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Business Bells

Category: Energy

  • FG Targets Two Modular Refineries In Bayelsa

    FG Targets Two Modular Refineries In Bayelsa

    The management of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board said on Wednesday that construction of the 2,000 barrels per day modular refinery in Brass, Bayelsa State, will commence very soon.

     

    The modular refinery is the fourth supported by the NCDMB under the Federal Government’s plan to use modular refineries to drive the development of the Niger Delta region.

     

    The board had injected equity capital funds in three modular refineries with the Waltersmith 5000 bpd modular refinery at Ibigwe, Imo alreading in operation.

     

    Others are the 12,000 bpd Hydroskimming modular refinery being constructed by Azikel Petroleum Limited at Obunagha, Gbarain, Bayelsa and the 2,500 bpd modular refinery being developed by Duport Midstream Company as part of its Energy Park in Egbokor, Edo.

     

    The Manager, Corporate Communications, NCDMB, Naboth Onyesoh, said in a statement on Wednesday that the projects also included a power plant and logistics jetty to provide support for oil and gas operations.

    A local modular refinery In Bayelsa

    He said the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, performed the groundbreaking ceremony of an Energy Infrastructure Park on Saturday at Okpoama in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa.

     

    Onyesoh said the minister also commissioned three Corporate Social Responsibility projects executed by the Atlantic International Refinery for the people of the Okpoama Kingdom.

     

    The projects included the Okpoama Cottage Hospital, Iseleama Health Centre and Okpoama Community Water Works.

     

    The statement quoted Sylva as saying at the event that one of the best strategies to curb restiveness in the Niger Delta region was to create jobs and opportunities for youths.

     

    The minister also said that part of his mandate is to collaborate with players in the private sector to establish oil and gas facilities, including modular refineries.

  • FG, Labour To Consider Electricity Tariff, Fuel Price Reports Feb 22

    FG, Labour To Consider Electricity Tariff, Fuel Price Reports Feb 22

    The Federal Government and the organised labour will reconvene on February 22 for the consideration of the reports of the bipartite technical committees on fuel price and electricity tariff.

     

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, disclosed this Monday night while briefing journalists after a bipartite meeting between the FG and the organised labour at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

     

    Ngige said they received and adopted the report of the Technical Committee on Premium Motor Spirit Pricing Framework, while that of the Electricity Tariff Committee was expected in a week’s time.

     

    He explained that the organised labour requested for some time to subject the report on PMS pricing to their organs for further investigation.

     

    “It is a technical report, so they needed further investigation of the report by their own technical research team. The Technical Committee on electricity tariff has not finished. We expect the report in a week’s time. So, cogently, we are reconvening on 22nd of this month to take both reports,” Ngige noted.

     

    The report of the Technical Committee on PMS Pricing was presented at the meeting by the Chairman of the Committee, Onochie Anyaoku, a former Executive Director, Refineries Operations and Petrol Pricing in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

     

    Anyaoku explained that the committee at its meeting on December 16 developed guiding principles and a work schedule, distinct from the primary function of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency to develop a transparent methodology and a template that will serve as the guide on realistic PMS pump price and benchmark all pricing elements of the PMS pricing template with neighbouring countries.

     

    He stated, “Based on extensive review of the pricing framework and in line with the terms of reference of the committee, the following recommendations were proposed and adopted:

     

    “PPPRA to convene periodic meetings with PPMC and other importers to ensure actual cost of supply reflective determination as an interim solution.

     

    “NLC, TUC, PENGASSON and NUPENG to witness the transparent determination at the periodic meeting.

     

    “PPPRA frequently monitor data of Rotterdam supply chain values. This should continue to form the basis of price determination until the West African basket is liquid and transparent enough to warrant its adoption in the pricing template.

     

    “All importers including NNPC to adopt the same forex window used by PPPRA to ensure alignment and accurate pricing. PPPRA board to adopt weighted average as the basis of determination.

     

    “Government to enforce immediate collection of NPA and NIMASA charges in naira to reduce pressure on forex demand and pump price hike.

     

    “To develop adequate communication strategy on the necessity of deregulation and the benefit to the people, to create public awareness and gain acceptability of deregulation, which will reduce the pressure on labour to react to fuel increase.”

     

    “Deregulation is a huge change in national policy but highly desirable in this stage of our national development policy, for which its implementation requires trust building steps and commitment to visible frugal spending by government.”

  • PIB: Petroleum Minister Faults Communities’ 10% Trust Fund Demand

    PIB: Petroleum Minister Faults Communities’ 10% Trust Fund Demand

    The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, has faulted the position of host communities who are insisting on collecting 10 per cent of the operating expenditure of the oil firms to set up a trust fund.

     

    The leaders of the oil rich areas under the aegis of the Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas, had on Tuesday, openly rejected the 2.5 per cent proposed for them in the Petroleum Industry Bill 2020, being considered by the joint Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources, (Downstream, Upstream and Gas).

     

    They insisted that nothing short of the 10 per cent of the operating expenditure they were demanding would be acceptable to them because the proposed 2.5 per cent was grossly inadequate to provide basic social amenities and improve the standard of living of their people.

     

    But the Minister, who spoke with journalists after the end of a two-day public hearing on the proposed bill by the Senate panel on Tuesday, faulted the argument of the oil communities’ leaders.

     

    He said, “The 2.5 per cent as proposed in the bill is fair and of course, I speak as a member of the host communities myself.

     

    “If you have to look at it properly, you will see that 10 per cent in profit is different from 10 per cent of the OPEX (operating expenditure).

     

    “Before now, you had a provision of 10 per cent of profit for the host communities but we discovered that if the oil firms do not declare it, host communities won’t have anything.

     

    “But in this case, it is 2.5 per cent of the operating expenditure. So, at the end of the year we will calculate the operating cost and take the 2.5 per cent of that cost to the budget of the next year.

     

    “Of course, I don’t like to discuss details of the bill at this point because these are just proposals before the National Assembly.

     

    “Until it is passed, we cannot discuss it but since it came up here, I thought I should just mention it.

     

    “As far as we are concerned, we have made a very fair proposal – fair to the host communities, fair to the country and fair to the oil companies.

     

    “We have put this bill before the National Assembly and they have the competence to look at it and pass it the way they see fit.

     

    “So, at this point I do not want to go into detailed aspect of the bill. The bill is before them and we are happy with the progress.

     

    “As you heard the Senate President say yesterday, we expect that this bill would be passed at the end of this quarter or early next month.”

     

    Leaders of the Host community of Oil Producing Areas also called on the Federal Government to scrap the Niger Delta Development Commission and transfer all its allocations to the them for effective management.

     

    The President of HOSTCOMS, High Chief Benjamin Tamaranebi, stated this while addressing journalists.

     

    He said with the reduction of host community development trust fund from 10 per cent in 2008 to 2.5 percent in 2020 PIB, the proposed document would deny the people of the required funds to develop their areas.

     

    Tamaranebi said the NDDC should be scrapped so that the allocation being given to the commission could be directly paid to HOSTCOMS for critical interventions especially after the revelations that followed the investigative hearing on the commission.

  • Sahara Group To Increase Investments In Technology

    Sahara Group To Increase Investments In Technology

    The Sahara Group says it will increase its investment in technology, artificial intelligence, and human capital transformation as critical drivers of its next expansion phase.

     

    This was disclosed by the Group’s Executive Director, Temitope Shonubi, in a statement on Sunday, while unveiling the group’s plan for the future.

     

    Celebrating the energy conglomerate’s growth trajectory since 1996, Shonubi noted that Sahara planned to mark its 25th anniversary with several events and activities all through 2021 with the theme, ‘Harnessing safe energy today’.

     

    He stated that emphasis would be on promoting the ‘capacity to do and achieve positive and sustainable transformation’ in the energy sector, adding that innovation would define Sahara’s brand positioning and offering in the coming years.

     

    Shonubi noted that Sahara’s focus was on continuous improvement, operational efficiency, and sustainability.

  • Power Sector Loses N20.5bn As Load Rejection Lingers

    Power Sector Loses N20.5bn As Load Rejection Lingers

    About N20.5bn revenue was lost by Nigeria’s power sector between January 1 and 22, 2021, as operators in the business complained that energy was still being rejected by distributors.

     

    Data obtained from the Federal Ministry of Power on Friday showed that the sector lost N20.5bn within the first three weeks of the year.

     

    Our correspondent also gathered that a total of 1,941 megawatts-hour/hour of electricity was constrained during this period, as this quantum of energy could not be generated on the national grid.

     

    The major constraints that stopped the production of this quantum of power were insufficient gas supply, as well as lack of distribution and transmission infrastructure.

     

    Further findings from the power ministry revealed that the average energy that was sent out during the period was 4,505MWH/H.

     

    Also, peak power generated on the country’s grid within this three weeks was put at 5,584MW, as industry operators decried the persistent rejection of electricity by power distribution companies.

     

    The General Manager, Market Operations, Transmission Company of Nigeria, Edmund Eje, stated that the widening revenue gap in the market had further made the Discos to drop electricity load.

     

    Eje, who spoke at the just held virtual power dialogue, explained that the load rejection had impacted negatively on the machines of power generation and transmission companies.

     

    He said, “As the market gap started widening, the Discos resorted to reducing their invoice monthly. How could that be effected? It was by reducing the amount of energy they take.

     

    “By reducing the amount of energy you take, you are restricting the amount of energy to be evacuated from the transmission side.

     

    “And it has to be understood by everybody in the power sector that energy consumed, generated and evacuated are done simultaneously because energy is not stored anywhere.”

     

    He added, “Although we have new technologies coming out now where you can use batteries to store energy, I can tell you that as the generator is generating, transmission is evacuating it.