All Posts in "Day: January 11, 2023"

NUPRC Holds Confab On 2022 Mini Bid Round

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) will host a stakeholder conference in Lagos on Monday, January 16 2023.

The development is part of measures to bring interested companies up to speed with the requirements of the 2022 Nigeria Mini Bid round process,a statement signed by the Commission Chief Executive (CCE), Engr. Gbenga Komolafe,said.

According to him,the confab will provide potential applicants with the opportunity to ask questions on issues concerning the Mini Bid Round process as well as requirements, after which interested companies will be invited to submit their pre-qualification applications by January 31, 2023.

He stated that NUPRC will continue to provide further details and roadmap for the exercise which is an international competitive Mini Bid Round. He explained that the Mini Bid Round is an opportunity to spur new exploration and drilling activities in the prospective deep waters offshore Nigeria.

He added:“The Mini Bid Round is aimed at further development of the deep offshore acreages which will be held in accordance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021 with its enhanced legal and regulatory frameworks that seeks to encourage new investors and investments into the next phase of exploration in this region. An initial announcement for commencement of the mini bid round was made in December, 20, 2022.

“The Mini Bid Round will be managed by the NUPRC, in line with the provisions of the PIA, as the statutory body responsible for ensuring compliance with petroleum laws, regulations, and guidelines in the Nigerian upstream petroleum industry.

“The National Data Repository (NDR) of NUPRC and our multi-client partners are delighted and ready to support the Mini Bid Round underpinned by highquality datasets. The blocks have extensive 2D and 3D seismic data coverage, including multi-beam and analogue data.

“Additionally, a remarkable quality 3D MegaSurveyPlus reprocessed Pre-stack Time Migration (completed October 2022) with angle stacks and gathers, is also available to prospective bidders. Links to all data can be accessed via the dedicated NUPRC portal.

“The Mini Bid Round is a market-driven programme and will follow a transparent and competitive procurement process designed to attract competent third-party investors from across the world that have the capability and proficiency in operating in deep water environment.

“Historically, this Mini Bid Round intends to build on the successes of the last bid round that held in April 2007 during which a total of forty-five (45) blocks, drawn from the inland Basins of Anambra, Benue and Chad; the Niger Delta Continental Shelf; Onshore Niger Delta and Deep Offshore were put on offer.

“The 2007 bid round was held under a different regulatory regime (the Petroleum Act, 1969) and generated massive interest and participation with its attended revenue which made the exercise a success.In this 2022 Mini Bid Round, seven (7) Offshore blocks covering an area of approximately 6,700 sq km in water depths of 1,150m to 3,100m were put on offer”

He said the success of the Mini Bid Round will ensure all stakeholders gain value from the country’s resources, whilst paying close attention to reduction in carbon emissions, as well as overall environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations.

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Oil&Gas 0
Pinnacle Oil Boss Links Fuel Scarcity To Investment Deficit In Downstream Sector

 

Scarcity of petroleum products which results in long queues witnessed in filling stations across Nigeria, have been linked to dearth of long term investment in the downstream sector.

Chief Executive Officer, CEO of Pinnacle Oil and Gas Limited, Peter Mbah adduced this reason, while speaking to State House correspondents shortly after the oil firm paid a thank-you visit to President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He disclosed that Pinnacle Oil and Gas has invested about a billion dollar with a view to addressing the stagnation of investment in the downstream sector.

On whether the country will surmount the intermittent scarcity witnessed every time,he stated that with the intervention by his company and investments from other Nigerians in the downstream sector, the problem will become a thing of the past.

He said, “There has been a deficit of the set of investments Pinnacle has done in the last decades. But what we’re doing right now, is to address that stagnation of investment in the downstream oil and gas industry.

“This is an investment size of about a billion dollars. So we are expecting to see more of such investments because what the Pinnacle has done is to create some efficiency in the supply and distribution value chain of the downstream sector. So, we are indeed expecting that more investment in the downstream sub sector would completely eliminate the sort of scarcity we are witnessing today.”

He said the team visited the State House to express appreciation to Mr. President for accepting to inaugurate the company’s storage terminal adjudged to be the largest storage terminal in West Africa.

He said the offshore intake of the storage terminal is also adjudged to be the deepest intake facility in the entire Africa.

He added:”We, Pinnacle Oil and Gas limited, have come here to express our profound gratitude and our heartfelt appreciation to Mr. President. You will recall that on the 22nd day of October 2022, Mr. President inaugurated our storage terminal adjudged to be the largest storage terminal in West Africa, with offshore intake facilities also adjudged to be the deepest intake facility in the entire Africa, sitting at a water depth of 23 meters.

“So, we do have SPM (Single Point Mooring), and CBM (Conventional Buoy Mooring).
Those are the offshore facilities we have. Those facilities have the capability to take the largest vessels, you can imagine and discharge over 100 million liters of clean petroleum products within 24 hours.

“This is typically what takes the industry 32 days to discharge. So we have largely come here to express our gratitude to Mr. President, for the honor he gave us in inaugurating this largest facility, which has actually changed the face of the industry, because it has eased as you know, this facility is located at the Lekki free zone, just by the Dangote refinery.

“So, what it has done, it has eased the congestion and the gridlock we have at the Apapa area in Lagos. It has also reduced the cost of supply and delivery of petroleum products in different parts of the country. It has also provided jobs for teeming unemployed Nigerians. So, this is why we thought it necessary to come and say thank you to Mr. President.”

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Oil&Gas 0
Akintoye Returns As Leader Of IOOW

Professor of History, Prof.Banji Akintoye,has returned as the leader of Yoruba self-determination group,Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW)

His action was sequel to the withdrawal of his resignation letter from the leadership of the group.

There had been leadership tussle within the Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide which caused Prof Akintoye to earlier resigned his position,paving way for his deputy,Prof Wale Adeniran, to take over the mantle of as Alana, given the battle of leadership of the group.

Prof Adeniran also resigned his position as the leader of the group on account of allegation of financial mismanagement slammed on him.

Professor Akintoye withdrew his resignation letter and returned as the leader of the self-determination group on Wednesday in a statement obtained by Premium News.

The letter reads:”Three weeks ago, I wrote to inform Ilana Omo Oduduwa that I was resigning from my leadership position in the organization. I made it clear that my resignation was due only to the need for me at my advanced age to trim off my responsibilities in Ilana in order to devote my energies to pressing challenges in the higher spheres of our Yoruba self-determination struggle.

“Since then, I have received from all sections of Ilana messages or letters rejecting my resignation and urging me to continue to make the sacrifice of leading Ilana. In the course of the past week, I have been visited for the same purpose by leading persons representing the Elders Advisory Council, the Ilana Secretariat, and the two formerly differing sections of Ilana.

‘I have also had the honor of being visited by Prince Peter Bamgbade who is recognized in the whole Yoruba Nation as a major influence for reconciliation and harmony among Yoruba people.

“Further to the above, a coalition of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW) affiliates groups both in the diaspora and homeland converged in Ibadan few days ago to revalidate and reaffirm my leadership of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide (IOOW) and also urged me to withdraw my resignation as leader.

‘I thank Prince Bamigbade for his goodwill interventions in the family of Ilana. In the circumstance, I hereby give up my earlier resignation decision, and announce my return to my leadership position and role in Ilana.

“I appreciate the fact that in the course of appealing to me to return to my Ilana position, various sections of Ilana have accepted the need for greater harmony in Ilana, so that Ilana may return to its well-known unity and strength in our nation’s self-determination struggle. This has made me very happy indeed, and it has given me serious encouragement to return fully to Ilana.

“As I now return, I expect cooperation, mutual respect, brotherliness and disciplined conduct from all our members at home and in the Diaspora. As a disciplined self-determination organization crucial to the realization of our collective resolve to exit the contraption called Nigeria, there is the immediate need to harmonise and unify all the tendencies in IOOW.

‘I hereby use this opportunity to announce the dissolution of all IOOW factions largely brought about by infiltration of our rank and file by adversaries within and without.

“To the glory of God, the Yoruba quest for self-determination is now in its final step towards victory. As is common to struggles in final stages, the tensions are high, and the need for responsibility and discipline are very high. I am confident that Ilana will be a leading contributor to the discipline that will move our nation’s whole struggle to ultimate victory.

“We shall soon wwlcome our ORILEEDE YORUBA, where our Yoruba people will live in peace and security, and where our Yoruba Nation will quickly become a nation of prosperity, power and beauty in the world.

“

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Oduduwa 0
Bills: BEDC Stops Staff From Collecting Cash

 

The Benin Electricity Distribution Company Plc (BEDC),has barred its staff from collecting cash from its customers in Edo, Delta Ondo and Ekiti.

Its Managing Director,Dr Henry Ajagbawa,who disclosed this on Wednesday during a meeting with billing and payment agents in Benin, said agents have been engaged to collect bills from customers for the company not the staff.

He noted that the company has broken the monopoly of having only one aggregator with 1,650 agents by engaging additional 11 aggregators and 10,000 agents across the four states.

“We have engaged additional 11 aggregators who will come with about 10,000 billing and payment agents across the BEDC franchise states.I do not understand why any customer will pay cash to any staff when we have advertised over and over again that people should not pay cash to any staff.

“BEDC do not collect cash, if you have to vend or pay bills, there are agents for that purpose.If you pay cash to any staff and you do not have evidence of payment, it will not appear in your bill when we come for enumeration.

‘If it does not appear, it means you have not paid and you will pay that money again. So it does not make sense to pay money to anybody and not collect receipt.l,” he said.

He explained that staff were only permitted to carry POS machines to do such transaction electronically when the company goes out on cash drive.

He implored the aggregators to be committed to the agreement by ensuring that agents are closer to customers in all BEDC operations areas for convenience.

He also revealed that enumeration of customers have begun in the Government Reservation Areas (GRA) in Benin after which about 8,000 meters would be installed.

” We have the meters ready in our store. And similar event is also ongoing in Asaba, Delta. We are taking it step by step.Understand that we probably need about N100 billion to meter all our customers, that kind of money we do not have,” he added.

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Power 0

CSR-in-Action Consulting has announced its membership with the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce.

The Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce serves businesses in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, and is a member-driven organisation of individuals and businesses that unites to advance the economic, financial, and civic interests of the North-western community at the forefront of the provincial government’s Ring of Fire thrust, one of the most promising mineral development opportunities for critical minerals in the province.

It pools together resources to provide learning opportunities for members, address policy concerns, create contacts between members, and seek to unite businesses to pursue shared objectives.

CSR-in-Action’s President, ‘Bekeme Olowola met with the Chamber’s President, Charla Robinson and Member Relations Director, Thera Chicoine, to discuss opportunities for collaboration with the chamber and other members around its programs and services based on three main pillars: advocacy, engagement, and empowerment, during which a plaque of membership was presented.

As a member, CSR-in-Action will engage other key stakeholders to advance the community’s economic, financial, and civic interests, as part of a burgeoning corporate business ecosystem in the region.

Following the acceleration of operations in the Canadian mining and exploration industry and with sustainability emerging as a core component of business strategy for efficient and dynamic corporate organisations, CSR-in-Action is poised to provide world class services to North American extractive industries and other sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, agriculture and manufacturing, and to provide business intelligence and critical insights for businesses and investors seeking to penetrate the African business terrain.

She added:“Being a member of Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce, Canada, allows us to extend our advocacy for sustainable business practices to North America. We are grateful for the opportunity to join this prestigious group and look forward to all that it offers, whilst contributing our expertise to it and the business environment.”

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Business 0
Nigeria To Get 8 New Solar Microgrids

Energy services company,Husk Power Systems has secured funding from Germany’s development finance institution DEG to construct eight new community solar microgrids in Nigeria, and to support expansion of the company’s India operations.

DEG allocated the funds from its Up-Scaling Program, which is co-financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development,a statement said.

The 5-year loan of $749,000 follows Husk successfully closing debt totalling $10.3 million from EDFI-ElectriFI and IREDA in 2022 to build more than 200 microgrids in India. The DEG financing is the first debt raised by Husk for its business in Nigeria, where the company currently has 12 operational microgrids, and a target of building 500 by 2026.

According to the statement,the 8 microgrids in Nigeria will connect more than 500 residential and commercial customers, reduce the number of diesel generators in use by 400, while creating about 40 new direct local jobs.

Petra Kotte, Head of Banking and German Business Division, DEG, said: “Husk is exactly the type of company we’re looking for at the Up-Scaling Program, which supports innovative greentech business models in emerging markets that demonstrate high development impact and a significant reduction of carbon emissions.

“Access to affordable debt is critical to scaling solar microgrids in Nigeria, home to 90 million people living without access to electricity,” said Manoj Sinha,Co-Founde rand CEO, Husk. “This financing provides Husk with a solid foundation for unlocking additional debt, including local currency debt, this year and beyond.”

admin by — January 11, 2023 in Power 0
‘Politicians Sponsoring Campaign Of Calumny Against DSS Boss’

 

Omobolanle Shosanya

The Directorate of State Service’s uncompromising stance on some critical governance and policy issues has angered some politicians and other disgruntled elements within and outside the government,its spokesmen, Dr.Peter Afunanya,has said

Afunanya disclosed this to newsmen in a press release, on Tuesday.

He stated that the Service has “uncovered plans by some politicians and disgruntled elements within and outside the government to sponsor smear campaigns against the DGSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi and his key officials.”

He explained that the development is because of the “Service uncompromising stance on some critical governance and policy issues. Those behind the plot have engaged Civil Society and Non-Governmental Organisations to not only sustain but stage further rallies, road-shows and press conferences and use the occasions to discredit Bichi.”

He said:Sections of the media have been briefed to implement the strategy through sponsored articles, commentaries and features to malign the DG, his family and select officials of the Service.

“The Service is monitoring developments and will allow the plotters to either exhaust themselves or rescind the plan of action. Otherwise, no amount of intimidation, harassment and blackmail will deter it from discharging its duties.However, it would not idly watch a group of dissatisfied gang to undermine the Service and its highly dedicated leadership and management.

“The DSS, therefore, wishes to inform the public to be wary of these tendencies and ignore the antics of dark forces out to impugn the character of the DG. It restates its unalloyed support to the President on his resolve to continue to confront head-on, threats to national security as well as create the enabling environment necessary for the 2023 general elections to hold.”

admin by — January 11, 2023 in News 0
How NAPTIP Saved Pregnant Woman From Human Traffickers 

Edo State Command of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), has rescued a human trafficking victim with eight months pregnancy in Libya.

The Edo State Command of NAPTIP, Bar. Nduka Nwanwenne, disclosed this on Tuesday in Benin while presenting a cheque of N5 million compensation  to a survivour of human trafficking at NAPTIP office in Benin City

“We have a survivor in our shelter, with eight months pregnant, she was rescued from Libya and just came to the shelter recently.The  compensation was awarded  to one of our survivour by a Federal High Court, Asaba, presided over by justice T. B Adegote”.

He said NAPTIP diligently prosecuted the case with evidences  and the Court sentenced  the traffickers seven years in prison or  pay N5 million compensation to the victim.

He added:”The cases started in 2019 and we got judgement in 2022, this is the first time court has awarded compensation to  survivours since 2003. It is a land mark judgement for NAPTIP.Following the survivor’s  doggedness in giving testimony during prosecution of the case despite the odd, NAPTIP’s Director General, Fatima Waziri-Azi, has crowned the survivour NAPTIP Ambassador”

Nduka said the survivour was sixteen years when she was trafficked to Libya in 2015 and was rescue in 2017, adding that she was able to identify the trafficker and reported to NAPTIP.

He described the judgement as justice for the survivor,NAPTIP and the society.

The agency secured 83 conviction in 2022 while others several other cases are pending in court.

admin by — January 11, 2023 in News 0
Another Victim Of Edo Train Station Attack Regains Freedom

 

Edo State Police Command has confirmed the rescue of another victim of the kidnapped 32 people of the train station attack at Igueben, Igueben local government area of the state which occurred on Saturday night.

The victim said to be a woman was reportedly rescued by security agencies combing the area.

The identity of the woman and the details of how she regained her freedom remain unclear.

Police,however confirmed her release in a statement.

The Edo State Police Public Relations Officer, Chidi Nwanbuzo, at a press briefing in Benin City, said another victim of the train station attack has been rescued and released to the family, bringing the total number of those rescued to seven.

Nwanbuzo said the victim is a female whose family is resident in Delta State, adding, “Just yesterday, another victim of the Igueben Train Station kidnap was rescued and released to her family members living in Delta State. The victim is a woman and this brings the total number of rescued victims so far released to seven.”

Meanwhile, Edo State Deputy Governor, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu on Tuesday said the government is strengthening security to check crime and criminality, vowing that the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration will make the state unsafe for kidnappers and other criminal elements to thrive.

Shaibu disclosed this after a meeting with heads of security agencies and community leaders at the Igueben Railway Station in Igueben Local Government Area of the state.

The deputy governor was joined at the meeting by other top government officials, including the Senator representing Edo Central Senatorial District, Senator. Clifford Ordia and the Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Marcus Onobun.

Shaibu, who called for calm among residents of Igueben LGA, urged members of the public to provide useful information that will aid rescue efforts by security agencies.

He said: “We were here on Sunday for a fact finding mission and today, we are here again to give moral support to our security troops on ground and also have another discussion to review all our activities since this kidnapping incident happened and to see areas to improve on.

“The important point is that more persons have been rescued and the numbers are reducing. Our target is for everybody to be released. We want to thank the security agencies for their efforts in ensuring all captured are released. I appreciate the Inspector General of Police, Chief of Air Staff and the Chief of Army Staff for all their efforts in ensuring those kidnapped are rescued unhurt.”

Shaibu added:“We are doing all to ensure we get these people out. The Governor has asked us to give morale boost to troops on ground and also review our security strategy.The state government has not been reached for ransom. Edo will be too hot for these people as they will never have any base here in the state. We have worked hard and will continue to work hard to ensure the state is safe. The pressure is on the kidnappers and the victims are being freed daily.”

admin by — January 11, 2023 in News 0