The Nation Newspaper

Tag: coal

  • Expert to train youths in coal extraction in Enugu

    A petroleum industry expert, Dr Livinus Nosike, has called for more involvement of youths  in the sector.

    Dr Nosike was spoke at the 6th Enugu Youth Summit tagged  Innovative Technology & Youth Entrepreneurship Summit organised by the office of the S.A. to the Governor of Enugu, Dr Emeka Asogwa, and the State Ministry  of Youths and Sports.

    While addressing hundreds of young entrepreneurs in the State, the 41-year-old Doctor of Petroleum Geology from Ezeagu Local Government Area of the State hinted that his company, Integrated Elvee Services (IES) Ltd, will be willing to train over 180 youths across Enugu State on petroleum and coal exploration as a way of creating hundreds of jobs within the State.

    He said the training was in view of the State government’s ongoing discussions with South African investors to revamp the coal sector in Enugu State.

    He said, “IES Oil and Gas Training will be empowering these youths with a token covering only registration fees which is a far cry from the N5,000 000 Naira equivalent or more with which students have to travel abroad to get trained. Coal is a huge goldmine; tons of unconventional hydrocarbon lies underneath our feet in Enugu State.

    “It is the next mineral resource that can pay us more than petroleum in the State, unfortunately our Nigerian Universities are not practical about the trainings hence we as our own way of giving back to society want to empower youths of the coal-rich Enugu”.

     

    The University of Nice – Sophia Antipolis, France graduate complained that graduates of petroleum courses in Nigeria have little knowledge about the industry. He emphasised that petrol does not only come from crude oil.

    He said, “There is hydrocarbon from shale, from coal and from even plants – biofuel. Technology such as coal liquefaction produce hydrocarbon while polluting gas capture and sequestration help to abate the environmental impact.

    “Even when it comes to conventional sources of hydrocarbon, it’s disheartening that many geology students don’t know what a simple rig is. This is because the workings in the oil and gas industry seem mystified. Petroleum geo-science is like agriculture, it is not as complex as people think. It’s simple to get trained in any of the chains in the industry.”

     

    The Lagos-based entrepreneur who told journalists that the coal industry in Enugu will provide over 1,000 jobs noted that it will be sad for Enugu State to fall into the challenge of inexperienced locals working with the coal foreign investors.

     

    “We should not make the mistake of the past,” he said. “When oil and gas exploration started in the Niger Delta, the local thought they will benefit from it because it is in their land. But in a capitalistic economy, he who brings the capital takes the proceeds. They only way to get the proceeds is to get involved early enough. That is the only way to ensure there is no schism between the various parties.”

     

  • Coal for power

    Coal for power

    •We must look beyond hydro and thermal plants to have stable electricity supply

    Why has it taken the Federal Government this long to decide on using coal to generate power in spite of its abundance in the country? This is the question that readily came to mind when the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, announced that the government intends to revive mining in Enugu coal mines. But it is better late than never.
    Fayemi made the disclosure during a town hall meeting with mining and steel sector stakeholders in the town. He had earlier visited the Okpara and Onyeama mines in the state, where mining last took place about 40 years ago. The minister said the Federal Government would conduct an audit of the mines as a prelude to the mining.
    “Our priority is coal to power generation and it is already happening. We are not unmindful of the fact that Nigeria has very abundant coal reserves and we will make sure that this is developed. That is partly why we came to look at what is doable with the Okpara and Onyeama mines, and others,” Dr Fayemi said.
    We commend the government for going ahead with the plan by the previous administration that had done extensive work on the issue. Usually, what successive governments do is to throw away the baby with the bath water for political reasons.
    As the minister noted, the energy problem is an existential threat to the country and we must address it with what we have, and not necessarily in a way to please some external powers. The 10,000 MW that we plan to generate cannot take us anywhere if we are serious about industrialisation. It would seem the government has been reluctant to take this road because of the criticism of some western countries about the environmental impact of using coal to generate power.
    Much as this is true, it does not tell the whole story. Many countries, including China, United States, Germany, Italy, India, South Korea and Japan, to mention a few, as recently as 2010 still had coal-powered stations. To date, South Africa generates a substantial amount of its electricity with coal. It is only in recent times that some of these countries have gravitated more towards gas to fire their plants.
    There is no reason why Nigeria cannot use coal, in addition to the present hydro and thermal plants to generate electricity. Our experience has shown that the current template cannot take us far. If we are not having gas shortage; militants are rupturing gas pipes thereby disrupting supply to the power plants. With regard to the hydro electric sources, the country is stranded once the rains are over. For how long are we to continue with this rigmarole? The fact is; coal is cheaper; we also have it in abundance. What we should do is to manage the environmental challenges that could arise from using it instead of abandoning it completely.
    If the World Bank is not favourably disposed to this idea for whatever reason, so be it. The government should take advantage of its partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB) which is more sympathetic to our cause. The western countries cannot use a ladder only to remove it when they have got to the top.
    We must warn, however, that the Federal Government should adequately compensate residents who have to swallow the “bitter pills” of relocating when mining commences in the sites. As the minister himself noted, “when you tell people to relocate from where they have lived for more than 30 years, you know how it feels …”
    This is imperative to avoid the ugly experience the country is having in the Niger Delta. Ordinarily, mining should be in the residual list, that is it should be an exclusive preserve of state governments but for our lopsided federalism. To get the best from the deal if it comes to be, the government must be prepared to undertake the necessary investment in the people to be relocated.

  • Power: The problem with coal

    SIR: Coal is a combustible black or dark brown sedimentary rock usually occurring in layers called coal beds. In Nigeria, it was first discovered in 1909 at a place called Udi Ridge in Enugu. In 1916, coal mining became fully operational at Ogbete Mines, Enugu and by 1917 a second coal mine was opened in Iva Valley, Enugu. Maiganga mine in Gombe was also one of the coal mines that sprang up in Nigeria during the colonial era. In 2011, Okobo coal mine field in Kogi State became operational.

    Coal can be used to provide energy to drive economic growth. However, coal to power generation has huge challenges because coal has the highest carbon content among all fossil fuels. Coal mining and combustion causes a massive emission of greenhouse gases. When coal is burned, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, mercury compounds are released into the atmosphere. Sadly, all these are gases that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is working very hard to reduce their emissions. The coal mining technique usually adopted in coal mines in Nigeria is the surface mining method also called strip or open cast mining. This method is notorious for releasing toxic amounts of minerals and heavy metals into soils and water bodies that host communities usually patronize. This method of mining is also notorious for destroying landscapes, forest, wild life habitats and biodiversity in general. It also predisposes the community to erosion since plants, trees and topsoil are usually uprooted from around the mine sites. As rain falls, the loose topsoil contaminated with carbon sediments is washed into water bodies. This is very destructive to fishes and other aquatic life forms. It may also distort the flow channels of streams and rivers leading to flooding in some areas and water scarcity in other areas. Water sheds are also destroyed when disfigured lands loses the water it once held.

    Another challenge with coal to power is that coal mining generates a lot of noise and air  pollution. The excavation and transportation of mined coal within host communities usually causes massive amounts of coal dust to circulate in the air. This puts community    dwellers who inhale this dust over long periods of time at risk of developing varying degrees of respiratory ailments including black lung disease, bronchitis and asthma. This dust also has the capacity to complicate the health of children and may even cause them to have stunted physical and mental growth. The roads in such communities are usually untarred and when trucks move around in the dry season, large quantities of dust are usually raised into the surrounding. This dust is not healthy for inhalation. To make matters worse, most coal mining communities do not have a decent health facility and the community dwellers are usually very indigent people who cannot afford to travel far and wide for first grade medical services. This condemns them to live and die with whatever health challenge coal mining has brought on them. Also, coal mining produces very loud and disruptive noise in the host community. Heavy equipment excavating coal usually causes massive vibrations that have the capacity to cause cracks and collapses of buildings.

    Just recently, China announced the cancellation of one hundred and three coal power plants, some of which were operational and some under construction. The government admitted that a lot of resources had being put into the projects but there was need to move away from one of the dirtiest source of generating electricity. Some other western nations have started curtailing investment in coal to power. The fact that you are blessed with a resource is not a compulsion that you must use it especially considering the fact that side effect exists. There is therefore need for Nigeria to review its decision to make budgetary appropriations for coal to power if it really wants to cut carbon emission

     

    • Martins Eke,

     Centre for Social Justice, Wuse Zone 6, Abuja.

     

  • Coal to the rescue?

    Coal to the rescue?

    •Even though it is coming late in the power generation mix, it is better late than never

    Grossly inadequate power supply is generally acknowledged as one of the most critical factors responsible for Nigeria’s protracted economic crisis. The need for businesses to generate their own power in the face of epileptic power supply not only adds to the cost of doing business, with the additional costs passed on to already hard pressed consumers. It also discourages both much needed local and foreign investment in the economy.

    Relying solely on hydro and gas sources of electricity generation, Nigeria currently generates at the best of times a maximum of 5,000 megawatts of electricity for a population of 180 million people. This contrasts sharply, for example, with South Africa, which generates 100,000 megawatts of electricity even though she has a population of about 45 million people.

    This is why the recent disclosure by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, that Nigeria will soon be utilising coal as an alternative source of energy is a most welcome and promising development. Estimating that coal will soon be contributing 30 percent to electricity generation in the country, Dr Fayemi said that Nigeria expects to generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity from coal by 2020 to supplement other sources of energy currently in use.

    Speaking at a stakeholders’ and press meeting on “Sustainability in the Extractive Industries” at his ministry, Dr Fayemi expatiated: “We have decided that coal licenses will only be awarded to those who want to generate electricity and we are collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Power and Housing on this…You need to have a license for power generation before you acquire a license for mining. Since the inception of this administration, no license for coal has been awarded which is not for the purpose of power generation. So if you acquire a license for mining coal, you have to also have that for power”.

    Given the generous quantities of coal available in large swathes of the country, it is inexplicable that Nigeria has not tapped the potentials of this resource for power generation, which is one of her most crucial requirements for economic recovery and sustainable growth. According to the minister, coal exists in about 19 states of the federation covering a stretch of about 800 kilometres. The reluctance to exploit the country’s abundant coal reserves for electricity generation may not be unconnected with fears of the impact on climate change of carbon dioxide emissions associated with coal processing and production. For a country in our situation, that is a luxury we can ill afford. In any case, as Dr Fayemi observed, clean coal with environmental standards can be achieved.

    It is estimated that about 41% of global electricity is currently fuelled by coal-fired plants. In 2014, 29% of the electricity used in the United Kingdom was produced by coal-fired power stations. It is the same story in the United States where coal was responsible for 39% of the country’s electricity production in 2014 although this proportion fell to 33% in 2015. Eskom, South Africa’s publicly owned power firm says 53% of domestic coal consumption in the country is used for electricity generation. The largest producer and consumer of coal in the world, China, generated an estimated 73% of domestic electricity from the resource e in 2014.

    True, most countries have long term plans to move away from coal generated electricity because it produces higher amounts of carbon emissions than any other power generation source. Nigeria can also have such plans for the long term.  But for now, the country faces a power emergency and it makes no sense for the country to have huge reserves of coal lying idle when they can significantly help bridge our chronic electricity deficit. What the country needs is a balanced energy mix that taps the potentials of hydro, gas, wind, solar, coal and even ultimately, nuclear energy.

  • Coal for light

    Coal for light

    Diversification of the sources of fuel for power is a welcome development

    For decades we kept talking about diversifying the country’s revenue base but, beyond the rhetoric, little was done in this direction. For a country that has been taught something and has learnt something, we should not have been caught off guard in the quagmire of another oil price slump. We had it in the 1980s in the Shehu Shagari years; we had it even shortly before the Obasanjo presidency in 1999 when oil sold at a rock-bottom $9. All successive governments did was to keep hoping for the best; which somewhat came and we soon relapsed into our business as usual. Diversification became once again a slogan rather than a programme of action.

    But when we talk of diversification, it goes beyond the source/s of revenue generation. Part of the problem with this country is that in terms of ideas; we have a surfeit of them; our problem is in converting them. What I am saying is that many of us, including our leaders, past and present, have always been conversant with the aphorism that it is dangerous or unwise for one to put all his eggs in one basket. Why? Simply because once that basket has problem, the eggs will break. Again, as with crude oil, we have for long relied on thermal plants essentially for electricity generation.

    It is however gratifying that the economic recession is now compelling us to look more in the direction of diversification properly so-called. But the diversification I am talking about is not the one we are familiar with; rather, it is as it pertains to electricity generation. Minister of Solid Minerals and Mining, Dr Kayode Fayemi, told the executive director of a non-governmental organisation, CSR-in-Action, Bekeme Masade, who led somer members of the group on a courtesy visit to his office in Abuja, that Nigeria will soon be using coal as an alternative source of energy. Indeed, coal will supply about 30 per cent of the country’s power needs, according to the policy on energy needs set by the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing under Babatunde Raji Fashola, its minister.

    “We have dedicated that coal licences will only be awarded to those who want to generate electricity and we are collaborating with the FMPWH (Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing) on this.

    “There are certain processes you need to fulfill. You need to have a licence for power generation before you acquire a licence for mining. Since the inception of this administration, no licence for coal has been awarded which is not for the purposes of power generation.

    “So if you acquire a licence for mining coal, you have to also have that for power. Once the application is filed and it is not encumbered by any legal or existing holder of a licence, the licence is awarded, but it must be for power generation only. Quite a number of companies have applied directly either to us or to the FMPWH,” the minister told his guests.

    This is a welcome development. Nigeria has large coal reserves, estimated at about two billion metric tons. What many of us have been saying is that the government should think out of the box to take the country out of its present economic doldrums. If the proposed idea  represents part of that process, we should support it. The fact is that our present concentration on thermal stations cannot take us to the Promised Land, with persistent gas shortages occasioned by avoidable and unavoidable factors. Ours is a country richly blessed with good weather. We have sunshine in abundance; which offers a good opportunity to tap greatly into solar energy. We have coal, which also plays a great role in the power sector in other places. We have areas that can support wind farms, etc.      

    It is important to note that coal-fired power plants currently fuel 41 per cent of global electricity. Indeed, an estimate says electricity generation accounts for 43 per cent of all coal consumed in South Africa. As a matter of fact, many of that country’s coal-fired power stations are located close to a coal mine from where they are directly supplied with fuel. Thus, we have the Grootegeluko open cast mine on the Waterberg Coalfield in Limpopo (one of the largest in the country) which feeds the Matimba Power Station with about 14.6 million tons of coal a year through a conveyor system. The same mine is also contracted to supply the new Medupi Power Station. What South Africa has done is to apply the simple economic principle of locating the power plants near the source of fuel. The country generates about 34,000 megawatts.

    Even China which accounts for 46 per cent of global coal production and 49 per cent of global consumption due to its large electric power requirements, fuels its economic growth with coal.

    There is no doubt that coal is one of the most polluting ways to generate electricity, which explains why some regions like Europe have been trying hard in recent years to phase it out. But this is a case of different folks; different strokes. Those who have a case against coal to power our electricity plants here as a result of the challenge of pollution should ponder the amount of pollution from all kinds of generators that our people use to generate electricity privately whenever there is power outage.

    For me, what is important is that we diversify our sources of fuel for power supply. It has become clear that we cannot continue to rely on gas due to the challenges we have been having, especially with militants in the Niger Delta. Even if as a short term measure before the government gets a firm grip of the situation, we need to look beyond gas for this purpose. This is much more so that we do not have full control over the weather to fully engage the hydro stations all year round. We are only able to maximise them during the rainy season.

    The good news here is that even in spite of government, some people on their own; as well as government and private organisations are now popularising the solar option for electricity generation. Schools as well as hospitals in Lagos, for instance, are now experimenting with solar energy. Indeed, one cable television station that is also into estate business in partnership with a private concern has come up with the idea of powering its estates with solar energy. We also have many homes using inverters to power their electrical devices. The result will surely be amazing if more Nigerians key into some of these alternative sources of power generation and more people are able to bypass the problematic national grid.

    Perhaps what the government can do is to support people that are providing these alternatives to the public power supply system however it deems fit. The truth is; we have lived with darkness for too long such that we should be hungry for light now, except we are saying that our nation is haven for darkness.

    We should be firing from all cylinders if truly we are desirous of banishing darkness from the country. We should encourage wind farms where there is wind in abundance; solar power in places where/when there is a surfeit of sunshine; hydro power where it makes sense and thermal power stations where such best fit. This idea of one-cap-fits-all has not helped us with regard to electricity supply. Indeed, the idea of a national grid which can throw the entire nation into darkness simultaneously due to system collapse is no more in our national interest; that is if ever it was at any time in the past. Where we need to amend laws to achieve this, let that be done without further delay.

    Our developmental efforts have been hampered for too long by lack of steady power supply. Even the projected 10,000MW by end of 2019 is a far cry from where we should be if we want to industrialise fast. We must encourage the government to lighten our darkness from wherever it can – be it from the moon, Mars or Jupiter. All we want is power; steady power supply.

     

  • Coal to contribute 30% of electricity, says Fayemi

    Coal to contribute 30% of electricity, says Fayemi

    • Ajaokuta Steel Company not concessioned

    Nigeria will soon be using coal as an alternative source of energy, the Minister of Solid Minerals and Mining, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said.

    Fayemi, who spoke when the Executive Director of a Non-Governmental Organization, CSR-in-Action, Bekeme Masade, led a team of civil society organisations on a visit to him, said the Ministry of Power, Woks and Housing, has set itself the policy on energy needs and it has proposed that coal will contribute 30 per cent into the energy needs.

    He said: “We have dedicated that coal licenses will only be awarded to those who want to generate electricity and we are collaborating with the FMPWH on this,” adding that the process is on.

    “There are certain processes you need to fulfil. You need to have a licence for power generation before you acquire a licence for mining. Since the inception of this administration, no licence for coal has been awarded which is not for the purposes of power generation.

    “So if you acquire a licence for mining coal, you have to also have that for power. Once the application is filed and it is not encumbered by any legal, or existing holder of a licence, the licence is awarded, but it must be for power generation only. Quite a number of companies have applied directly either to us or to the FMPWH,” he stated.

    On Ajaokuta, Fayemi said the Federal Government has not  conceded control of Ajaokuta Steel Company to either Chinese or Indian firms, saying there is no official engagement with anybody on ASC. He described as misleading, reports in some quarters to the effect  that the steel company has been handed over to a Chinese firm.

    Fayemi, who was represented by his Technical Adviser,  Egghead Odewale, said the original concession agreement that was signed between Nigeria, Global Steel Holding Limited and Global Infrastructure Nigeria Limited, “has been re-modified.

    “The original concession agreement that was signed between the Federal Government of Nigeria, Global Steel Holding Limited and Global Infrastructure Nigeria Limited has been re-modified. It has been modified to decouple Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited from Nigeria Iron Ore Mining Company in Itakpe.

    “What that also portends is that Global Infrastructure Nigeria Limited now has seven years of their original concession to complete the mining operation to operate Neo-coal in Itakpe whereas Ajaokuta has reverted to the government of Nigeria. So it is now been held by the Federal Government of Nigeria, “ he stated.

    Speaking on those he called “artisanal miners” and those who work under the radars”, the minister said the menace was part of the development challenges in the country.

    He expressed concern over the menace of illegal miners in the country estimated to number about 15 million.

    He said: “Our approach is not a law and order approach to be able to regularise the operations of these illegal miners who work under the radar. Our approach is to incentivise them to formalise their processes, and to be able to get them to contribute to public revenue and for the benefit of their own operation so that they will be able to benefit from the mining operations that we undertake day-in-day-out because we are marking a process to undertake an extension service for artisanal miners.

    “I won’t say we have credible data on their number, but there are estimates that put their population to be up to between 10-15 million.

  • Solution to Africa’s power problem in fossil fuels, coal – Osinbajo

    Solution to Africa’s power problem in fossil fuels, coal – Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday declared that the perennial power problem in Africa could be solved though alternative energy sources like fossil fuels and coal.

    He spoke at the High Level Roundtable on the theme: Energy and Climate Change at the ongoing general meeting of the African Development Bank (ADB) in Lusaka, Zambia.

    According to him, about 45 percent of Africans don’t have access to power in the world.

    He therefore called on African leaders to develop the sector.

    Osinbajo also said that the issue of climate change should be taken serious by the leaders.

    He said: “For us, priority today is development and we have to take development seriously.

    “We are faced with a very dire situation and in most of Africa, we simply don’t have power and without power, there is very little that can be done.

    “We think that renewable energy and all of the concern about Climate Change are important, but we must prioritise development,” he said.

    Nigeria, he said, was an example of one country enriched with hydro-carbon enriched countries.

    “We have to leverage all that we can get from fossil fuel, coal is also important,” he added.

    According to him, the arguments about renewable energy are well-noted and Nigeria has the capacity for, and is going to tap into solar energy.

    But he stressed that: “We are dealing with a major (developmental) problem.”

    The Vice President also said that it was possible that the twin issue of energy development and environmental concerns could be taken on simultaneously.

    African leaders, he noted, needed the technology from the developed countries to make clean coal.

    He said: “We think that we must use our fossil fuel to the maximum. We must use our coal to the maximum, and we simply call on the support of the developed nations that are aggressive about reducing emissions, especially in coal power plants to give us the technology that is required because obviously there is available technology to make coal clean and we simply call upon them to give us that technology.”

    While Africa was the least contributor to global emissions, he said that the continent is also the hardest hit by the whole consequences of climate change.

    “That is the paradox. But that paradox becomes jeopardy when we are being asked to take the greater burden of resolving the problem of climate change, so we really need the help of the west in particular,” he added.

    Speaking on some of the limitations of solar power, the Vice President said “we must bear in mind that for industry for example, the base load power is critical, the base load power is so much more difficult to get from solar power for example…so we must understand that our immediate need requires the base load power that can move us forward quickly and that we would get from fossil fuel, hydro power and coal fire plants.”

    Other speakers at the panel included the presidents of Zambia, Edgar Lungu, and Chad, Idriss Deby Itno, who is also the current Chairman of the African Union.

    The President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, Prime Ministers and senior ministers from several other African countries were also in attendance at the formal opening event of the meeting where the President of the ADB, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina observed that the presence of several African leaders at the meeting was an expression of their support for the bank.

     

  • The Coal City achiever

    SIR: Our nation is faced with examples of bad leadership.  The sound blast of do-nothing politicians deafens our ears.  We have been pigeon-holed to see the downside of governance.  Up, on top of Milken Hill, shines an old city restored to glory by a silent achiever.  Enugu has always been a city of romance.  Kind weather and beautiful people nurtured from treasure of simple pleasures are among its attractions.  Political storm that blew across our nation in the past decades did not spare this great landscape.  The wonder that brought the unassuming Sullivan Chime as governor was a blessing in disguise.

    I lived in Enugu in the 1980’s.  I later joined the exodus of young people to travel abroad for further schooling.  Life was enjoyable.  Clean environment, good roads and running water were available.  Parks and recreational places like Presidential Hotel, Zodiac Hotel and Emporium Nightclub gave residents a flavour of Western living.  The city was reputable for its vibrant youth culture.  I remember rich traders from Onitsha trooping into town on weekends to go to parties.  Enugu was then the relaxation haven.

    Occasions of my visits in the 1990’s and up, were unfortunately disappointing.  Enugu looked so dry like a town hit by a bad harmattan.  One can smell wretchedness in the air.  There was no electricity, no running water, the roads were broken up and nightlife was gone.  Residents were afraid of incessant attacks by armed robbers.  To my greatest displeasure, student-life that made the city fun had turned into sex for money affair.

    In 2012, I had a chance to travel around most parts of the country.  I was engaged by W.H.O. (World Health Organization) in a project – Tuberculosis Prevalence Survey.  My return to Enugu was a pleasant surprise.  I totally lost my bearing due to the changes.  I was excited to visit the mega Shoprite Store at the site of the old Polo Park.  Good roads with traffic lights that work covered everywhere.  Modern shopping centres and state of the art hotels and bars lined major roads and affluent areas.  My outing at the outdoor Bush Bar was an out of body experience.  I thought I was at Madison Square Garden in New York City with the big screen projections showing sporting and musical events.

    You must have observed that I have not mentioned any name associated with how this air of freshness blew into Enugu.  The reason is simple.  It is because the superficial consciousness never exists.  The architect purposefully designed the city of his fantasy in silence.  There was no need on his part for the vulgar posters smearing the look of many states with the face of their governor.

    Welcome to the space occupied by the new futuristic Secretariat Complex like a giant billboard.  It raises one’s antenna up entering the city from Enugu-Onitsha Expressway.  These are exemplary achievements of visionary leadership.  The city is secured like a garden.  We do not need to look far to search for our champions of democracy.  Come to Enugu and experience the work of a patriot.  Sullivan Chime defied negative expectation.

    • Pius Okaneme,

    Umuoji, Anambra State.

  • WANDE COAL TREATS FANS WITH ALBUM PROMO

    WANDE COAL TREATS FANS WITH ALBUM PROMO

    HIP hop artiste, Wande Coal, is not leaving the promotion of Wanted, his latest album to chance. Wanted, which dropped on October 26, is the singer’s sophomore album after five years since dropping Mushin 2 Mo’ Hits.

    In a promo titled NdaniTV Wanted Contest, Wande Coal, using his Twitter account, urged his fans to take and post a picture of themselves with a copy of the album to stand a chance of winning either a Segway Board or an Ndani Goodie Bag.

    Released last Thursday under Black Diamond label, which Wande Coal also owns, the 18-track album, according to the singer, was named ‘Wanted’ because people had been asking for it and it was highly anticipated by fans.

    “This album cut across all demographics,” Wande Coal said.

    “I feel this album is my own creativity and personal growth. I have been planning to work with 2Face and on this album I worked with Tubaba. I worked with eight producers on this album. I believe it’s a great album”.

    Asked about why it took so long to release his second album, Wande Coal attributed it to the dissolution Mo’ Hits in 2011.

    “I was left alone to choose and I moved with Don Jazzy without no contract because of love,” he said.

    “As an artiste I felt it was okay to go with a producer. We started working on the album but we didn’t agree on contract so I had to move on. And that means I had to start all over again writing new songs and get new producers.”

    Wande Coal was first officially signed Mo ‘Hit in 2010 even though he met his former bosses Don Jazzy and D’banj in 2006.

  • Coal shortage looms as Indian workers strike

    Coal shortage looms as Indian workers strike

    In one of the biggest direct industrial protests in recent times, over 500 000 coal workers across India went on a five-day strike as negotiations failed.

    Trade union representative said talks between the unions and government lasted for several hours yesterday, with discussions taking place until midnight, but unions said that the government officials had nothing to offer to reverse the “denationalisation of the coal sector”.

    The government, in turn, said that the trade unions were “adamant” on their stand.

    “Negotiations at the secretary level have failed. But we are open for discussions at the political level either with the Prime Minister or the Coal Minister,” Indian National Mineworkers’ Federation secretary general S Q Zama said after the failed talks.

    “We did our best to arrive at a solution but the coal secretary has its own limitations and around 350 000 workers of Coal India Limited (CIL) commenced their strike today,” CIL chairperson Sutirtha Bhattacharya said.

    Significantly, yesterday was the second day at the office for Bhattacharya after he took charge as chairperson of CIL.

    Government estimated about 75 per cent of the country’s daily coal production of around 1.5-million tonnes was affected by the strike.

    The direct industrial actions, the biggest in the country since railway workers’ went on strike in 1977, was to protest the proposed restructuring of CIL, divestment of government equity holding in the largest mining company and trade unions’ apprehensions of “denationalisation of the Indian coal sector” through the government’s recent liberalisation of coal mining with the proposed permitting of private investors into the sector.

    The strike impacted production at major government-owned and -managed coal mining companies like Singareni Collieries Company Limited, Neyveli Liginte Company Limited, as well as CIL, with the latter accounting for over 80 per cent of domestic coal supplies.

    The strike was being supported by all major trade unions representing coal mine workers in the country including, Indian National Trade Union Congress, Centre for Indian Trade Unions, Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), All India Trade Union Congress and Hind Mazdoor Sangh. Ironically, BMS was the labour arm of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which headed the current Indian federal government in New Delhi.