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Tag: November

  • New electricity tariff coming in November, says NERC

    New electricity tariff coming in November, says NERC

    A new electricity tariff will come into force before November 15, the Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr Sam Amadi said yesterday.

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), human rights groups, and other consumers are opposed to a  hike in electricity tariffs. But NERC has fixed between October 30 and November 12 for the implementation of new electricity tariff.

    Amadi said there were on-going efforts to have a cost effective tariffs in Nigeria, adding that the tariffs would be implemented latest November 12.

    Amadi, who was a special guest on a national television programme monitored by our correspondent in Lagos, said the new tariffs are not going to be uniform, since there are various classes of electricity consumers in the country.

    He said some power distribution companies (DISCOs) will slightly increase their tariffs by between 20 per cent and 30 per cent, while others would impose more than 40 per cent tariffs on their customers.

    He said: ‘’ From what the DISCOs have submitted to the Commission, there are ranges of tariffs for consumers of electricity. In few DISCOs, consumers would see slight increase in tariffs of between 20 per cent and 30 per cent, while it would be higher let say 40 per cent thereabout (in others).  The charging of tariffs would be based on the cost profile of the DISCOs, the number of customers available to them and the quantity of power available to them.”

    He said the new tariffs are going to reflect the true position of things in the power sector, given the fact that the power firms are bedevilled with financial problem.

    ‘’We are introducing new electricity tariffs in November 2015 in order to capture the realities that the DISCOs are bringing to the sector.  The realities include debts owed the DISCOs; the increase in the price of gas and  rising cost of financing infrastructure used by both the power distribution and generation companies. “We are not changing the scientific methodology of fixing electricity tariffs, but we are introducing new tariffs to capture the realities on ground in order to ensure operational efficiency in the industry,’’ Dr. Amadi added.

    According to him, the country needs to generate 20,000 megawatts (Mw) of electricity before power can be stabilised.

    ‘’Conservatively, 20,000 Mw of electricity is needed to have stable electricity in Nigeria. The reason why the country needs 20,000 Mw of electricity is because not everybody in Nigeria is connected to the national grid. For instance, Dangote Group is off-grid, so also are other companies that we cannot include them in the 20,000Mw estimate,’’ he said.

  • ‘Foreign reserves lost $1.96b in November’

    Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has shown that official reserves decreased by $1.96 billion last month to $36.8 billion. The decline, analysts at FBN Capital said, could be attributed to a fall in foreign exchange inflows following the sharp decline in the price of crude oil and the exit of some offshore portfolio investors at a time when demand was little changed.

    Head, African Markets at FBN Capital, Olubunmi Ashaolu said the bi-weekly sales of foreign exchange at the CBN’s retail Dutch auction system (RDAS) declined by $700 million from the previous month to $2.29 billion

    However, this merely reflects the CBN circular excluding specific import transactions (such as electronics, finished goods and generators) from the RDAS window. Authorised dealers were thereby driven to source these transactions for their customers on the interbank market.

    At current levels, he said Nigeria’s external reserves are sufficient to provide cover for 8.2 months of merchandise imports. However, once services are included, the ratio drops to 5.6 months.

    A cursory look at the sectoral utilisation of foreign exchange in second quarter of thus year showed that the oil and gas sector accounted for 32 per cent of the total.

    This consisted largely of petroleum products, for which the import bill should have since declined sharply. As a rough guide, the spot price of Bonny Light averaged as much as $112/barrel in the quarter compared with about $70/barrel currently.

    He said: “Looking further ahead, the bill would be reduced by deregulation of the fuel price and the resulting increase in domestic refining capacity.

    “One area where notable progress has been made is the agric sector as significant investments have been made to expand domestic production of rice. In our view, the Federal Government should deepen its transformation agenda based on backward integration to reduce Nigeria’s hearty appetite for imports.”

    The CBN said the decrease was driven largely by the increased funding of the foreign exchange market in the face of intense pressure on the naira and the need to maintain stability.

    It added that the pressure on external reserves was deemed to be consistent with the seasonal annual payment of dividends to foreign investors.

  • U.S. added another 200,000 jobs in November

    The economy has settled nicely into hiring grove since the early spring, adding more than 238,000 jobs a month and putting the U.S. on a path to produce the strongest employment gains in 15 years.

    What’s still missing, however, is a big uptick in wages that typically occurs when the unemployment rate shrinks quickly, or the occasional huge job gain in the 350,000-plus range, the telltale sign of an economy in full-blown recovery mode.

    Wall Street is expecting more of the same when the November employment report is released on Friday. Economists polled by MarketWatch forecast a net increase of 230,000 jobs. Other monthly reports on auto sales, manufacturing and construction are also projected to show decent gains that underscore the improvement in the economy since a shockingly weak first quarter.

    Steady as she goes isn’t a bad thing. The unemployment rate has shrunk rapidly over the past year and it’s likely to fall another notch to 5.7% from 5.8%, bringing it down to the lowest level since mid-2008. And hourly wages are likely to continue to rise at a 2% annual rate as they have done over the past four years.

     

  • Ire of November

    Ire of November

    Roseyn Ekiw‘s head is doing topsy-turvy. November is almost here. And fear envelopes him. The reports from the fields are not encouraging. Things are certainly not looking up. Some months ago, he had concluded the race was over when he got a message from the First Dame that the sentiment in Waters State did not favour his emergence as the governorship standard bearer of the Umbrella Peoples Party (UPP). Then he had felt used and concluded he was going to take up an offer in Paris.

    Through some miracle and arm-twisting, the First Dame changed her mind and decided that the good luck charm could still work magic.

    Now this: the other aspirants on the platform of the UPP are angry that he controls the UPP machinery and will use it to get the party’s ticket. To stop him, they have all decided that an open primary must be held. To add salt to Moseyn’s injury, they are planning a consensus arrangement where only one of them will run against him.

    The implication of this is not lost on him and that is why his head is doing topsy-turvy. He moves close to the calendar and counts the number of days left before October comes.

    “Only eleven days away,” he speaks out loud.

    His wife rushes in from the bedroom.

    “What is it again?”

    He pretends as if he does not hear her.

    “What is it?” she repeats.

    He still says nothing.

    “My husband,” she says and moves closer to him,” as a woman, I certainly will like to be the First Lady of Waters State. And as a lawyer, I am convinced I will make a good First Lady. I will simply take a leave of absence from the Ministry of Justice and give you all the support. But, if you ask me to choose between my husband going mad or becoming hypertensive trying to be governor and my husband remaining sane without being addressed as His Excellency, certainly I will pick you retaining your sanity.”

    She pauses for a while, surveys this man she married a little about a decade and half ago and feels sorry for him. In her mind, she pictures her husband before he was made a junior minister. Then he was a loyalist of Governor Imitor Ihceama. He could die for the governor then and would tell anyone who cared to listen that there was no way he could succeed the governor. She remembers him telling her one day after returning from a trip to Lagos how a popular newspaper Editor had asked him if would like to be governor of Waters State.

    She still remembers very well what he said his reaction was: “I told him I could never be governor of Waters State and made him realise that it would be unfair to the people of Waters for me to be governor after my brother, Ihceama, has had the same position for eight years. I practically shot him down when he said ‘never say never in politics’. I told him such an ambition would be like creating problem for myself.”

    She wonders what has changed between then and now.

    “You know, at times I feel that you shouldn’t have started this whole thing in the first place…”

    He looks at her with scorn and she stops to see if he has anything to say, but when he fails to say anything, she continues: “Politics surprises me at times, especially the variant we play here. One moment, you see people being good friends ready to sacrifice for one another and then the next moment, they are the worst enemies around. It baffles me, it really does. It feels bad that Htiduj and I can’t even share quality time together again because of the strained relationship between you and the governor. I remember those days when the governor was in Ghana while he was trying to claim the party’s ticket in court, Htiduj and I used to spend quality time together and it lasted even till when she became the state’s First Lady. Everything is just upside now.”

    At this point, his phone rings. The man on the other side is Haubo, the man he installed the party chairman after hijacking the party’s structure from the governor and leaving him with no choice but to team up with the new voice of the opposition.

    Haubo’s call is to request to come and see him to explain some developments to him. His wife returns to the bedroom while he waits Haubo’s arrival. He stays a few blocks away. Soon he arrives and they are sitting on the two-seater in the sitting room.

    “What has happened again?”

    Haubo sighs and says: “We are going to have problem in five local governments any moment from now. Many of our party men are planning to dump us for the governor’s party. They are being instigated by our big party men who are against you getting the party’s ticket. They are just waiting for you to get the ticket for them to unfold their agenda. You know that in the governor’s party only two people are vying for the ticket. So, whatever crisis may emerge after one of them is chosen can be easily managed. But, I must confess I don’t know how we will manage ours and these our big party men are hell-bent on disgracing us. I am just confused.”

    “But, it is too late to stop now. It is really too late,” he says.

    Haubo still has more to say.

    “You know what I have also discovered. Almost all our elder statesmen in UPP do not believe in your candidature. As a matter of fact, I was told that when it comes to the election proper, they will work against you. In fact, I was told that they will find excuse not to attend your campaign rallies and work underground for the candidate of the another party. “

    “But what did I do to all these people?” he asks.

    “From what I heard, they do not like the way you handled your problem with the governor. But, that really is not their main problem with you. Their main problem with you is that you are from the same area with the governor. They believe it is the turn of the People on Water. They also have a soft spot for a particular aspirant on the other side. You and I know this guy very well and we know the efforts he has in put over the years to win the heart of our people and the opinion leaders.  We know he is a great guy and he is on ground. Defeating him in the election proper, even after winning the ticket and finding a way to manage the crazy people in our midst, will involve us  doing some magic.”

    Soon, Madam walks in. She greets Haubo and asks what he should serve him.

    “Water will do Madam,” he says.

    She serves him the water. Minutes later, he begs to take his leave.

    “We will talk later. Let me think things through,” Moseyn says as he sees off Haubo.

    He returns to the seat and the ire of November, when the flagbearer is expected to emerge, envelopes him. He knows he has to beware of the ire of November. And perhaps beyond.

     

  • November date for ‘Nollywood@20’ celebrations

    November date for ‘Nollywood@20’ celebrations

    FOR stakeholders of the Nigerian motion pictures, the need to celebrate the success of the home video phenomenon which became popularised in 1992 can only pave way for greater possibilities.

    “After about 18 months of trying to put this together, we are calling the world to tell them our story,” said Zik Zulu Okafor, President of Association of Movie Producers (AMP), on activities lined-up for the celebration of 20 years of the Nigerian film industry, otherwise called Nollywood.

    Stemming from the success recorded by Living in Bondage, the floodgate appeared to have opened to other direct-to-home video productions, which spread Nigeria’s unique stories and culture to other African countries and beyond, attracting scholars to the ingenuity of an unusual story-telling style.

    Okafor told journalists at a press conference on Wednesday that beyond celebrating the success story of the industry, the event will also serve as a platform to discuss crucial issues that have stalled the growth of the sector. He said although activities for the event will kick-start with a Glam Night, scheduled for November 2, at Intercontinental Hotel, Lagos, other programmes include special anniversary thanksgiving services, coaching clinics, master classes, party raves, family fun day and a charity football match, among others. The event, he said, will climax on November 27, 2013 with Nollywood@20 Grand Awards Night.

    According to Okafor, the Celebrity Glam Night and Grand Awards Night will recognise and celebrate Nigerian icons in the fields of business and economy, diplomatic community, public administration, academia, elite professionals and the film industry who have impacted on the film industry.

    Also speaking on the project, foremost filmmaker and chairman of the workshop/training committee, Francis Onwochei, said professors from Harvard University and Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), USA, have confirmed their participation in the master-classes. Onwochei, who revealed that Nollywood is the focus of at least 10 doctoral theses in both Ivy League institutions, said the master-classes and coaching clinics are being organised in partnership with the Nigerian Communications Commission and Mnet Africa.

    He said the coaching clinics are meant for students, youth and rookies in the motion-picture industry, while the master-classes are meant to sharpen the technical and marketing skills of senior practitioners, as a way of advancing the Nollywood brand within and outside the country.

    Marketing consultant to the project, Harry Willie of HQSC, stressed the importance of the attendance of VIPs from Corporate Nigeria, government and the diplomatic community to the Celebrity Glam Night. According to Willie, Nigeria has only just scratched the surface of the economic potential in the motion-picture industry. “When guests come in and witness the world-class entertainment content and see first-hand the inspiring dramas of the untold stories of Nollywood, the Nigerian business community will realise that Nollywood is perhaps Nigeria’s major untapped gold mine.”

    The Nollywood@20, according to representatives of the various guilds and association in Nollywood, is an event which will run close to a month and will witness some of the classics its members have produced on terrestrial stations and the popular AfricaMagic platform on DsTV. Speaking on the screening of Nollywood movies during the period, Andy Amenechi, President of Directors’ Guild of Nigeria (DGN), said Nollywood@20 platform will deliver huge audiences and increase brand value for sponsors and partners. Amenechi said, so far, partners for the project include Mnet Africa, NTA, AIT, Silverbird, Metro FM, Brandpower and Nigezie.

    The team acknowledged the support of the presidency, Lagos and Akwa Ibom states, Intercontinental Hotel, Nigeria Communications Commission, National Film and Video Census Board, Nigerian Copyright Commission, First Bank and Coca-Cola.

  • Sheila Solarin for burial in November

    Sheila Solarin for burial in November

    The late Sheila Solarin who died at the Babcock University Teaching Hospital, Ilisan, on Sunday would be buried in Ikenne, Ogun State, in two weeks time, her son, Mr. Tunde Solarin has said.

    He told The Nation that he is “very proud” to be the son of Sheila, whom he described as a “great woman, teacher and humorous person.”

    Sheila, 88, an educationist, would be buried beside her husband, Tai, who died in 1994.

    He told our correspondent in Ikenne that the family would deliberate on the burial date, adding that it would most likely take place within the next two weeks.

    “The family has not decided yet. But it would likely take place within the next two weeks.

    “The date would be publicised as soon the family reached a decision,” Tunde said.

    Tunde, who recalled his mother’s last moment on earth, thanked Nigerians and old students of Mayflower School for their support.

    He expressed the hope that her life would have a positive influence on people.

    He said: “I was there a moment after he passed away. Since I wasn’t there physically at that moment, I can only describe what I saw half an hour before she died.

    “She was feverish, trying to speak and the doctors were attending to her. They were trying to stabilize her, she was on electrocardiograph, an heart monitoring machine on one side and the drip was on the other.

    “There were a lot of medical equipment around her, the doctors did their utmost to enable her to survive, but the age at which she sustained such a serious injury made their job extremely difficult.

    “I want to thank, from the bottom of my heart, the old students and of course the entire country who knew Sheila and those who probably heard of her good work and the memories they will keep in their lives. Hopefully, her life would be of positive influence on as many of them as possible. I feel very proud to be the son of this great woman.”

     

  • Aba holds int’l trade fair in November

    The Aba Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ACCIMA) in conjunction with AIITEX consortium will be organising the first international trade fair in the city from the 12th-22nd of November 2012.

    The trade fair will offer producers resident in the commercial city of Abia state the opportunity for them to also attract international recognition and allow foreigners the chance to see what people in Aba can produce for export.

    Speaking at ACCIMA office in Aba, the chairman of the trade fair organising committee, Philip Ekwempu, said that the trade fair is mainly to announce the return of economic activities in the once boisterous commercial city east of the Niger.

    Ekwempu said that some years ago that kidnapping and other violent crimes forced many manufacturers to flee from the city, “Now security has been restored through the doggedness of the state governor, Chief Theodore Orji, and people need to know that Aba is functioning again.”

    In his own speech the president of ACCIMA, Eleanya Agu Okoroji, said that the Abia State chapter of the Chamber of Commerce will ever remain grateful to NACCIMA for granting them the right to host the international trade fair in the state.