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Tag: Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)

  • NUPENG urges FG, LASG to provide parking space for tankers

    NUPENG urges FG, LASG to provide parking space for tankers

    The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) on Thursday urged Lagos State and Federal Government to provide parking space for petroleum tankers to reduce gridlock in the state.

    Alhaji Tokunbo Korodo, the South-West Chairman of the union gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

    Korodo said that lack of standard parking space in and around Apapa, where majority of private tank farms were located had resulted to gridlock on Lagos roads.

    “There is no standard parking space in and around Apapa, the parking space at Orile-Iganmu has been reduced drastically due to the extension of Orile-Badagry road.

    “When petroleum tankers want to load product at any depot which has the capacity of loading over 100 tankers a day and there is no space to park, the driver will be forced to park on major road.

    “At present only few depots in Apapa tank farm depot are loading products and this has resulted to gridlock because many of these trucks are on queue waiting for their turn,’’ he said.

    The chairman said that bad road along the tank farms also contributed to the gridlock.

    “Most of the roads to these depots are not accessible to tankers because they are in a bad state.

    “So, any truck going through Apapa Marine Bridge road will be struggling with smaller ones and this may result to accident.

    “If our roads are in good condition, many of our trucks would not be damaged on the roads,’’ he said.

    Korodo, however, said that if all Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) loading depots in the country were operational, there won’t be need for migration of tankers to Lagos.

    “We believe that if all NNPC depots nationwide are loading products, there will be no gridlock of tankers in Lagos.

    “But only Mosinmi depot is loading out of six depots in the South-West, thereby resulting in tankers coming to Lagos depots to load products in Apapa tank farms,’’ he said.

  • Reps uncover $15bn unremitted oil, gas revenue

    Reps uncover $15bn unremitted oil, gas revenue

    House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee investigating allegedly missing 17 billion dollars crude oil and Liquified Natural Gas revenue, on Monday uncovered 15 billion dollars unremitted revenue into Federation Account.

    The trace of the alleged missing fund believed to have been stolen and diverted to a foreign destination, was contained in the two documents submitted by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) at the committee’s sitting.

    While responding to questions from members of the committee, Mr Rabiu Bello, NNPC’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), admitted that there were discrepancies in the documents.

    In his presentation earlier, Mr Jack Ukitetu, a Director in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), who represented the bank’s Governor, explained that the Accountant-General of the Federation approved and determined the money accrued to the Excess Crude Account.

    Ukitetu said that before 2006, the CBN collected the money on behalf of government’s agencies and remitted into the Federal Reserve Account in New York and charged 0.25 per cent.

    He, however, added that after 2006, the oil companies paid directly what was due to the government.

    On commissions being collected by the apex bank, the director told the lawmakers that the CBN collected 0.25 per cent via foreign exchange allocation and did not charge the Federal Government as deduction were made from central sales.

    Meanwhile, Mr Waziri Adio, Executive Secretary of Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI), who had accused NNPC and CBN of misleading the ad hoc committee, pleaded to withdraw the earlier documents submitted.

    He, however, pledged to submit “more damaging documents” on the alleged crude oil theft to the committee on Wednesday “ which will help in unearthing the unremitted revenue accrued from oil and gas but not remitted”.

    Speaking earlier, Chairman of the committee, Rep. Abdulrazak Namdas, said that the committee would not hesitate to submit its report to the House without the inputs of major Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) which failed to honour the committee’s invitation.

    Toward this, the committee mandated the CBN and NNPC to submit the audited report of the oil and gas account showing the remitted funds into the Federation Account between 2011 and 2014.

    The NNPC was also directed to submit the Bill of Laden relating to the 974,721 barrels of crude oil lifted on Oct. 20, 2011 and 961,963 barrels lifted on Oct. 10, 2011.

    It also included 974, 935 barrels lifted on July 9, 2011 and 974,953 barrels lifted on July 18, 2011 but were not declared.

    The lawmakers also requested for report of the reconciliation conducted by NNPC and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) as well as the list of oil off-takers for 2013 and 2014.

    Similarly, NNPC is expected to provide details of the companies that paid oil tax between 2011 and 2014 as well as the Letter of Credits (LCs) of all the monies paid into the Federation Account within the period.

  • NNPC mulls collaboration with Bayelsa on power, fertiliser plants

    NNPC mulls collaboration with Bayelsa on power, fertiliser plants

    The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on Thursday said the corporation  would collaborate with the Bayelsa government to build a power plant in the state.

    Dr Maikanti Baru said this while receiving the  Gov Seriake Dickson, at the NNPC Towers in Abuja.

    According to Baru, the power plant will be built at the state’s proposed industrial park while the collaboration will afford the state and the NNPC the opportunity to share technical knowledge that will attract investors to the Niger Delta region.

    He said, ”We have a lot of areas of collaboration.

    ”The NNPC will support Bayelsa State Government every inch of the way to deliver on the power plant in the proposed industrial park, ensure security of oil and gas infrastructure and siting of other inclusive projects that would improve the lives of the people in the communities.”

    Baru added that Bayelsa was earmarked for the Federal Government’s Greenfield Modular Refinery project, feasibility studies had been concluded but the project was stalled due to the withdrawal of foreign partners.

    He said the delay on the Final Investment Decision (FID) of Brass Liquefied Natural Gas (BLNG), was because a market window for the product was being arranged.

    ”We have spent a lot of money on the Brass LNG project and we had planned the FID for 2012 but the shareholders were unable to secure the market due to new plants in East Africa and other developments in the industry.

    ”What the shareholders in Brass LNG are doing now is to redesign the plant and secure a market because without the market the project cannot go on,” he said.

    Baru also expressed interest in the state’s Brass Fertilizer Company, assuring that NNPC was prepared to invest in the project as a shareholder.

    He pledged that the corporation would rally its Joint Venture partners to support the State Trust Fund in order to mitigate the incidences of pipeline vandalism which impact negatively on the efficiency of the operators as well as the environment.

    Gov. Seriake Dickson had earlier said the visit was to appreciate Baru’s laudable efforts and to solicit the Corporation’s support for the state’s security, development and the Oil and Gas industry.

    Dickson said his state would seek an Oil Prospecting License, OPL, whenever the industry undertakes another bid round.

    He noted that his state needed such investment, over time, to augment the monthly allocation from the Federal Government.

  • Indonesia seeks more crude from Nigeria – Ambassador

    Indonesia seeks more crude from Nigeria – Ambassador

    Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Harry Purwanto, on Wednesday indicated his country’s interest to purchase more crude oil from Nigeria.

    Purwanto declared the South-East Asian country’s interest in Abuja when he paid a courtesy visit to the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr Maikanti Baru.

    In a statement signed by Mr Ndu Ughamadu, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Purwanto, said Indonesia looked forward to lifting crude oil directly from Nigeria, rather than through a third-party as is currently the case.

    He said his country’s president Joko Widodo, had instructed Indonesia National Oil Company, Pertamina, to direct its attention to Nigeria in its quest to meet that country’s surging energy needs.

    Purwanto, according to the statement, extended an invitation to the NNPC to grace the Indonesia-Nigeria Business Forum holding in Lagos.

    The statement said a Memorandum of Understanding, on possible areas of co-operation between the two countries was in the works.

    Ughamadu said the call by the ambassador signified the prospects of soaring Nigeria’s market share in Asian emerging economies which include China and India, having lost grounds in crude oil sales in the U. S. due to shale oil exploration.

    He said although Indonesia produced 900,000 barrels of crude oil per day, it supplements its 1.4 million barrels per day consumption with supplies from Nigeria, 18 per cent and Saudi Arabia, 28 per cent.

    In his response Baru said NNPC was interested in working with Indonesia on its initiative to replace firewood and kerosene with Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) as primary domestic fuel for cooking.

    He acknowledged that the corporation was aware of the huge success of the kerosene substitution programme in Indonesia and would like a collaboration to help Nigeria achieve a similar feat.

    Baru added that the NNPC would like to partner with Indonesia in the area of bio-fuels production to diversify the nation’s energy mix and meet its energy needs.

    He challenged Indonesia to consider participating in an upcoming bid round in order to realize its aspiration of maintaining a presence in the Nigerian oil and gas sector.

  • PIB: Senate scraps NNPC, creates three new agencies

    PIB: Senate scraps NNPC, creates three new agencies

    At last, the Senate on Thursday passed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), putting paid to the controversy that dogged the bill ford over 10 years.

    Some of the highlights of the bill is the scraping of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the merging of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Petroleum Products Pricing, Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) and the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF) into one agency.

    To replace the NNPC are the National Petroleum Company (NPC) and Nigerian Petroleum Assets Management Company (NPAMC), to ensure efficient and effective commercial performance. The new bill also streamlined the role of the Petroleum Minister.

    According to the bill, the NPC and the NPAMC will be under the supervision of a newly created Petroleum Regulatory Commission (PRC).

    The PRC “shall be the Industry Regulator and Watchdog, responsible for licensing, monitoring, supervision of petroleum operations, enforcing laws, regulations and standards across the value chain”, the bill added.

    Under the envisaged regime, the PRC will also absorb the DPR, PPPRA and the PEF, “to ensure efficient and effective commercial performance in the petroleum sector”

    It is also geared toward creating efficient and effective governing institutions with clear and separate roles for the petroleum industry, in addition to establishing a framework for the creation of commercially oriented and profit driven petroleum entities.

    This, according to the bill, will ensure value addition and internationalization of the petroleum industry, promote transparency and accountability in the administration of petroleum resources and foster a conducive business environment for petroleum industry operations.

    Other highlights of the bill is a provision in section 26(3) where it gives the regulatory commission 10% cost of collection of revenues from other commercial agencies.

    “The Commission shall establish and maintain a fund (‘the Fund’) from which all expenditures incurred by the Commission shall be defrayed. The NPRC is also empowered by the bill to spend ten percent of what it generates for its operations”, the provision added.

    The lawmakers rejected the controversial 10% Host Fund that led to disagreements among various interests in the past, leading to long delay in the passage of the bill.

    The Senate deferred work on the Host Community Fund and fiscal aspect of the bill till later date.

    The chairman, Senate committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Senator Tayo Alasoadura, said the bill would create more jobs for Nigerians and also foster a conducive business environment for petroleum operations when signed into law.

    According to him, the bill promises immense benefits for local operations in the petroleum industry.

    Alasoadura added that with the bill, it will become illegal to employ foreigners for certain skills that can be sourced locally.

    “And even where such skills are sourced from abroad, due to unavailability locally, it would be mandatory for Nigerians to understudy such an expatriate”, he added.

    The senator further stated that the PIB will not only enhance exploitation and exploration of petroleum resources in the country, it will also increase power generation and industrial development capacity through abundant domestic gas supply.

    The committee chair also said that the law would also create profit-driven oil entities, encourage investment in the nation’s petroleum industry and tremendously increase government’s revenue.

    “Government revenue from oil industry will increase. This means more funds in the hands of government to engage in developmental activities. The downstream sector will become fully deregulated. In other words, subsidy will be totally removed”.

    The envisaged law, he continued, will also bring about a fully deregulated and liberalized downstream petroleum sector, create efficient and effective regulatory agencies and promote the development of Nigerian local content in the oil industry.

    He said, “Besides, emphasis on local content will not only be in the area of skills, but would also be applicable to material sourcing. This means more jobs for Nigerian local contractors, especially those from the oil producing regions”,

    “The PIB vests ownership and management of all petroleum resources, offshore or onshore, in the Federal Government of Nigeria, which is to manage them on behalf of all Nigerians.

    “This means that irrespective of where the oil is found, it belongs to the government of Nigeria. Of course, equity calls for special consideration for localities where the resources are mined. This is taken care of by the revenue sharing laws and other provisions of this Bill, like the Host Community Fund”.

    The lawmaker also stated that since gas is still under-focused in Nigeria and its potential as a source of energy untapped, the PIB seeks to maximize the benefits of the nation’s gas resources.

    He added that the PIB will also lead to the establishment of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Investment Pact Scheme (NOGIPS) which will ensure that components of the oil industry equipment can be manufactured locally.

    According to him, the envisaged law further makes provision for the protection of health, safety and the environment in petroleum operations.

    In his remarks, the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki described the exercise as the first segment in the passage of the bill.

    The Senate, he assured, would ensure the opening up of the petroleum sector, and by extension, the economy of the country on a tripod of transparency, efficiency and profitability for both the government and players in the field.

     

  • Court grants ex-NNPC GMD Yakubu three weeks medical leave

    Court grants ex-NNPC GMD Yakubu three weeks medical leave

    Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja on Wednesday granted the former Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu, leave to travel abroad to continue his medical treatment.

    Yakubu was arraigned on a six-count charge of money laundering and false asset declaration.

    Justice Mohammed said since the prosecution counsel, Prince Ben Ikani, did not object to the application made by defence counsel Ahmed Raji (SAN), he will grant the defendant leave to travel abroad.

    TRENDING: ‘My husband is not the father of my son’, wife tells court

     

    Some of the money found

    The judge ordered that Yakubu’s international passport be released to him. 

    At the hearing of the application, counsel to Yakubu informed the court of the motion seeking permission to allow the defendant to travel abroad to attend to his failing health.

    Raji asked the court to permit the release of the defendant’s international passport so that if the application is granted, he would be able to travel for the proposed treatment.

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    In his ruling, the judge said:”The defendant must come back to the country after three weeks to continue his trial.

    “One of the sureties must depose to an affidavit to be liable.”

    Justice Mohammed adjourned till July 6 for the continuation of trial.

  • NNPC woos Chinese investors for research

    NNPC woos Chinese investors for research

    Amidst volatility in crude oil prices in the international market and the need to seek a fortune in non-core oil sector to stay afloat, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has established contacts with some Chinese investors to partner in its Research and Development, R&D, venture.

    NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Ventures, Dr. Babatunde Adeniran, who declared this recently at the 10th edition of the Annual Sub-Saharan Africa Oil and Gas Conference in Houston, Texas, affirmed that response from the Chinese prospects had been favourable.

    Dr. Adeniran said in addition to the Chinese who were being invited to partner with NNPC in Research and Development, NNPC had also flung its dragnet wide open to let in American investors too.

    The corporation made this known in a statement Wednesday.

    According to the statement, he said that there had been low investment in Industry R & D in Sub-Sahara Africa, necessitating NNPC’s commitment to key in to maximize available opportunity in the sub-sector.

    Dr. Adeniran further outlined other non-core oil and gas sectors that are of interest to NNPC to include: healthcare, shipping as well as telecommunications.

    Dr. Adeniran, who made a presentation alongside other West African Industry Stakeholders at the conference, said NNPC had 52 clinics across Nigeria, a healthcare investment which he observed, fewer establishments could boast of.

    “NNPC Medical is already talking to top class medical centres across the world for partnership. Billions of dollars went into medical tourism in Nigeria yearly.  NNPC is poised to take advantage of the gaps in the healthcare delivery in Nigeria,” he said.

    From 2014 to 2016, the global oil and gas industry has witnessed a precipitous dip in crude oil prices, bringing in its wake, more than 25 per cent drop in global spend on exploration and production. The slum has been attributed mostly to excess in supply of the black gold.

    Dr. Adeniran enjoined oil companies worldwide to think outside the box to fix challenges currently plaguing the industry.

    To weather the storm in the current dispensation, Dr. Adeniran, said oil companies must re-think the essence of their business and their role in the value chain, while demonstrating astuteness in spotting and capturing business opportunities in ancillary services, among others.

    He added that oil companies, at a time like this, must prioritize profitable growth to guard against dissipating valuable resources and energies on developing unprofitable assets, adding that the current situation in the industry also required that the workforces are flexible to navigate the new era of volatility.

     

  • Ubah’s diversion of N11b PMS meant to cause artificial scarcity – DSS

    Ubah’s diversion of N11b PMS meant to cause artificial scarcity – DSS

    …Says offence punishable by death

     

    The Department of State Services (DSS) said Tuesday that detained businessman, Ifeanyi Ubah was plotting to plunge the nation into economic and social crises by creating artificial scarcity of petroleum product with his alleged diversion of the over 80million litters stored in his facility.

    The DSS said the alleged diversion of the product by Ubah was not only stealing, but an attempt to cripple the nation’s economy (petroleum being the main source of the nation’s revenue), act punishable by death under the Petroleum Product and Distribution (Anti-Sabotage) Act, 2004.

    A lawyer to the DSS, G. Agbadua said these while arguing a counter-affidavit filed by his client in opposition to an application by Ubah, seeking the vacation of an order granted to the DSS on May 10 for his detention for 14 days pending the completion of investigation.

    Ubah has been in DSS’ custody since his arrest earlier this month following complaint by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), alleging that the businessman diverted the over 80million litres kept in the tank farm of his company, Capital oil and Gas limited based in Lagos.

    The DSS said Ubah’s continued detention is based on the order granted by Justice Halilu Yusuf of the High Court of the federal Capital territory (FCT) in Jabi, an order which Ubah has applied to be set aside, arguing, among others, that the court was misled by the DSS, which allegedly surprised material facts from the court.

    Agbadua, in a written address he adopted yesterday, contended that, as against the argument by Ubah that the diversion was purely a civil case; his action was criminal and was allegedly intended to threaten the nation’s economy.

    While justifying the DSS’ involvement in the case, Agbadua argued that the alleged offence falls within such issues that the DSS could investigate. He said the act was not only punishable under the Petroleum Product and Distribution (Anti-Sabotage) Act, 2004, but also under Section 383 of the Criminal Code.

    Agbadua stressed, in his written statement, that: “The action of the respondent (Ubah) to sabotage the distribution of petroleum products is a capital offence under the Petroleum Product and Distribution (Anti-Sabotage) Act, 2004.

    “The act of the respondent was capable of plunging the country into chaos as a result of scarcity of product had the NNPC not taken a proactive step to forestall such situation. This clearly brings the action of the respondent under the provision of the Petroleum Product and Distribution (Anti-Sabotage) Act, 2004.

    “The punishment of sabotage under this Act attracts death penalty.  It is clear that the respondent was arrested for the conversion of the property of NNPC. It is not just an ordinary stealing, it is stealing of the lifeblood of the nation.

    “Oil is the major source of revenue of the Federal Government. Stealing of the revenue is a crime against the economic interest of Nigeria and therefore, falls within the purview of economic threat of national security dimension,” Agbadua said.

    He said the gravity of the alleged offence informed why a diligent investigation was required to ensure prompt prosecution of the respondent, a position which informed why the applicant (DSS) sought the permission of the court to detain him pending the conclusion of investigation.

    The DSS explained its involvement in the case in its counter-affidavit, in which it said that “the respondent was arrested on reasonable suspicion of his involvement in the commission of crime. He converted PMS belonging to the NNPC kept in the custody of his tank farm to his personal use.

    “The respondent refused to return the PMS to NNPC after repeated demands. The PMS is worth over N11billion. The action of the respondent is affecting the distribution of petroleum products to the populace.

    “The action of the respondent is sabotage of NNPC’s activities as it relates to distribution of petroleum products. If not for the urgent steps taken by the Federal Government, the action of the respondent would have plunged the country into widespread scarcity with its attendant effect on the economy.

    “Petroleum is the lifeblood of Nigerian economy. NNPC is a major stakeholder in the petroleum industry in Nigeria. An attack on the Nigerian economy is an economic threat of national security dimension. The Nigerian populace will suffer untold hardship if NNPC is unable to discharge its statutory responsibilities, including distribution of petroleum products as well as generating revenue for the country.

    “The action of the respondent, if not checked, is capable of undermining the NNPC in the discharge of its duties.  Investigation into the activities of the respondent Is yet to be completed. A premature released of the respondent will adversely impact on the investigation, which is nearing completion.”

    Arguing Ubah’s application earlier, his lawyer, Mrs. Ifeoma Esom prayed the court to either set aside its order of May 10 or order her client’s release because his continued detention was unjustified.

    She argued that the issue on which he was being held was purely civil and contractual, and in respect of which provisions have been made for penalty in the case of default.

    Mrs Esom stated that Capital Oil and Gas has been one of the largest “throughput provider” for the NNPC   for a long time and that providers of such services are allowed to either convert or divert products kept with it as long as it can re-deliver the product within seven days or to pay penalty for non-redelivery.

    “The failure to re-deliver is expressly stated by the contract to be a mere breach of contract, remediable by the payment of penalty to the owner.

    “There can therefore be no issue of crime in conversion of products under a throughput contract (regardless of the ordinary connotations of those words,” Mrs. Esom said.

    After listening to the lawyers, Justice Yusuf adjourned to May 25 for ruling.

     

  • Court to decide Ifeanyi Ubah’s release Thursday

    Court to decide Ifeanyi Ubah’s release Thursday

    A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Jabi will rule Thursday on the application by businessman, Ifeanyi Ubah seeking the vacation of its earlier order granting the Department of State Services (DSS) permission to detain him.

    Justice Haliru Yusuf gave the date while adjourning proceedings in the case earlier today after listening to lawyers representing parties argued for and against the application.

    Ubah, who was arrested by the DSS, is being detained by the agency upon an order for detention for 14 days (in the first instance) granted it on May 10 this year, by the court.

    The businessman is being detained over allegation of his involvement in acts amounting to economic sabotage by purportedly diverting petroleum motor spirit (PMS) stored in his tank farm by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), estimated at over N11billion.

    Details later…