The Nation Newspaper

Tag: INTELS

  • INTELS empowers 62 women in Rivers, supports host community

    INTELS empowers 62 women in Rivers, supports host community

    INTELS Nigeria Limited, the long-standing leader in oil and gas logistics, has strengthened its commitment to women’s economic empowerment with the graduation of 62 trainees from its 2025 Women Empowerment Project Scheme Synergy (WEPSS).

    The graduation ceremony was held at the Rosa Volpi Women Development Centre located within the Federal Lighter Terminal at the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone in Rivers State.

    WEPSS, launched in 2013 as part of INTELS’ Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, was conceived to train 5,000 women in tailoring and fashion design over 20 years.

    The scheme was expanded in 2017, gaining broader reach within the company’s host communities. Over the years, it has given thousands of women — many from low-income backgrounds — the skills, confidence, and resources to build viable businesses, improve household income, and contribute to local economic growth.

    INTELS Managing Director, Mr Pasquale Fiore, described the initiative as a cornerstone of the company’s community partnership model. Speaking at the event, he reiterated INTELS’ determination to ensure that women in and around its host communities are equipped with the tools to attain financial independence.

    “We firmly believe that when women thrive, communities thrive. Our vision for WEPSS has always been to do more than train; we want to create opportunities for lasting prosperity. That is why, in 2022, we enhanced the programme by awarding fully equipped shop facilities to the best graduates. It is a way of saying that excellence, hard work, and commitment will always be recognised,” he said.

    Fiore added that he was encouraged by the success stories emerging from previous beneficiaries of the scheme.

    “Many of our alumnae have now established flourishing businesses, some employing others and expanding beyond their initial expectations. Seeing their shops open, seeing them support their families, and seeing the confidence they now carry is testimony to what targeted empowerment can achieve,” he noted.

    He praised the resilience of the trainees and affirmed that the top 15 graduates of the 2025 class would receive starter kits to help launch their enterprises.

    WEPSS Project Coordinator, Nancy Freeborn, emphasised the wider social impact of the training scheme. She noted that the programme has transformed the lives of many women in Rivers State, enabling them to become contributors to family welfare and community development rather than dependents.

    Freeborn expressed deep appreciation to INTELS’ management for sustaining the programme for over a decade. She highlighted the company’s consistent investment in skill development, innovation, and industry relevance, including the introduction of the Train-the-Trainer Scheme and partnerships with the Fashion Experience Festival and Private Broadway Shows, platforms that offer students exposure to broader creative and commercial opportunities in the fashion industry.

    At the event, the 2025 Best Graduating Trainee, Saraphina Jacob, received N2 million and a starter kit that included an industrial sewing machine and a steam iron. In her note of appreciation on behalf of the 2025 graduating beneficiaries, she thanked INTELS for “opening a door that many young women only dream of” and expressed her commitment to using the opportunity to build a sustainable fashion business that would “make the company and the community proud.”

    The 2024 Best Graduating Trainee, Obarijima Lewa, was presented with the keys to a fully furnished and equipped shop to support the launch of her fashion design career. She also expressed heartfelt gratitude, stating that the gift has transformed her life and given her a platform beyond her imagination.

    “INTELS has shown us that our dreams are valid, and I will work hard to justify this generous investment in my future,” one of the beneficiaries said.

    Other outstanding graduates were also presented with starter kits to support their entrepreneurial journeys. The ceremony attracted stakeholders from the Oil and Gas Free Zone, government representatives, and community leaders.

    Beyond WEPSS, INTELS continues to play a major role in national development through its extensive community initiatives, which include infrastructure projects, scholarships, health programmes, and various vocational training schemes. With more than four decades of operational excellence, INTELS has established itself as a global reference point for oil and gas logistics excellence in Africa, combining innovation, world-class infrastructure, and a strong culture of corporate responsibility.

  • INTELS graduates 80 women under WEPSS

    INTELS Nigeria Limited, an Oil and gas logistics operator, has graduated 80 women under its Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS).

    WEPSS, a Corporate Social Responsibility programme of INTELS, was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women drawn from various parts of Nigeria over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    So far, more than 1000 women drawn from various communities have been empowered through the project. The successful trainees are the first batch of beneficiaries admitted into the scheme last January.

    At the event held at the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne, Rivers State, the General Manager, Legal and Corporate Services of INTELS Nigeria, Mike Epelle, who represented the company’s Managing Director, expressed delight with the impact of the programme on beneficiaries since inception.

    He said: “This is a programme that the management of INTELS Nigeria Limited holds very dear to its heart. We are so proud and happy to know that this has continued right from the time it started and sustained up till date.

    “It was the dream of the wife of the founder of INTELS that there should be something like this set up for the women because it appears we have been paying too much attention to the men. So the idea is to have a balance. Let there be something that can be done for women and that is how this programme started.”

    He advised the beneficiaries to make necessary sacrifices required to put the skills they acquired during their training to good use.

    “Invest your earnings in the business. There will be enjoyment as the years go by but sustain and invest in the business. From the little you will start with, you can multiply and employ people. Look for the success stories, don’t let the training you have acquired here go down the drain.

    If you apply yourself well to what you have learnt and develop yourself even more, you will certainly be a success story.

    “Many people are making a huge living out of fashion; you can get there, just start and be consistent. Most of the establishments you hear about started many years ago and today have grown big,” he said.

    WEPSS Project Head, Nancy Freeborn, restating the company’s commitment to women empowerment, said apart from the tailoring skills acquired, the programme also inculcated “soft skills” including personal hygiene and how to run successful businesses after graduation.

    She said: “The skill you have been given is a gift from INTELS through the Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS). That skill is what has allowed you to explore new ideas to create and to design. Make INTELS proud by putting into use the skills that you have acquired. It gives us a lot of joy when we go on our follow-up exercise and see people who are really putting into use the skill they have acquired.”

  • INTELS graduates 80 women under WEPSS

    INTELS Nigeria Limited, an Oil and gas logistics operator, has graduated a batch of 80 women under its Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS).

    WEPSS, a Corporate Social Responsibility programme of INTELS, was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women drawn from various parts of Nigeria over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    So far, more than 1000 women drawn from various communities have been empowered through the project. The successful trainees are the first batch of beneficiaries admitted into the scheme last January.

    At the graduation held at the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne, Rivers State, the General Manager, Legal and Corporate Services of INTELS Nigeria, Mike Epelle, who represented the company’s Managing Director, expressed delight with the impact of the programme on beneficiaries since inception.

    He said: “This is a programme that the management of INTELS Nigeria Limited holds very dear to its heart. We are so proud and happy to know that this has continued right from the time it started and sustained up till date.

    “It was the dream of the wife of the founder of INTELS that there should be something like this set up for the women because it appears we have been paying too much attention to the men. So the idea is to have a balance. Let there be something that can be done for women and that is how this programme started.”

    He advised the beneficiaries to make necessary sacrifices required to put the skills they acquired during their training to good use.

    Read Also: UNIPORT undergraduate wins Miss Niger Delta Peace pageant

    “Invest your earnings in the business. There will be enjoyment as the years go by but sustain and invest in the business. From the little you will start with, you can multiply and employ people. Look for the success stories, don’t let the training you have acquired here go down the drain. If you apply yourself well to what you have learnt and develop yourself even more, you will certainly be a success story.

    “Many people are making a huge living out of fashion; you can get there, just start and be consistent. Most of the establishments you hear about started many years ago and today have grown big,” he said.

    WEPSS Project Head, Nancy Freeborn, restating the company’s commitment to women empowerment, said apart from the tailoring skills acquired, the programme also inculcated “soft skills” including personal hygiene and how to run successful businesses after graduation.

    She said: “The skill you have been given is a gift from INTELS through the Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS). That skill is what has allowed you to explore new ideas to create and to design. Make INTELS proud by putting into use the skills that you have acquired. It gives us a lot of joy when we go on our follow-up exercise and see people who are really putting into use the skill they have acquired.”

    Twenty-six-year-old Esther Osarodanwi, who emerged the best performing beneficiary, was provided with a start-up kit which include an industrial sewing machine, steam iron, chair, scissors, seam ripper, box of tailors’ chalk and a measuring tape.

    Osarodanwi, who broke down in tears while receiving her certificate and the start-up kits, showered encomiums on the management of INTELS for impacting positively on women through the acclaimed empowerment scheme.

    She said the skill acquired during the training has helped develop her passion for tailoring and fashion design.

  • INTELS graduates 80 women under WEPSS

    INTELS Nigeria Limited, an Oil and gas logistics operator, has graduated a batch of 80 women under its Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS). WEPSS, which is a Corporate Social Responsibility programme of INTELS, was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women drawn from various parts of Nigeria over a 20- year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    So far, more than 1000 women drawn from various communities have been empowered through the project. The successful trainees are the first batch of beneficiaries admitted into the scheme last January.

    Speaking at the graduation ceremony held at the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne, Rivers State on at the weekend, the General Manager, Legal and Corporate Services of INTELS Nigeria Limited, Mr. Mike Epelle, who represented the company’s Managing Director, expressed delight with the impact of the programme on beneficiaries since inception.

    He said: “This is a programme that the management of INTELS Nigeria Limited holds very dear to its heart. We are so proud and happy to know that this has continued right from the time it started and sustained up till date.

    “It was the dream of the wife of the founder of INTELS that there should be something like this set up for the women because it appears we have been paying too much attention to the men. So the idea is to have a balance. Let there be something that can be done for women and that is how this programme started.”

    He advised the beneficiaries to make necessary sacrifices required to put the skills they acquired during their training to good use.

    “Invest your earnings in the business. There will be enjoyment as the years go by but sustain and invest in the business. From the little you will start with, you can multiply and employ people. Look for the success stories, don’t let the training you have acquired here go down the drain. If you apply yourself well to what you have learnt and develop yourself even more, you will certainly be a success story.

    “Many people are making a huge living out of fashion; you can get there, just start and be consistent. Most of the establishment you hear about started many years ago and today have grown big,” he said.

    In her remarks, WEPSS Project Head, Nancy Freeborn, while restating the company’s commitment to women empowerment, said that apart from the tailoring skills acquired, the programme also inculcated “soft skills” including personal hygiene and how to run successful businesses after graduation.

    “She said, “The skill you have been given is a gift from INTELS through the Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS). That skill is what has allowed you to explore new ideas to create and to design. Make INTELS proud by putting into use the skills that you have acquired. It gives us a lot of joy when we go on our follow-up exercise and see people who are really putting into use the skill they have acquired.”

    26 years old Esther Osarodanwi, who emerged the best performing beneficiary was provided with a start-up kit which include an industrial sewing machine, steam iron, chair, scissors, seam ripper, box of tailors’ chalk and a measuring tape.

    Osarodanwi, who broke down in tears while receiving her certificate and the start-up kits, showered encomiums on the management of INTELS for impacting positively on women through the acclaimed empowerment scheme.

    She said the skill acquired during the training has helped develop her passion for tailoring and fashion design.

  • INTELS empowers fresh batch of 92 women

    Nigeria’s leading oil and gas logistics company, INTELS Nigeria Limited, has trained a fresh batch of 92 women under its Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS).

    WEPSS, a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme of INTELS, was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women in the Niger Delta over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    The trainees are the second batch of 110 intakes last year. Seventy-seven women had earlier in the year graduated in the first batch.

    An 18-year-old Joy Tom-West emerged the best performing trainee, winning a start-up kit, which included an industrial sewing machine, steam iron, chair, scissors, seam ripper, box of tailors’ chalk and a measuring tape.

    Phillip Embleton, who represented the company’s Managing Director at the event, urged the trainees to use their newly acquired skills for the development of self and community. He also encouraged them to appreciate the dedication and hard work put in by their trainers over the course of the four months the programme lasted.

    Embleton said: “These are our successful candidates of the second session of the WEPSS scheme for 2018. I hope you give a big thank you to all your trainers because they have worked very hard.

    “As you know, this is a community empowerment scheme, so I hope this training will help you in your careers and with your future lives; to use the skills that you have learned for good.”

    WEPSS Project Head, Nancy Freeborn, described the occasion as special because WEPSS clocked five years last November.

    She said: “This graduation is a special one for us because in November 2018, WEPSS turned five. We are very proud to be a part of the journey to success. This project was established in 2013 with the aim of empowering community women through the acquisition of tailoring skills. The project commenced on November 6, 2013 with an intake of 300 rural women.

    “These women were trained for a period of nine months, using different specialised machines and after that, all were retained as factory hands.

    They remained at WEPSS, working and producing garments. It will interest you to know that WEPSS has produced over 50,000 garments over this period. We have been able to produce this much within our manufacturing infrastructure.

    Freeborn said WEPSS has, over the years, increased its focus on training programmes while placing less emphasis on garment manufacturing, adding that the centre currently absorbs a minimum of 300 trainees annually, who are taught to produce different types of garments.

    She said: “Through this scheme, INTELS has contributed to the national economy by continuously deploying materials and machines from the global market, thereby promoting Nigerian content development. You would be so amazed to see the types of garments that we have made here, all to international standards.”

    Freeborn added that WEPSS also donated some of its products to charity homes.

    “Every year, WEPSS makes thousands of garments for different charity homes. This year 1,050 garments were donated to the Compassion Centre for the Physically Challenged in Port Harcourt,” she said.

    INTELS Regional Human Resources Manager, Michael Ndon, who was represented at the event by Gabriel Chujor, said: “It is amazing to see what you have done here. All the trainees have done so much. Opportunity has been given to you and you must grab it with two hands. Regardless of your circumstances, all of you have done exceedingly well.”

    What we expect of you is to hear great things from you in the next few years to come. Don’t let your time here be wasted. INTELS has assisted you; it is now left for you to go out there and do your best.”

     

  • INTELS graduates 77 women on empowerment programme

    No fewer than 77 women have graduated from the Nigeria’s oil and gas logistics giant, INTELS Nigeria Limited Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS), it was learnt.

    WEPSS is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme of INTELS established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    Findings revealed that more than 700 women drawn from various communities in the Niger Delta region and other parts of the country have benefited from the project.

    INTELS Director, Mr. Silvano Bellinato, who led other top management staff of the company to the colourful graduation ceremony, commended the trainers and trainees for their commitment to the realisation of the vision of the organisers of the scheme.

    Bellinato said, INTELS has  made substantial investment in developing the women empowerment centre, which is equipped with modern specialised machines, cutting edge technology and staffed by well-trained personnel.

    “To ensure that participants get the best of training, we built a 5000-square metres garment manufacturing facility at the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne for the purpose of the WEPSS training.

    “The training facility demonstrates our commitment of giving back to our host community and the larger Nigerian society.”

    The INTELS Director added that WEPSS is run by a team of highly skilled indigenous manpower.

    The head of the scheme, Nancy Freeborn, described the training as the most outstanding since the inception of the programme.

    The best graduating woman, Ogbuenyi Evelyn Okwudili, was awarded with start-up kits which include an industrial sewing machine, steam iron, chair, scissors, seam ripper, box of tailors, chalk and a measuring tape.

    Okwudili said: “I was so surprised my name was called up. We were about five trainees who were going for that spot. I am excited and grateful to INTELS and my trainers.”

  • INTELS provides computers, ICT training for less privileged children

    The management of Nigeria’s oil and gas logistics giant, INTELS Nigeria Limited, has again demonstrated its caring and compassionate side as it has reached out, once more, to less privileged children in the society.

    The beneficiaries were the children of the Compassion Centre, Port Harcourt, Rivers State who have received 12 fully operational computer systems with access to broadband internet.

    Some of the children of the Centre are also currently undergoing training on Information Communication Technology (ICT) courtesy of INTELS Nigeria Limited to prepare them for a well-rounded future.

    The Centre, which has received series of support from INTELS in more than three decades, was established and managed by the Religious Sisters of Charity. It was set up as a home to support, educate and rehabilitate physically challenged children in the society.

    “We have successfully started the ICT training at the Compassion Centre. The management of the home have been expressing their heart-felt gratitude to INTELS. They are full of thanks for this social service rendered by our company and have promised to ensure that all their pupils take full advantage of this unique opportunity,” says Ngozi Kingsley-Opara, ICT Training Specialist at INTELS Training Academy.

    Kingsley-Opara said while INTELS has been consistent in supporting the children home over the years, the latest donation of computers and free ICT training is a sure way of preparing the less privileged children for a brighter future.

    She said in addition to the computers and the ICT training, INTELS has also provided internet services at the Centre because “the internet today has undoubtedly become a huge part of our lives and we cannot afford to leave these precious children behind”.

    She said the children stand to benefit tremendously from the new computer centre and the knowledge of ICT in the course of their studies because the world of computers is packed full of useful information and new knowledge.

    Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Kingsley-Opara said, is important in a child’s educational pursuit because studies have shown that it enables children gain knowledge faster and attain learning independence.

    She said, “Students all over the world now use computers and the internet as source of education. These days, there are several online programs and learning packages available to students to aid their study and learn more about their world right in the comfort of their homes. Our desire is to bring online libraries and other global learning resources at the disposal of the children. It is our belief that their physical challenges or humble backgrounds should not deprive them of readily available learning resources. They should not be deprived, by any means, of the opportunity to belong to the future.”

    She added that INTELS is holding the ICT training twice a month to cover all classes and children at the home.

    “We run two sessions of training, morning and afternoon, each training day so as to be able to cover much ground. The primary six pupils have only this term remaining to stay in the Centre so we have decided to pay more attention to them to enable them gain more computer skills before they finish,” she said.

  • INTELS’ N1.2b market for Onne community

    Nigeria’s oil and gas logistics giant INTELS Nigeria Limited has expanded its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) with the building of a N1.2b market for its host community, Onne, in Rivers State.

    The completed market is soon to be handed over to the community after the construction of the road leading to it.

    Besides, no fewer than 66 physically-challenged persons have been granted scholarships which cover primary, secondary and tertiary education. The scholarship scheme was set up in 2003.

    More than 700 women have also been trained and empowered by the company through its internationally-acclaimed Women Empowerment Programme Scheme Synergy (WEPSS).

    The WEPSS was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring.

    INTELS Nigeria Limited General Manger Silvano Bellinato, at Italian, said at the weekend in Onne that the ultramodern market was built as part of the firm’s focus on critical areas of intervention including creation of employment, empowerment and provision of development projects for host communities.

    He said INTELS adopted an integrated participatory approach to its CSR and community development projects.

    “At INTELS, our CSR is tailored to create an environment in which the host communities and the company become fundamentally interdependent, where understanding is mutual and commitment to growth and development total,” he said.

    Bellinato said to ensure successful implementation of the WEPSS initiative, INTELS acquired and made available over 300 sewing and specialised machines and built a 5000-square metres garment manufacturing factory at the Federal Lighter Terminal (FLT), Onne for the training.

    Recently, the company was honoured by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) for its outstanding contribution to the development of its host communities.

    NSC conferred the “Most Outstanding Terminal Operator in Corporate Social Responsibility” award on INTELS.

    Also, the Paramount Ruler of Onne Clan in Rivers State, King John Dennis Osaronu described the firm as “a company Nigerians must be proud of”.

    He said INTELS had provided roads, drainages, streetlights, medical services and several other amenities to the community. He also commended INTELS for empowering women and youth in the community.

    INTELS Nigeria Limited developed and operates its major base within the Oil and Gas Free Zone, Onne, Rivers State. The company is also a concessionaire to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); operating dedicated oil and gas terminals at the ports of Onne, Calabar and Warri.

  • TSA: INTELS pays N13.2b to NPA

    TSA: INTELS pays N13.2b to NPA

    INTELS Nigeria Limited has paid $42.6 million (N13.2 billion) to the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA)’s Single Treasury Single Account (TSA), NPA Managing Director Ms Hadiza Bala Usman said yesterday.

    She told members of the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee probing the strain in relationship between the two organisations, that the company after receiving termination notice from the Agency, wrote to apologise for not complying with the TSA and the new sharing formula.

    She said as a result, INTELS has paid the sum $28.1million into the Agency’s TSA account with a notice of additional $14.5million said to have been paid, but yet to be confirmed by the NPA.

    “The implementation of TSA by the Federal Government compelled the authority to remit revenue generated directly into government coffers while NPA in turn pays agency fees of 28 percent of whatever was generated to INTELS,” she said.

    She said according to NPA’s calculation of $4 million per month as government’s share, based on the previous agreement, what accrued to NPA would be $48 million.

    Usman said NPA has two layers of relationship with INTELS namely management agency where it collects revenues on behalf of NPA and keeps 28 percent and port infrastructure development on the basis of which INTELS constructed and manages the Onne Port in Rivers State.

    She explained that the initial agreement gave INTEL the powers to generate and keep 28 percent of revenue collected on behalf of NPA.

    “The NPA under the new management had to come up with a new draft that incorporated a sharing formula in a model that complies with the TSA, which was why we said they should start remitting directly to the TSA while the NPA pays its 28 percent agency fees,” she added.

    The agreement, according to her, expires in 2020, which makes it 10 years.

  • 700 women apply for INTELS 2018 training

    No fewer than 700 women have applied for admission into the 2018 Women Empowerment Programme Synergy Scheme (WEPSS) of oil and gas logistics giant, INTELS Nigeria Limited.

    The CSR initiative of INTELS, WEPSS was established in 2013 with the vision of empowering 5,000 community women over a 20-year period through training in fashion design and tailoring. To date, more than 500  women have been empowered through the project.

    A Director of the firm, Silvano Bellinato, said the company remains resolute in enhancing the lives of people in its area of operation, and as well committed to the development of communities in its  areas of operation.

    He said to ensure the successful implementation of the WEPSS initiative, INTELS acquired over 300 sewing and specialised machines and built a 5000-square metres garment manufacturing factory at the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne for the purpose of the training.

    The Head of WEPSS, Abhina Ajmani, said this is the fifth session of the programme. Out of the 700 women that applied, we admitted 125.

    “This training is free and lasts for four months per set. Everything has been done to ensure the beneficiaries give their full commitment to acquiring skills that will empower them for life.”