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Tag: Saidu Mohammed

  • Fire service rescues woman from pit latrine in Kano

    Fire service rescues woman from pit latrine in Kano

    The Kano State Fire Service on Monday said it successfully rescued a 48-year-old woman, Aisha Usman, after she accidentally fell into a collapsed pit latrine at her residence on Sunday.

    The Public Relations Officer of the service, Alhaji Saidu Mohammed, said in Kano on Monday that the incident occurred while the woman was trying to use the rest room at her residence in Sharifawa in Gaya Local Government Area of the state.

    He said that the service received a distress call from a relative shortly after the incident around 6.45 p.m. on Sunday after which it swung into action.

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    He added that “upon receiving the information, we quickly dispatched our rescue team and a vehicle to the scene at about 7 p.m.”

    He expressed joy that the woman was rescued without sustaining injuries.

    He added that “we rescued the woman and handed her over to the husband.”

    Mohammed advised residents to be cautious in using pit latrines to avoid future accidents.

    NAN

  • NNPC subsidiary declares N15.8bn profit after tax in 2016

    NNPC subsidiary declares N15.8bn profit after tax in 2016

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC ) says Nigerian Gas Processing and Transportation Company Ltd. ( NGPTC ), one of its subsidiary companies, has declared a profit after tax of N15.81 billion in 2016.

    The NNPC disclosed this in Abuja on Sunday in a statement by the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr Ndu Ughamadu.

    Ughamadu explained that the profit was due to the write-back of deferred tax of N8.05 billion in 2015 and part of the dividends of the ongoing transformation.

    The Chief Operating Officer and Chairman of NGPTC, Mr Saidu Mohammed, disclosed that the profit before tax for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016 was N24.4 billion as against N20.9 billion in 2015.

    “This represents an increment of 16.8 per cent, while the profit after tax reduced from N22.6 billion in 2015 to N15.81 billion in 2016.

    “Also, earnings per share reduced from N4,510 in 2015 to N3,163 for 2016.

    “The total revenue generated from gas sold and transmitted during 2016 amounted to N219.5 billion as against N155.5 billion in 2015, representing a 41 per cent increase over the previous year,” he said.

    Ughamadu said that the increase was due to revenue generated from application of higher transportation tariff and new commercial customers that came on stream.

    “An overview of NGPTC’s business performance for the year 2016 shows that 307 billion standard cubic feet (bscf) of gas was sold and transmitted as against the planned 463 bscf, thereby achieving 66.4 per cent of its target.

    “The year 2016 also reveals a performance of four per cent below the volume of 319.25 bscf sold in 2015,” the public affairs manager said.

    He noted that the company was confronted with the challenges of incessant vandalism of the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System 1 (ELPS 1), Trans Forcados pipeline and evacuation bottleneck of condensate in 2016.

    He acknowledged the continued support of NGPTC’s host communities for the sustained peace and tranquility in the company’s areas of operation.

    The NGPTC, formerly Nigerian Gas Company (NGC) Ltd., a fully-owned subsidiary of the NNPC, was incorporated in 1981 and commenced business in 1988.

    NGC was renamed NGPTC in 2016 with a mandate to process and transport natural gas domestically and for export.

    NAN

  • NASRDA catches them Young for Space

    NASRDA catches them Young for Space

    The National Space Research Development Agency ( NASRDA ) recently ended a three-day induction programme for its three young Space Ambassadors for 2017: Daniel Gashinbaki, Primary School Category; Juanita Nkobi-Smah, Junior Secondary School Category and Salmah Ahmad Matane, Senior Secondary School Category.

    Held at the Obasanjo Space Centre, Abuja  which doubles as the Agency’s headquarters, they were taught what was expected of them as Space Ambassadors and taken on a guided tour of the facilities at the Centre by experts in different fields of Space Technology.

    The Space Ambassador Scheme was initiated by the DG, Professor Saidu Mohammed to rouse interest in young Nigerians towards Science and Mathematics and ultimately a possible career in Space Science and Technology.

    Speaking at the end of the induction programme, Prof Mohammed said the Agency has through its Activity Centre in Ife promoted interest in Space Science by establishing Space clubs in both Primary and Secondary Schools.

    He called on the Ambassadors to pursue their dreams, acquire knowledge and show a keen interest in Space Science and Technology for the advancement of mankind. He said being chosen as Space Ambassadors is a rare opportunity which they should use wisely, as they represent a new generation of young persons to make Nigeria a proud Nation by striving to achieve the noble dream of Space Science and Technology in Nigeria.

    He was optimistic that their emergence as space ambassadors will deepen further Space Science in Nigeria.

    The Director-General encouraged the Ambassadors to be good role models to other students in the country and vigorously carry out the campaign for Space Science and Technology to help promote and sustain interest in Space Science and Technology in their schools and by extension in Nigeria. This he said will attest to the Agency’s policy for Space Science and Technology in schools and Nigeria, According to him, Space Agency is a major strength of any country, and Nigeria has invested hugely in space technology, which has positioned the country at the forefront of space technology in Africa.

    The Ambassadors were selected through a rigorous competitive process. They first participated in an essay competition where about 700 entries was received for each Category across the country out of which the best five were invited to Abuja from each category. The next stage included a written examination, technical ability test, cognitive test and technical presentation from where the best for each category emerged as the Ambassador.

    They were inaugurated on the 27th of May 2017 for two-year tenure. The DG explained that every Ambassador is inducted into NASRDA Hall of Fame at the end of his/her tenure. “The dream is to provide follow up and mentorship while in office and expose the Ambassadors to Space Science and Technology both locally and internationally,” he added.

  • NNPC to resume oil exploration in Chad Basin in six weeks

    NNPC to resume oil exploration in Chad Basin in six weeks

    The Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Maikanti Baru says oil exploration activities in the Chad Basin will resume in six weeks time.

    Baru made this known in a statement issued by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu.

    Baru said the resumption of oil exploration activities became necessary following improved security in the North East.

    The NNPC boss said this when he visited Gov. Kashim Shettima of Borno State and the Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar El-Kanemi in Maiduguri.

    “We have been discussing with military authorities in the area and they have assured us of improved security.

    “Once they give us the green light, we would resume operations in the area within six weeks,” Baru, who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer, Gas & Power, Mr. Saidu Mohammed, said.

    Baru informed the governor that NNPC was keen on increasing its production from 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd) to three million bpd as well as increasing its oil and gas reserves, a target that necessitated exploring for more oil within and across some of the nation’s inland basins.

    He commended the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari and Shettima for restoring peace, reconstructing and rehabilitating the region, adding that the Corporation was ready to provide support in that regard.

    Baru appealed to the Shehu of Borno to prevail on his people to show oil exploration activities resumes.

    Highlight of the visit was the presentation of relief materials by Baru to the Shehu for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state.

    Responding, Shettima said the insurgency had taken a huge toll on the North-East region leading to the loss of more than 9.6 billion dollars, with Borno state alone losing 5.6 billion dollars.

    “We need your support in our reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts, so that when the history of the new Borno is written, NNPC’s name will be written in gold,” he said.

    Shettima said while international donour agencies and good-spirited organisations like the NNPC were keen on helping the IDPs, the state’s ultimate target was to resettle the IDPs in their various communities.

    Also speaking, the Shehu of Borno commended the NNPC for identifying with the Borno people and expressed happiness over the prevailing peace across the state and the entire North East.

     

  • NNPC supplies the cheapest, most reliable power to Nigerians – GMD

    NNPC supplies the cheapest, most reliable power to Nigerians – GMD

    Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), supplies the “most reliable and cheapest power’’ to Nigerians, Dr Maikanti Baru, the corporation’s Group Managing Director, has said.

    Baru made the statement in Houston on Monday while addressing newsmen on the sidelines of the 2017 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that OTC is an annual conference of experts in the oil and gas sector.

    The conference is organised to provide opportunity for the experts to brainstorm and network on issues and challenges facing the sector.

    Baru, who was represented by Mr Saidu Mohammed, NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power, said that several Nigerians were unaware that the corporation had long been part of Nigeria’s power sector.

    “We (NNPC) supply about 1,000 megawatts of power from the two power plants at Afam and Okpai.

    “These are the most reliable power plants in Nigeria and they provide the cheapest source of power for Nigerians.

    “Before that we had been talking to our joint venture partners notably Chevron and Total to build similar power plants at Obite and Agura.

    “But these companies are yet to build the plants; that is why we are in Houston to invite investors to build power plants in Nigeria,” Baru said.

    The GMD said that officials of NNPC were also in Houston to invite companies who have the capacity and competencies to come to Nigeria to invest in the power sector.

    He added that Nigeria’s participation in the conference was also aimed at increasing the nation’s gas reserve and to enhance the capacity of Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC).

    Baru said that the NNPC had a target to raise the production level of NPDC within the next two years.

    He said, “essentially we want to raise the production capacity of NPDC to about 700,000 barrels with the support of other partners.’’

    He said that NNPC participated in the conference to solicit for capital, advanced technology and partners to invest in Nigeria’s power sector and transform the corporation to achieve set goals.

    NAN recalls that on March 29, Baru disclosed that NNPC was already working on a project to generate 4, 000 megawatts of electricity.

    He said that the corporation was exploring the possibility of investing in the transmission segment of Nigeria’s power sector.

    He said that contrary to the impression that the poor power situation in Nigeria was caused by inadequate gas supply; the real problem was inadequate transmission capacity.

    According to the GMD, the corporation has enough gas to generate 8, 000 megawatts of electricity.

    “But the transmission grid will not be able to support such volume of power without complications.”