by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) because of non-payment of import tariffs thereby stalling the execution of some power projects. Sadly, some of the equipment at the ports were at one time auctioned by the port authorities after demurrage charges had accrued on them. It took the intervention of an alarmed Senate to recover some of the equipment sold off under questionable circumstance.

    “To fast-track the attainment of stable electricity for Nigerians, the Federal Government should seriously consider waving duties on equipment for power projects. It needs to seriously educate contractors on their patriotic duty to deliver and on time. There is need for a special para-military unit to ruthlessly tackle the activities of vandals, and address the kidnap of the employees of the contractors. Host communities also need to be educated on the recurring problem of right-of-way for the routes for the 330kv and 132kv transmission lines of the NIPP. Once when NDPHC diverted the transmission line to the Ihovnbor station in Edo State at a considerable cost because of the presence of a shrine, a new shrine emerged overnight on the new route and the villagers went on demanding a huge amount to relocate it. These kind of things can be best handed with proper enlightenment of the responsibilities of civic duties.

    ‘’Also, operatives of para-military agencies, especially men of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), should be adequately motivated and mobilised to protect power installations from vandals across the country. An existing asset protection mechanism for the safety of power generation/distribution equipment like pipelines and plants must be established with technologically advanced means applied.

    “All three-tier arms of Nigeria’s government, government parastatals, the ministry of defence, those of trade and of oil and gas, the privately-owned generating and distribution companies and indeed all Nigerians must join hands in true patriotism in confronting this multi-faceted problem and totally wipe out this embarrassing situation of inadequate electricity supply. Many Nigerians have made a living for decades from national dysfunction. Many have engaged and still do in pipeline bunkering. They have in the past fought against national pipelines protection. Those that make living importing electric generators will never want to see the country enjoying uninterrupted power supply. And because these folks have made a lot of money from their activities and are powerful, more like armed militants, they need be handled delicately to minimise collateral damage.”

    Ugbo advised that other sources of power generation, coal, wind, solar, must also be aggressively pursued. The largest increase in the United States’ power generation comes from wind, increased by 168 billion KWH and solar by 18 billion at one particular time. Excluding nuclear power, Nigeria is rich in all these other resources. Nigeria is Africa’s most populated country and it is also the foundation of the West African economy. The coming of the NDPHC has helped Nigeria solve her energy problems because modern day economy is driven by electricity supply. The vision of incremental energy having not been faithfully pursued right from independence and oblivious of the exponential increase in population and socio-economy, it took the intervention of the NIPP to address fundamental issues. If the company is continually funded and given free rein and the needed political backing to implement its mission, then the issue of power outage in Nigeria will soon be a thing of the past, he added.

     

    Ongoing projects

    The NDPHC is handling some ongoing projects in transmission. According to the NDPHC chief, the firm is making efforts at mitigating the challenges in transmission segment of the power value chain by ensuring the completion of these projects that are of importance to the administration.

    The projects include the Otta 132/33kV substation expansion project by Chris Ejik International; Otta-Papalantonew 132kV DC line construction project by Chris EjikInternational; Papalanto 132/33kV substation expansion project by Chris Ejik International;                 Papalanto-OldAbeokuta New 132kV DC line Construction Project by Chris EjikInternational;        Old Abeokuta 132/33kV Substation Expansion Project by Chris Ejik International; Old Abeokuta-New Abeokuta 132kV DC Line Construction Project by Chris Ejik International; New Abeokuta 132/33kV Substation Construction Project by Chris EjikInternational; 330/132KV 1X150MVA Transformer Substation at Ihiala, including Turn-In-Turn-Out of the existing Alaoji–Onitsha 330kV Single Circuit line at Ihiala by Energo Nigeria.

     

     

     

     

    Others are the 330kVIhiala – Nnewi DC Line by NCPE; 132/33kV Ihiala Substation by NEWS Engineering; Ihiala 132kV Line Bay Substation Extension works by PIVOT Engineering; Afam–IkotEkpene 330kV DC line construction by Cartlark International; IkotAbasi-Ikot Ekpene 330kV DC line construction by MessrsAnita Energy &Gracehill Energy; Ikot Abasi 3X150MVA, and 330/132/33kV Substation construction by Hoquado.

    Projects expansion

    The firm expanded some power projects including the Otta 132/33kV Substation Expansion Project by Chris Ejik International; while the Otta 2x30MVA & 1x45MVA, 132/33kV Substation is an existing Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) 132/33kV Substation, serviced by 2 Nos incoming 132kV circuit and 1 No outgoing132kV circuit which NDPHC seeks expanded.

    Others are the installation of a new 1X60MVA, 132/33kV Transformer with associated 3 Nos 33kV feeders. 1 No 132KV Line Bay extension to enable connection of a proposed Double Circuit 132kV Transmission Line from Otta to Papalanto.I No 132KV Bay for the switching of the new Transformer, and all associated Protection, Control and Automation panels.

    These Otta 132/33kV Substation Expansion works are all completed on Dec 2017 and energized on 17th May 2018. We are awaiting completion of other projects at Papalanto and Old Abeokuta for full commissioning of these interconnected projects, the firm said.

    The firm also noted the financial challenges some of the contractors faced during the projects expansion and the interventions it made to see the projects got completed.

    Efforts in Distribution

    Interventions in the distribution segment include the rehabilitation of 39 km Ore to Okitipupa 33 kV line through Ode-Aye. The work is ongoing and at 90 per cent completion; Improvement of electricity supply to communities in Ilaje Local Government of Ondo State which includerehabilitation of 5km Igodan-Lisa to Igbokoda 33kV line;5km Igodan-Lisa to Igbokoda 33kV line;29km Igbokoda-MahinMahin-Ugbo-Nla 33kV line; and construction of 10 km of 11kV lines,construction of 20km of LT(0.415 kV) lines and installation of 10 nos distribution transformers.The company said work has been completed and NEMSA invited for testing, certification before commissioning.

    Others include improvement of electricity supply to Okitipupa and Ondo State University of Science and Technology; and construction of dedicated 52kM 33kV Line from Funtua TS to Malumfashi 1 x 7.5 MVA, 33 /11 kV Injection Substation, among others.

     

     

     

  • NNPC’s $1.05b withdrawal from NLNG fund ‘in public interest’

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has explained why it withdrew $1.05billion from the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividend account, stressing that Section 7 of the NNPC Act empowers it to make such withdrawals.

    The cash was used to support importation of premium motor spirit (PMS) or petrol, which is highly subsidised at the rate of N145 per litre, the current pump price in Nigeria.

    According to data, petrol is supposed to be sold at a rate of at least N220 per litre but it currently sells at N145, making the price the cheapest among the countries surrounding Nigeria. Besides, while the government through the NNPC tries to make this fuel affordable and available to Nigerians by paying the under-recoveries, some people engage in illegal diversion of the fuel to neighbouring countries where they sell it at a premium. Under-recovery is the term used to describe the financial amount of subsidy the Federal Government absorbs for keeping the pump price of petrol at N145 per litre.

    Also as the refineries work at very sub-optimal levels, the fuel importation level is high making the under-recovery payment huge. As a result of the low pump price of petrol, other oil marketers have shunned importation as they wouldn’t be able to recover their costs. Therefore, the onus of adequate fuel importation to meet daily national consumption falls wholly on the NNPC.

    Therefore, according to industry players, it was cheery news when the alleged missing $1.05 billion from the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividend account was resolved between the Senate Committee on Gas Resources looking into the matter and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) confirmed the cash was not missing but used by the Corporation (NNPC) for national interest. The industry players said the clarification restores Nigeria’s image before the international communities and investors’ confidence.

    The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Gas, Senator Bassey Albert, had said the investigation of the application of $1.05billion Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividend to support the importation of petroleum products into the country has nothing to do with any missing funds since no such money was missing in the first place.

    Senator Albert, who doubles as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Application of the NLNG Dividend, explained that the clarification became necessary due to sensational and misleading reports in some sections of the media.

    He said the mandate of the committee was to determine the instrument under which NNPC relied upon to affect the said withdrawal and subsequent application of the NLNG dividend to meet pressing national demand for fuel supply, noting that the committee relies on NNPC to provide informed perspective on the issues.

    The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of NNPC, Mr. Isiaka Abdulrazaq, provided the relevant documents and parts of the NNPC Act that empower the corporation to make withdrawal from the account to the lawmakers

    In 2017, three days before Christmas, there was severe fuel scarcity and millions of people travelling for the celebration were stranded on the road. Most of the fuel retail outlets didn’t have fuel and the few that had, sold at exorbitant prices. People were storing fuel at home, people travelling bought fuel and kept in their vehicles’ booths to avoid getting stranded on the way. Some of such vehicles got burnt on the way killing some of the occupants, while some houses had fire outbreaks resulting from storing fuel.

    Fuel prices varied in different parts of the country last year. In the Southwest and South-south states, it was between N200 and N250. per litre, while in the Southeast and the north, it was between N250 and N300. Fares also went up astronomically. However, this year is completely different from last year.

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has also urged consumers across the country not to engage in panic buying as there was more than enough fuel to go round. “Consumers should avoid panic purchase of petrol. We have enough of the products in the depots, adding that storing of petrol at homes is dangerous because fire outbreak.

    “The NNPC has also build up strategic reserves across its hinterland and coastal areas to meet emergencies arising from price volatility in the international oil market,” the Department said.

    The oil and gas industry regulator also urged consumers to report any operator found selling the product above the approved pump price of N145 per litre.

    Also the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, assured Nigerians that the DPR and the officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) are on duty to ensure effective distribution of products to customers.

    “Unlike 24th of December last year when there was scarcity, long queues and few filling stations with fuel, it is different today. The worry that we had has been cleared. “We also thank President Muhammadu Buhari for maintaining the N145 per litre pump price. During the course of the year, we had times when we brought in products that indicated an under-recovery of almost N80 per litre; and because of the peak of the crude oil price, the under-recovery on product price also rose.”

    Baru also reiterated the effort of the government to ensure stable fuel supply during the Yuletide and beyond, especially in the face of attempts by some individuals to disrupt supply. He stated that presently the country had fuel stock to last for over 60 days, adding that current supply would last the country until after the 2019 general elections. “At the moment, we have 60 days supply almost three billion litres of PMS that would last us without bringing in any extra drop of fuel, another 60 days.”

  • ‘Nigeria has highest capex on crude’

    Nigeria accounts for more than 34 per cent of the proposed capital expenditure (capex) on planned and announced crude and natural gas projects in sub-Saharan Africa over the period 2018–2025, according to GlobalData, a data and analytics company.

    The company’s report: ‘H2 2018 Production and Capital Expenditure Outlook for Key Planned Upstream Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa–Royal Dutch Shell Dominates Production and Capex Outlook’ reveals that Nigeria leads in sub-Saharan Africa with a capex of US$59bn on 28 planned and announced projects during the 2018–2025 forecast period. Of the total count, eight are planned and 20 are announced projects.

    Soorya Tejomoortula, oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, said: “Nigeria is investing heavily in new oil and gas projects to further boost its oil and gas production. Majority of production from these projects is for exports, generating significant revenues for the country.”

    In total, 67 crude and natural gas projects are expected to start operations in sub-Saharan Africa during the forecast period.

  • BP, Exxon, Total, 13 others bid for Ghana’s oil fields

    Sixteen companies, including five majors, have submitted 60 applications for the five acreages on offer in Ghana’s first licencing round.

    According to Africa Oil+Gas Report, the Ministry of Energy (MoE) described the companies as “high calibre companies with proven track records,” and sees their interest as “a vote of confidence in the Ghanaian economy.”

    The applications opened publicly on December 21, are for prequalification for Expression of Interest (Eol) for competitive bidding for three Blocks (GH_WB_02, GH_WB_03 and GH_WB_04) in the Western Basin and direct negotiations in respect of two blocks (GH_WB_05 and GH_WB_06), all offshore in the Republic of Ghana.

    Two of the applications were invalidated as they were for Block GH_WB_01 which has been reserved for the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).

    “In line with this, 58 valid applications will be considered for the next stage of the process”, the Ministry said.

    The applicants include ENI, Cairn, Harmony Oil and Gas Corporation, ExxonMobil, CNOOC, Qatar Petroleum, BP, Vitol, Global Petroleum Group, Aker Energy, First E&P, Kosmos, Sasol and Equinor.

    “Government is determined to use a transparent process as specified by law to shortlist companies that have the capacity and will qualify based on prescribed criteria” said Mohammed Amin Adam, the country’s Deputy Minister of Energy.

    “We will collaborate and partner with them to explore and exploit the resource for our mutual benefit and most importantly the benefit of the Ghanaian people” said Lawrence Apaalse, Chairman of the Licensing Round Committee.

     

  • NNPC cautions against oil theft

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has advised Nigerians to be vigilant and report miscreants, suspected of planning to disrupt product distribution across the country.

    According to NNPC’s Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division, Ndu Ugbamadu, the development became necessary in order to reduce cases of pipeline vandalism during the yuletide period.

    In an interview with The Nation, he said miscreants leverage the festive period to break pipelines in order to cause harm on the society.

    He said the rate at which people vandalise pipelines to steal petroleum products was alarming and should be discouraged.

    He said the destruction of oil installations by militants cause the government a lot of money to fix, stressing that the government spends huge amount of money in fixing such facilities. He added that such money would have been spent on other infrastructure.

    On dangers of pipeline vandalism, he said the discovery of a lifeless body at Gbaga- Ojijo axis of Ogun State should be a lesson to other Nigerians. He warned oil thieves and other miscreants to stay clear of the Corporation’s pipelines and other facilities.

    He said the discovery of a lifeless body in pipeline in Gbaga axis of Ogijo sends clear warnings to those who breach oil and gas pipelines to steal petroleum products, adding that it was suicidal to do so.

    Ughamadu called on relevant government agencies to collaborate with the Corporation to appropriately tame the vandalism of oil facilities, adding that host communities should also partner NNPC in order to stop the menace.

    He said petrol price remains N145 per litre, adding that any station, which attempts to sell the product at a higher price, should be reported to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).

    He assured that the Corporation has put in place strategies to ensure a hitch-free festive period by keeping in stock more than two billion litres of fuel for Nigerians.

  • ‘How to tackle renewable energy, others’

    In its advocacy to ensure renewable energy, the Energy and Environment Desk of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce, AHK Nigeria, has conducted seminars on the subject.

    The seminars, facilitated by the Consulate-General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Lagos and the German Embassy, Abuja, beamed light on: Waste management in Nigeria, Renewable energy financing, Electronic waste and enabling solar photovoltaic in Nigeria.

    Speaking during electronic waste aspect of the seminar, Dr. Stefan Traumman, Consul-General of the Consulate-General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Lagos and Dr. Marc Lucassen, delegate of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Nigeria, said authorities should adopt a national e-waste policy, which will help to check illicit  import of used electrical electronic equipment (UEEE) on one side and regulate disposal and treatments of e-waste, and provide incentives to spur foreign direct investment in the capital intensive e-waste sector in Nigeria on the other.

    In a statement on surge in mass of e-waste, the Energy and Environment Desk said: “With 53.6 per cent global internet access and increasing variety of digital products and services, electrical/electronic equipment is witnessing an exponential surge in population globally. Although this on one hand could invariably mean valuable economic potential locally, however, on the other hand, it is a major threat both for people and the environment considering its hazardous chemical and material components.

    “According to e-waste statistics 2018, a report that is jointly financed by the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership, around 60,000 tonnes of UEEE were imported into Nigeria in 2015 and 2016 through containers without vehicles and with roll on/roll off imported vehicles most of which functionality rate averaged 19 per cent. Corroborating this data, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) reported that about 1.1 million tonnes of e-waste (mostly PCs, air-conditioners, LCD-TVs, mobile phones, refrigerators is generated in Nigeria annually about 40 per cent within Lagos.

    “Absence of adequate infrastructure for sane and eco-friendly e-waste management, lack of a robust e-waste data repository, extensive informal recycling activities across the value chain and a non-functional extended producer responsibility (EPR) framework, which mandates producers to take responsibility for end-of-life scraps,” the Desk said, adding it is essential that the country implements an inclusive benchmark assessment of e-waste handling across board.

    While stating the relevance of access to finance as a crucial factor for improving off-grid energy access in Nigeria, Duke Benjamin, the Desk head and Deputy Delegate of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce, emphasised the dire need of capital and technical interventions to salvage the nation’s energy crisis which he said has heavily impacted on almost every sector of the largest economy in Africa.

    Similarly, the Deputy Head of Mission of the German Embassy Abuja, Regine Hess, called for a closer collaboration among all stakeholders in the sector to improve access to sustainable and climate-friendly energy for all in Nigeria.

    The Renewable Energy Financing edition of the seminars, while it lasted, featured presentations on:  Off-grid Investment and Funding Opportunities in Nigeria, German Desk Nigeria- Financing Support and Solutions for German and Nigeria Companies and Off-grid Renewable Energy Financing.

    The latest edition of the seminars tagged ‘Enabling Solar Photovoltaic (PV) in Nigeria’ recorded presentations on ‘Obstacles to doing business in the Nigerian Solar PV sector, PV business cases in Nigeria and the Online profitability tool for Solar PV investments and Bringing cost-effective energy Ccoser to industries and commercial off-takers.

  • Subsidy payment: Marketers to resume $3b refineries’ financing

    The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) is to resume financing its $3billion refineries project as soon as the Federal Government finalises payment for fuel import subsidy arrears, the South-west, Zonal Chairman, Alhaji Debo Ahmed, has said.

    He said the development became necessary to fast-track the take-off of the project and reduce dependence on imported petroleum products.

    He said projects abandoned in the wake of the financial and leadership crises that rocked the association would be revisited now that its members would soon be paid subsidy arrears owed them by the Federal Government.

    In a phone interview with The Nation, Ahmed said IPMAN members would get their subsidy payment soon, adding the payment coincides with the resolution of the leadership crisis in the union.

    Ahmed said: “The court recently resolved the leadership crisis that has rocked the association for five, which at the end, the Supreme Court upheld the appointment of the National President, Chief Chinedu Okoronkwo, as the substantive leader of the union. By this, all factional issues have been laid to rest. The resolution of the internal crisis and the planned payment of the subsidy owed the marketers are good omen for IPMAN as they would help in reviving projects that are in a comatose.

    According to him, his members would be paid in either of the last two tranches. “Without doubt, the government would pay members of IPMAN in either the second or the third tranche and when this happens marketers would go to work to finance their projects in the interest of the downstream sub-sector.”

    He said the government paid marketers under the aegis of Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPMAN)  N236 billion in the first tranche, adding that members of IPMAN would be in the last two tranches.

    On depots repair, he said the 22 depots owned by the Federal Government were being repaired, noting that marketers were waiting for the inauguration of Ilorin Depot by the government this week. He noted that the Ore depot, which is located between Ondo and Benin axis, has been completed.

    The depots, Ahmed said, were in bad conditions, adding that the issue was causing delays in loading petroleum products by the marketers.

    He said the payment of the subsidy arrears was backed with promissory notes, therefore, marketers would be able to load fuel without stress, now that the government has repaired many of its depots. This would help in ensuring distribution of petroleum products across the country, and further prevent scarcity of the products, he added.

    He said the government is transparent on the payment of the arrears, stressing that that would go a long way in boosting their confidence substantially.

    The four refineries owned by the government are working below capacity, a development, which made the government to introduce subsidy scheme.

    Through subsidy the government is able to offset the cost incurred by marketers from importation of fuel.

  • NNPC, NEITI engagement attains global transparency

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Nigerian Extractive Transparency Initiative (NEITI) have attained global standards set for operators in the oil and gas industry, NNPC’s General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing, Mansur Sambo, has said.

    He said since the enactment of NEITI law by the government, NNPC and NEITI have committed themselves to transparecy in every aspect of their operation.

    He said the two agencies have  been having frequent engagments on transparency, as regards attaing global standards, adding that their efforts have paid off, as the two bodies were adjudged to have attained the standard.

    Sambo said the engagement started with the reconciliation of crude oil produced, recalling at some point the allegations/issues that we didn’t know what we were producing as a country. He added that through frequent engagment the story has changed today.

    In an interview with The Nation in Abuja,  Sambo said Nigeria  has moved from hydrocarbon accounting to hydrocarbon revenue accounting, and has transited to hydrocarbon revenue utilisation. “We have moved through all these stages because of the engagements we have been having in the past.

    “We moved from the level where we hear that crude oil is disappearing at the terminals through ships, and the engagements have brought much enlightenment to the public on what happens in the terminals,” he said, adding that some of those perceptions people were having did not even happen at the terminals

    Stressing the need for continuous engagement, he said the Corporation has been able to clear some of the issues in the industry with further engagements.

    On the deep offshore Act, he said the industry has pursued the deep offshore, however, there are many other fundamental and salient items that if looked at would generate more revenue than the deep offshore Act.

    “The deep offshore Act can only increase profit sharing we will get from the production sharing contracts (PSCs). Similarly, the petroleum industry bill (PIB) is part of the solution to the increase in revenue that we are heading to, however, the bill alone will not address all the issues to the problem, and it has to go beyond the deep offshore Act,” he added.

  • Govt introduces funding mechanism to sustain JVs

    The Federal Government will ensure seamless operation of the Joint Venture (JV) agreement between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its partners, the Corporation’s Chief Operating Officer, Upstream Division, Malam Rabiu Bello, has said.

    The government will achieve this goal by contributing its quota financially to sustain the agreements, he added. Bello said this during a forum organised by the NNPC in Lagos.

    He said the government has come out with sustainable funding mechanism through which it would continually make funds available for the growth of the arrangement.

    While answering question on the exit of the corporation from the Joint Venture agreement signed with Shell, Agip and other multinational oil companies with a view to improving oil exploration and production in the country, he said the NNPC has not exited the Joint Ventures scheme.

    He said: “We (NNPC) on behalf of the Federal Government invested 60 per cent capital into the business, while our partners provided 40 per cent. If NNPC, which holds a major shareholding in the business, withdraws from the partnership, the question is who will fund the business.

    “What we (NNPC) said is that we are having a sustainable funding base mechanism through which we would be providing our own contribution financially in order to sustain the agreement reached on the projects.”

    He said the development is a clear departure from the old practice. “As an institution that is holding the corporate image of an entity called Nigeria, NNPC does not see it as an ideal thing to be getting 60 per cent from Joint Ventures and doesn’t provide its own counterpart funding in projects. This made us to put in place a sustainable funding base mechanism to ensure that JV projects are continually funded.” he added.