The Nation Newspaper

Tag: John Ofikhenua

  • NERC fines Benin, Port Harcourt DisCos N6.2m

    NERC fines Benin, Port Harcourt DisCos N6.2m

    The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has fined Benin and Port Harcourt electricity distribution companies N6.220 million over failure to comply with the decisions of Forum Offices rulings in complaints filed by their respective customers. 

    The Commission in Directive 153 imposed the sum of N5, 010, 000. 00 sanction on Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) for not complying with the decision of the Forum in complaints filed by Messrs Ikponmwosa Ogiesoba Barry; S. C. Ogoke; and F. E. Ubuane. 

    According to the commission in a statement yesterday, the Forum Office is made up of five members of the public and handles complaints that are unresolved at the customer complaint unit of electricity distribution companies. 

    Both Barry and Ubuane had filed complaints before the Benin Forum Office alleging fraudulent estimation of their electricity bills to which the Forum Office ruled in their favour, while Ogoke in his complaint contested the amount of fixed charge he was to pay the utility company. 

    However, Benin Disco ignored the directives of the Forum Office in those instances and the matter was subsequently referred to the Commission who issued Directives 153 upon completion of enforcement proceedings.    

    According to Directive 153, “The Commission hereby fines BEDC Ten Thousand Naira per day from April 14, 2016 to September 28, 2016 making a total (N1, 670, 000) One Million, Six Hundred and Seventy Thousand Naira Only” in each of the three instances bringing the fines to a grand total of (N5, 010, 000) Five Million and Ten Thousand Naira Only.  

    The Directive stipulates further, “The above notwithstanding, BEDC shall still comply with the Forum decisions” and that the fines should be paid within two weeks from September 28, 2016 when the Directive was signed after which it attracts five per cent interests daily.

    In a related development, the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC) in Directive 155 was sanctioned over its failure to comply with the Port Harcourt Forum Office decision in a complaint filed by one Toba Aremu Olugbemi. 

    The complainant had on May 11, 2016, lodged a complaint to customercare@phed.com.ng and nancy.abdala@phed.com.ng over non-availability of meter to which there was no response from PHED. Further directive from the Forum Office was also not complied with in violation of Section 11 (6) of the NERC Customer Complaints Handling: Standards and Procedure Regulation 2006 and Section 63 (1) of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act 2005. 

    PHED was consequently fined (N10, 000. 00) Ten Thousand Naira per day from May 30, 2016, to September 28, 2016, when Directive 155 was signed. The company is expected to pay the total fine within two weeks after signing of the Directives and it subsequently attracts five per cent daily for defaulting.  

  • IPMAN raises alarm as banks threaten to take over stations

    IPMAN raises alarm as banks threaten to take over stations

    • Says NNPC holds down over N60b petrol tickets for two years

    The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) on Friday cried out over the imminent move of some commercial banks to take over some petrol stations following their loan repayment defaults.

    According to its Vice President, Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi Dankigari, who disclosed this to The Nation at Abuja, the marketers could not service their loans because the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has refused to supply their over N60 billion petrol tickets since two years ago.

    He revealed that instead of loading whatever volume of petrol the over N60 billion can buy at the new pump price, the NNPC is requesting them to pay the balance before providing the products.

    He added that it is even now cheaper to buy petrol from independent depots than NNPC, which has used the ploy to tie down their fund.

    The Vice President noted that the marketers know that even after paying the balance that NNPC is requesting for, it will still take a very long time for them to get the products, hence they have resorted to patronize the private depots.

    This, he said, has made it impossible for the marketers to repay of servicing loans.

    However, all efforts by The Nation to contact the NNPC Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Malam Garba Deen Muhammad for the corporation’s side of the story, proved abortive as no reply was given to all messages put forward.

    Meanwhile, Dankigari maintained: “The implication is so high because we borrow most of the money from the bank. Automatically if NNPC refuses to load, you will find out that some of our marketers will lose their filling stations.

    “Already the banks are in courts with some of the filling stations because they failed to repay the banks. So, I am advising the NNPC to try as much as possible to load the product to the marketers so that the marketers don’t lose their filling stations. And you know that losing their filling stations means a creation of another unemployment.”

    Suggesting what NNPC should do in the situation, he advised that it should either refund the money to the marketers or sell what their outstanding N60 billion can buy to them.

    The Vice President added that it would be better for them to recover the over N60 billion from NNPC and buy from the private depots.

    He lamented about the rate at which the corporation sells petrol to the independent marketers, stressing that NNPC now sells the product at a higher rate than private depots.

    His words: “And then secondly in terms of the rate, NNPC is selling the product to the marketers at the rate of N133.28k per litre while the private depots are selling this product at the rate of N128 per litre.

    “And this same NNPC when you buy N133.28 from them, they will come to their filling stations and be selling this product at the rate of N135 per litre. So where do you expect the marketers to make their profit?

    “So it will be better for NNPC to refund our money so that we can buy from the private depots.

    But now our money is with them and whether you like it or not you must bring your money and that is the reason they are selling it at a higher rate to us and it is affecting our business.

    “And even if you complete the balance, they will create a delay tactic -before you load it will take a very long time. And that is why you see some of the marketers now abandon the NNPC tickets and they are buying from the private depots. Because they know that even after paying the balance that NNPC is asking for it is going to take a very long time for them (marketers) to get their products.”

  • NNPC deploys drones to monitor movement of oil vessels

    NNPC deploys drones to monitor movement of oil vessels

    Fresh vista to the fight against the perennial problem of oil theft and pipeline vandalism appeared on the horizon Tuesday with the disclosure by the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Ibe Kachikwu that the Corporation is working towards the deployment of drones across the nation’s territorial waters to monitor the inwards and outwards movement of oil bearing vessels.

    In a presentation at the special conference on Security in the Gulf of Guinea organized by the Gusau Institute, Dr. Kachikwu stated that the Corporation is working on a range of far reaching options designed to end the ugly episodes of crude and petroleum products theft within the next eight months.

    The press statement of the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ohi Alegbe quoted the helmsman as saying: “We are launching an armada of approaches which will include incorporation of drones to check movements of vessels within our territorial waters; We are looking at the current logistical nightmares of changing staffing at the loading bay of crude oil export terminals virtually every 90 days, We are trying to equip the navy sufficiently though they are very well equipped in terms of skill set but not in terms of arsenal for patrols within the maritime area.”

    On the issue of pipeline protection, the GMD explained that though the Corporation is working assiduously with the law enforcement agencies to increase the presence of military personnel in the area, the ultimate security for the critical oil and gas assets lies squarely with the host communities.

    “The best security for these pipelines lies with the communities. We are trying to create enough incentives for them to see these pipelines as their own,’’ he said

    Lamenting the impact of oil theft on the smooth operations of the nation’s refineries, the NNPC GMD warned that if left unchecked, the menace could invariably make it impossible for the NNPC to operate the refineries.

    “Most of our product pipelines are ruptured and attacked frequently. For instance between June 2014 and June 2015, we recorded about 3, 500 to 4,000 attempts at the various products pipelines across the country. In addition to that, the pipelines that are supposed to convey crude to the refineries are perpetually hacked, ’’ he added.

    Dr. Kachikwu noted that the resort to the use of marine vessels to convey crude to the refineries is coming at heavy cost.

    “What this means is that no matter what we do with the refineries today, unless that is solved, we really are going nowhere, we cannot operate the refineries.”

  • FG sacks NNPC’s 8 Group Executive Directors

    FG sacks NNPC’s 8 Group Executive Directors

    The Federal Government has approved the retirement of all eight Group Executive Directors of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
    According to a statement of the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ohi Alegbe on Wednesday , the affected Group Executive Directors are: Mr. Bernard Otti, GED Finance and Accounts; Dr. Timothy Okon, Acting GED Exploration and Production who also doubles as Coordinator Corporate Planning & Strategy; Engr. Adebayo Ibirogba, Engineering and Technology; Dr. David Ige, Gas and Power; Ms. Aisha Abdurrahman, Commercial and Investment; Dr. Dan Efebo, Corporate Services; Engr. Ian Udoh, Refining & Petrochemicals; and Dr. Attahiru Yusuf, Business Development.
    The statement added that the “the new Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, who personally conveyed the Federal Government’s decision to the retiring Group Executive Directors expressed gratitude to them for their services to the Corporation and wished them success in their future endeavors.”
    At press time, Ohi told our Abuja correspondent that the Federal Government had not made any replacements for the retired GED.
    He said that the retired GEDs were appointed at different times between 2012 and last year.”
    On year of appointment, he said “The were appointed at different times. Some were appointed last year, some last two years and so on.”
    The NNPC spokesman said “no replacement yet. We will confirm that by tomorrow (today). What they are writing online is all speculation.