Friday 31 October 2014

SHELL LOSES N23BN OVER INSECURITY IN NIGERIA

SHELL LOSES N23BN OVER INSECURITY IN NIGERIA, OTHERSRoyal Dutch Shell said yesterday that it lost $146 million, about N23.36 billion from insecurity in Nigeria, and from the impact of its divestment across the globe, among others, in the third quarter of 2014.

The company, in its third quarter 2014 financial statement released to the investing community, also stated that it is expecting $15 billion, about N2.4 trillion from its assets in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

Read more @ Vanguard

BONGA OIL SPILL: SHORELINE COMMUNITIES GIVE SHELL ULTIMATUM

Victims of the December 20, 2011 Shell Bonga oil spill have given the oil major till the end of November to compensate them for damaging their livelihood or face the repercussions.

This followed the alleged refusal of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to implement environmental safety measures of the federal government and compensate victims of the spill which affected Ondo, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers 

Read more @ Leadership

SHELL NAMES HOLLIDAY NEW CHAIRMAN

30 October 2014, News Wires – Shell has named Charles ‘Chad’ Holliday as its new chairman starting next year as current chair Jorma Ollila’s long tenure draws to a close.

Read more @ Sweet Crude

MORE PETROLEUM PRODUCTS’ VESSELS SAIL INTO NIGERIA WATERS

778-NPA-Gate.jpg - 778-NPA-Gate.jpg
More vessels laden with several petroleum products are in Nigerian territorial waters heading to Nigerian ports. The 10 vessels arrived the nation’s seaports in Lagos and are awaiting berthing instructions from the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

Data on the movements of vessels in Nigeria (Shipping Position) collated by NPA indicated that five of the ships are laden with petrol, four others with kerosene and one with bulk gas.

Read more @ Thisday Live

TOTAL NIGERIA 9-MONTH PRE-TAX PROFIT FALLS 18%

Total Nigeria, the local unit of French oil major Total, said yesterday that its nine month pretax profit ended September 30, 2014 fell 18 per cent to N4.2bn from N5.14bn in the same period of 2013.

Read more @ National Mirror

OPEC TELLS OIL MARKET TO STOP PANICKING ABOUT PRICE

Moneyweb NewsEveryone in the oil market should stop panicking because crude supply and demand will return to equilibrium, OPEC’s Secretary-General said.

Members of OPEC, who pump about 40% of the world’s oil, aren’t waging a price war and haven’t demanded an emergency response to the plunge in crude futures, Abdalla El-Badri said at the Oil & Money conference in London yesterday.

Read more @ Moneyweb

Thursday 30 October 2014

GOVT ALLAYS FEAR OVER FALL IN OIL PRICE

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NIGERIANS need not worry about the economy over the fall in oil price as the Federal Government has other sources of revenues, according to an official.       

There has been anxiety that the fall in the price of oil,  the nation’s highest foreign exchange earner, at the international market may adversely affect the economy.

Read more @ The Guardian

SAMSUNG ADMITS SUBMITTING COST VARIATION FOR EGINA FPSO

SAMSUNG ADMITS SUBMITTING COST VARIATION FOR EGINA FPSOSamsung Heavy Industries Nigeria, the firm that won and is currently executing the $3.3bn Egina Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading project, has admitted there will be some sort of cost adjustments as far as the project is concerned.

This variation, which the company described as ‘change orders’ was said to be introduced to check possible market dynamics

Read more @ The Punch

NNPC, PARTNERS TAKE OVER CONOCOPHILLIPS’ SHARES IN BRASS LNG

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its partners, Total and Eni, have agreed to take over the shares that were left behind by American energy corporation, ConocoPhillips (COP), which recently left the multibillion dollar Brass Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project.

Jackson-Gaius-Obaseki-.jpg - Jackson-Gaius-Obaseki-.jpg
Chairman of Brass LNG, Dr. Jackson Gaius-Obaseki said on Wednesday in Abuja that NNPC, Total and Eni have now agreed to take up the 17 per cent shares that COP left behind at its exit from the project.

Read more @ Thisday Live

TOTAL TO SIGN DEALS WITH USAN FIELD BUYERS

In furtherance of the sale of its 20 per cent stake in Nigeria’s Usan deepwater oil field located in the Oil Mining Lease 138, French oil major Total says it is expecting to sign confidentiality agreements with about a dozen prospective buyers.

Read more @ The Punch

SENATE REJECTS $78 OIL PRICE BENCHMARK

SENATE REJECTS $78 OIL PRICE BENCHMARKStrong indications emerged on Wednesday that the Senate had rejected the $78 oil price benchmark proposed for the 2015 budget as contained in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper sent to it by President Goodluck Jonathan penultimate week.

The development, according to a source in the upper legislative chamber, came as a result of the decision of the Joint Senate Committee on Finance and National Planning to return the 2015-2017 MTEF and FSP document to the Senate’s leadership.

Read more @ The Punch

Wednesday 29 October 2014

ADDAX EXTENDS CHARTER OF FPSO VESSEL IN NIGERIA FOR $39 MILLION

Malaysia’s Yinson Holdings Berhad (Yinson, the Group) reported that its FPSO (floating production, storage and offloading) vessel, Knock Adoon has secured a contract extension with Addax Petroleum Development (Nigeria) Limited (ADDAX) with a total contract value of approximately $39million. Knock Adoon original contract awarded October 17, 2006 was for a firm eight year period with an extension option of up to eight years.

Read more @ Businessday

SHELL SIGNS SALES AGREEMENTS FOR NIGERIAN ASSETS

SHELL SIGNS SALES AGREEMENTS FOR NIGERIAN ASSETS
Royal Dutch Shell has signed sales agreements for all the Nigerian oil assets it put up for sale following a 2013 review as part of its cost-cutting drive. The assets include Shell’s 30 percent stake in oil mining leases (OML) 18, 24, 25, 29 and the Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL).

Shell has opted to move away from Nigerian onshore oil production, which is plagued by massive oil theft, security problems and oil spills and is also becoming a major source of legal liabilities.

Read more @ Businessday

NNPC GETS DEPUTY GMD

NNPC GETS DEPUTY GMDIn an effort to reposition at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) into a commercially driven entity, President Goodluck  Jonathan on Tuesday approved the creation of a new office of Deputy Group Managing Director of the corporation to be headed by Mr. Bernard O.N. Otti.

The office is the first to be so created since the establishment of the oil company. Otti is the NNPC’s current Group Executive Director (Finance and Accounts)

Read more @ Thisday Live

POUYANNE AND DESMAREST: NEW HELMSMEN AT TOTAL

French oil major Total has appointed refining head Patrick Pouyanne as chief executive and former CEO Thierry Desmarest as non-executive chairman.

Read more @ Businessday


CHRISTOPHE DE MARGERIE PASSES ON

CHRISTOPHE DE MARGERIE PASSES ONChristophe de Margerie died on October 20, 2014 just after his private plane crash at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow, following a collision with a snow removal machine. Four people were found dead at the scene of the accident, including three crew member and Christophe de Margerie.

Read more @ Businessday

NIGERIA TO IMPORT PETROLEUM PRODUCTS FOR 20 YEARS

Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke
Nigeria and other African countries will continue to be net importers of petroleum products despite the availability of functional and quasi-functional refineries, and plans to build more refineries on the continent, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Diezani Alison-Madueke, has said.

According to her, plans to build more refineries in Angola, Uganda, Mozambique and Nigeria cannot change the situation.

Read more @ The Punch

Tuesday 28 October 2014

PIRATES KIDNAP OIL WORKERS, KILL POLICEMEN

Attacks by pirates in the creeks of the Niger Delta since last Thursday has left three policemen dead and at least nine people abducted, security officials have said.

PiratesMost of those kidnapped were local workers in the oil industry, where piracy in the surrounding waterways and seas is on the rise again after a brief lull, bucking a global trend that has seen pirate attacks fall elsewhere, according to Reuters

Read more @ The Punch

SHALE GAS THREAT TO OUR BUSINESS

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, Mr. Babs Omotowa, has stated that Shale gas competition, as well as new mega LNG plants in Australia and East Africa are a threat to the company’s business.


NLNG SAVED NIGERIA FROM FLARING 4.2TCF OF GAS
Speaking recently at the 46th annual conference of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) in Abuja, Omotowa noted that the technological improvements to Shale gas extraction have doubled the world reserves in LNG


Read more @ Thisday Live

NLNG SAVED FLARING 4.2TCF OF GAS

211014F-Babs-Omotowa.jpg - 211014F-Babs-Omotowa.jpgThe Managing Director of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, Mr. Babs Omotowa, has disclosed that save for the Nigeria’s decision to incorporate the NLNG in 1989, the country would have been flaring approximately 4.2 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of associated gas by now.

Omotowa said in a paper delivered at the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) Conference in Abuja recently that inasmuch as Nigeria formalised the NLNG Act to help end gas flaring and monetised her vast natural gas resources, it also tarried in getting the project off the drawing board.

Read more @ Thisday Live

EXPERTS WARN FG AS OIL PRICES SLIDE CONTINUES

Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke
As the decline in global oil prices has taken a big toll on the country’s revenue, experts have stressed the need for Nigeria to reduce its high recurrent expenditure.

The prices of oil continued the downward trend on Monday, falling back below $86 per barrel after Goldman Sachs cut its 2015 price forecasts for Brent crude, the benchmark against which Nigeria’s oil is measured.

Read more @ The Punch

Monday 27 October 2014

NO MORE ANNUAL ALLOCATIONS TO DPR

President Goodluck Jonathan has approved the retention of four per cent of royalties on oil and gas concessions and other revenues as the cost of collection by the Department of Petroleum Resources, investigation has shown.

Director, Department of Petroleum Resources, Mr. George Osahon

This means that the agency will retain four per cent of the total revenue it collects on behalf of the Federal Government and the other two tiers of government every month rather than depend on budgetary provisions for its operations.

Read more @ The Punch

FALLING OIL PRICES WON’T AFFECT 2015 BUDGET –REPS

Brent crude oil
The House of Representatives on Sunday dismissed fears that the falling crude oil prices would adversely affect the 2015 budget.

From around $114 months back, the prices of crude have dropped far below $100 per barrel lately, raising concerns of a possible negative impact on Nigeria’s monolithic economy.

Read more @ The Punch


NNPC, SAMSUNG, TOTAL IN FRESH ROW OVER $3.3BN EGINA PROJECT

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria Limited and Total Upstream Nigeria (TUPNI) Limited are heading for a collision over the demand by Samsung to raise the cost of the $3.3 billion Egina project, THISDAY has learnt.

Read more @ Thisday Live

SUSTAINED DROP IN OIL PRICE WILL NECESSITATE PAINFUL MEASURES

SUSTAINED DROP IN OIL PRICE WILL NECESSITATE PAINFUL MEASURES
The Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has warned that a sustained drop in the price of crude oil will force the federal government to adopt painful cost-cutting measures.

In an interview with the London-based Financial Times (FT) newspaper, the minister said: “We will have to look very hard at recurrent expenditure, and identify overlapping agencies. When the price is heading down, everyone sees the necessity but that doesn’t stop them from hating you.”

Read more @Thisday Live

Friday 24 October 2014

MART RESOURCES RAISES FUNDING OF SHELL ASSETS TO N37.2 BILLION

MART Resources has arranged to increase its existing secured term loan credit facility with Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GT Bank) from $175 million (N28 billion) to $232.5 million (N37.2 billion).

The increased secured loan credit facility has a term of five years and bears interest at 90 days LIBOR plus four (floor of 8.25 per cent), which interest rate is unchanged from the terms of the Company’s existing facility with GT Bank.

Read more @ The Guardian


FIRM EXPLAINS PROMOTION OF INDIGENOUS ARTS

As part of its corporate social responsibilities to its host communities and society in general, the management of Total E & P Nigeria Limited has assured its commitment to arts development and providing a fledging platform for the exploration of creative talents in Nigeria.

Read more @ The Tide

RIVERS COMMUNITIES PROTEST AGAINST OIL GIANT

RIVERS COMMUNITIES PROTEST AGAINST OIL GIANTThese are not the best of times for French oil company, Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Ltd (TEPNL). The company is embroiled in protracted face-offs on several fronts with its host communities in Rivers State.

The oil company’s operations were crippled the whole of last week in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area  as two of its host communities blocked access to the company’s facilities there.

Read more @ The Nation

NIGERIA’S OIL REVENUE CRASHES TO N502BN

NIGERIA’S OIL REVENUE CRASHES TO N502BNOil price volatility has continued to take a toll on the Nigeria’s economy, crashing the country’s revenue to N502.09 billion in September, down 16.5 per cent from N601.65 billion in August.

This gloomy development came hours after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) pledged to keep supporting the naira after the currency approached a record low amid declining oil prices and the end of the United States monetary stimulus that bolstered emerging-market assets.

Read more @ New Telegraph

Thursday 23 October 2014

PLANE CRASH: DRIVER GOT LOST

A snowplough driver, at a Moscow airport , Vladimir Martynenko, has said he lost his bearings before a collision with a private plane in which Total boss Christophe de Margerie died. Vladimir Martynenko told Russian TV he was unaware he had entered the runway, BBC reports. Margerie, 63, chief executive of the French oil firm, was killed in the crash along with three crew members.

Read more @ The Punch

TOTAL GETS NEW CEO, CHAIRMAN

Total Nigeria Plc logoFollowing the recommendations of the Governance and Ethics Committee of Total, which met on Wednesday, the Board of Directors has finally named Thierry Desmarest as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Desmarest is currently a member of the Board and Honorary Chairman of the Board.

It also named Patrick Pouyanné as Chief Executive Officer and President of the Executive Committee. Until now, he was President of Refining and Chemicals and a member of the Executive Committee.

Read more @ Punch

CRUDE OIL SLIDE THREATENS NAIRA

he effort by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to prop up the naira months before the 2015 elections is being threatened by the slide in crude oil prices.

The naira has come under intense pressure and has tumbled to within 0.3 per cent of a record low as Brent crude fell to the lowest level in more than four years, reported Bloomberg.

Read more @ Thisday

Wednesday 22 October 2014

OIL OUTPUT SQUEEZED BY LNG PLANT CLOSURE

The lengthy shutdown of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant is helping push Angola’s crude oil exports to their lowest levels since 2006, having clogged offshore platforms with unwanted gas supplies and forced operators to limit extraction.

The major reconstruction required to fix design flaws at the LNG plant and replace nearly-new equipment that has already corroded could keep it shut beyond a planned restart in mid-2015.

Read more @ Businessday

GOVT EARNS $85B FROM NLNG OPERATIONS IN 15 YEARS

THE Federal Government has earned about $85 billion from the operations of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) in the past 15 years.

OMOTOWAThe Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG Limited, Babs Omotowa, who disclosed this at the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) conference in Abuja Tuesday, stated that Nigeria LNG Limited has de-mystified the various malignant myths about doing business in Nigeria as it has delivered sterling performance within its 15 years of operation. 

Read more @ The Guardian

OPEC UNDER PRESSURE OVER UNCERTAINTY IN PRICE

MEMBERS of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are currently under pressure to cut crude oil production as measures to tackle the current uncertainty in prices per barrel.

Crude oil prices have tumbled more than 23 per cent since June, including a more than four per cent drop last week.

Read more @ The Guardian

TOTAL SEES PROMISING FUTURE DESPITE CEO’S SUDDEN DEATH

Managing Director, Total Nigeria Plc, Francois Boussagol
French oil giant, Total, has said it will continue to move forward despite the sudden death of its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Christophe de Margerie.

The firm said on its website on Tuesday that its position was hinged on de Margerie’s dreams, which were focused on moving the company forward.

Read more @ The Punch

SHELL OKAYS NIGERIAN ASSETS SALE

Royal Dutch Shell has signed the sale and purchase agreements for all the Nigerian oil assets it put up for sale following a 2013 review of its business in the country, a spokesman said on Tuesday.
SHELL OKAYS NIGERIAN ASSETS SALE

The assets include oil mining leases 18, 24, 25, 29 and the Nembe Creek Trunk Line pipeline.

Read more @ The Punch

Tuesday 21 October 2014

EXPERTS FAULT $78 OIL BENCHMARK FOR 2015 BUDGET

Experts have described the 2015 budget benchmarks released last week through the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), as unrealistic because of the prevailing challenges in the international oil market. In the framework, government pegged the 2015 N4.817.76 trillion proposed budget on an oil benchmark of $78 per barrel. It also proposed to spend N1.22 trillion on fuel subsidy. The figure includes N971.4 billion as subsidy on petrol and N250 billion on kerosene. The oil benchmark for 2014 budget is $75.5 per barrel as against $ 77.5 per barrel earlier proposed by the executive to the National Assembly.

Read more @ New Telegraph

N’DELTA EX-MILITANTS THREATEN TO DESTROY OIL INSTALLATIONS

Some ex-militants from the Niger Delta on Monday threatened to blow up oil installations in the region if the Federal Government failed to include their names in its amnesty programme.

Read more @ The Punch

MERGERS TO DRIVE INDIGENOUS OIL COMPANY GROWTH

Nigeria’s indigenous oil and gas industry is set to continue its rapid growth as International Oil Company (IOC) divestments spur mergers and acquisitions.

The growth of domestic oil companies is also being catalysed by the recent Local Content Act passed by the Nigerian government, say analysts.

Read more @ Businessday


OIL INDUSTRY EXPERTS WARN OPERATORS ON FRAMING OF LEGAL AGREEMENTS

Experts in the oil and gas industry have advised Nigerian indigenous oil and gas firms wishing to go into partnerships, to be sure to employ the services of experienced lawyers and engineers to guide their transactions, in order to avoid conflicts and losses along the line

Read more @ Businessday

NLNG PAYMENTS ACCOUNT FOR 5% OF NIGERIA’S 2014 REVENUE PROJECTION

The Managing Director of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Ltd, Babs Omotowa has said the company provided about five per cent of Nigeria’s revenue projection for the 2014 through its income tax payment to the federation.

Omotowa also said, having exhausted its tax holiday period, about 70 per cent of value generated by the company now goes to the government and people of Nigeria.

Read more @ Thisday Live

TOTAL’S CEO CHRISTOPHE DE MARGERIE DIES IN PLANE CRASH

Christophe de Margerie, the chief executive of French oil company Total, has died in an air crash in Moscow.

Airport spokeswoman Elena Krylova said: “Tonight, a plane crashed when it collided with a snow-clearing machine. Three crew members and a passenger died.” “I can confirm that the passenger was Total’s head de Margerie,” she said

Read more @ The Punch

COURT OKAYS ALISON-MADUEKE, NNPC’S SUIT AGAINST PROBE

A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday granted a request by the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to challenge the legality of the move by the House of Representatives to hold a public hearing over alleged spending of N10 billion on chartered jet by the minister.

Justice Ahmed Mohammed granted the request on Monday while ruling on an application by the minister and NNPC to amend their originating summons in the case.

Read more @ Thisday Live



Monday 20 October 2014

NIGERIA RECORDS $7.2BN REVENUE FROM CRUDE OIL LIFTING

Nigeria recorded an income of $7.192 billion, about N1.151 trillion from crude oil and condensates for both export and domestic consumption in the month of June 2014.

Particularly, data obtained from the website of the Nigerian National Corporation, NNPC, said total crude oil and condensates lifting for both domestic and export in 2013, was about 65.38 million barrels.

Read more @ Sweet Crude

NIGERIA PRESSURES GHANA TO PROBE OIL THEFT

Nigeria is demanding a probe into the activities of a company, which it believes is involved in laundering stolen crude to Europe.

Wall Street Journal (WSJ), a US-based newspaper which levelled the allegations, said Saltpond Offshore Producing Company (SOPC) is suspected of being used to tranship and smuggle stolen Nigerian crude to Europe and that Washington is probing the company as part of a broader inquiry into how Nigerian oil gets stolen and laundered.

Read more @ Sweet Crude

FALLING OIL PRICES POSE CHALLENGES FOR NIGERIA

The Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said the current decline in crude oil prices globally presents some risks to the country.

Global oil prices are down around 25 per cent to $86 per barrel from $112 in June this year, putting pressure on oil-exporting countries, including Nigeria.

Read more @ The Punch

EXXONMOBIL PROJECTS 2040 GLOBAL ENERGY OUTLOOK

ExxonMobil, one of the world's largest publicly traded multinational oil and gas companies, has projected that global energy demand will be in the range of 1200 Quadrillion (British Thermal Unit (BTUs), even as global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) approaches the $120 trillion mark with a global population of 9 billion people.

This was disclosed at the just concluded presentation of the ExxonMobil Energy Outlook Series titled: The Outlook for Energy: A view to 2040 in Nigeria at the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos. The platform was designed with the objective of broadening understanding of energy sector challenges and opportunities globally and in Nigeria and to project ExxonMobil’s investments in meeting global energy need with 2040 in view.

The session, examined the dynamics of population geometric growth, availability of energy resources, economic growth and the global desire for improved living standards. It also advocates new trends in energy utilisation with attendant effects on availability and distribution of electricity.

Discussions at the forum centred mainly on the current level of ExxonMobil’s investment in LNG in Nigeria, the place of shale gas in the energy mix and how it affects Nigeria and a revisit of coal in the energy mix and implication for Nigeria. The platform also provided the opportunity for industry lights to elucidate on global future energy requirements.

The one-day event attracted a total of 108 guests spanning the academia, manufacturing sector, financial services sector, energy, oil & gas, government, media and etc. Notable dignitaries at the event were Ben Akabueze, Lagos State Commissioner for Economic Planning & Budget; Prof. Ayo Ibidapo-Obe, Vice Chancellor of the Federal University Ikwo, Ebonyi State.

The session also had in attendance others like Opeyemi Agbaje, CEO, RTC Advisory Ltd and leading economic analyst and columnist; Dr. Enase Okonedo, Dean of the Lagos Business School; Austin Avuru, CEO of Seplat Petroleum, representatives of leading indigenous oil and gas company listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange among others

EXXONMOBIL ENERGY OUTLOOK SERIES


L-R (IMG 0121) : G.O Akinluyi, Chairman, Humanitex Nigeria Limited; Rita Irone Begho, Federal Commissioner, Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission and Oladotun Isiaka, General Manager, Deepwater Operation & Joint Interest, Esso Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited during the ExxonMobil Energy Outlook Series event in Lagos recently.

Friday 17 October 2014

EXXONMOBIL ENERGY OUTLOOK SERIES



L-R (IMG 0131): Amarauche Ezukanma, Power Sector Group, Zenith Bank Plc; Enyinnaya Onokala, Executive Director, Business Development, Mobil Producing Nigeria; and G.O Akinluyi, Chairman, Humanitex Nigeria Limited during the ExxonMobil Energy Outlook Series event in Lagos recently.






Thursday 16 October 2014

ENI CEO NEVER CONSIDERED RESIGNING OVER MALABU OIL DEAL

The Chief Executive Officer of Italy’s Eni, Claudio Descalzi, has never considered offering his resignation following his involvement in a Nigerian corruption probe being carried out by Milan prosecutors, the chairwoman of the oil major said Wednesday.

“The idea never existed,” Emma Marcegaglia said in reply to the question if Descalzi had offered his resignation.

Read more @ Thisday Live

LAGOS TO JOIN OIL PRODUCING STATES IN 2015

Lagos State is set to join the league of oil producing states in the country come next year as the joint venture partners on the Aje Field offshore Lagos have taken the final investment decision on the exploration of the field.

A group led by Yinka Folawiyo Petroleum Company Limited took the FID to develop the first phase of the Aje shallow water oil field for $220m.

Read more @ The Punch
The Federal Government has proposed $78 as the benchmark price for a barrel of crude oil and fixed the exchange rate at N160 per dollar for the 2015 national budget.

The projection, which was contained in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper sent to the Senate by President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday, was $4 higher than this year’s benchmark

Read more @ The Punch

FLARED GAS CAN GENERATE 100,000MW

Despite growing domestic gas demand in the country, oil companies in the first half of the year flared a quantum of natural gas capable of generating 100,000 megawatts of electricity.

According to data from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, about 198 billion standard cubic feet of natural gas was flared from January to June.

Read more @ The Punch

Wednesday 15 October 2014

COURT STOPS BRITISH LAWYER FROM REPRESENTING OIL SPILLAGE VICTIMS

A Bayelsa State High Court has restrained a British lawyer, Mr. Martyn Day, from representing 7,400 residents of Bodo Community of Rivers State in an oil spill compensation suit filed against the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria.

The court order was made pursuant to a motion ex parte filed by a Nigerian lawyer, Mr. Affinih Egbegi asking the court to stop Day from dealing with any of the 7,400 plaintiffs.

BRITISH COURT BLOCKS SHELL AGREEMENT ON RIVERS COMMUNITY

A High Court in London has blocked an agreement between the oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Company and a UK law firm, CW Law, in relation to thousands of residents of Bodo community in Rivers State, which the firm claimed it represented in a dispute over oil spills.

The President of the Technical and Construction Court, Justice Robert Akenhead, blocked the deal and upheld an injunction against CW Law, which prevents them or anyone representing them, to make contact with the people of Bodo in furtherance of the settlement agreement.

Read more @ Thisday

Friday 10 October 2014

TEPNG RECORDS MAJOR MILESTONES

TEPNG RECORDS MAJOR MILESTONESTotal Exploration and Production Nigeria says a lot of milestones have been achieved towards the realisation of the completion of the development of Egina in 2017. According to the company, such milestones achieved in the past few months include the procurement of the drilling tubulars, the gas export and water injection line pipes, the first wellheads set, the steel cutting in-country for living quarters and subsea manifolds, and finally last week, the sail away of the Drilling Rig West Jupiter to Nigeria.

Read more @ StarAfrica Online

SHELL STALLS GAS AGREEMENT FOR AFAM POWER PLANT

The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has been accused of delaying the privatisation of Afam Power Plant by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) for undisclosed reasons.

This is because the oil major has continued to  delay the signing of the Gas Purchase Agreement (GPA) for the power plant.

Read more @ The Nation

Thursday 9 October 2014

US REFINERIES EXPOSE TO DANGERS OF LIGHTER SHALE OIL

ZERO IMPORTS OF NIGERIA’S CRUDE EXPOSE US REFINERIES TO DANGERS OF LIGHTER SHALE OIL
The decision of the United States to stop the importation of Nigeria’s light blend of crude oil due to the shale oil boom has exposed the US refineries to the dangers associated with the processing of lighter shale oil.

As a result of the increased domestic production of shale oil, the US has slashed crude  oil imports from a peak of almost 14 million barrels per day in 2006, to slightly above 7 million barrels per day.

Read more @ Thisday Live

TOTAL MOVES TOP GOLFERS TO PORT HARCOURT FOR CHARITY

The 2014 edition of Total’s annual golf charity tournament tees off at the magnificent Air Assault Golf Course in Port Harcourt on Saturday, 11 October 2014. The tournament is designed to raise funds for improvement of facilities in selected local charity homes, a notice placed by the oil giant has disclosed.

“This sporting event associates the pleasure of playing golf in a beautiful scenery and the deep in heart joy of the company and the players in donating and helping citizens,” says Elisabeth Proust, Managing Director of Total E&P Nigeria Ltd.

Read more @ The Neighbourhood

FPSO PROJECT DELAY WON’T AFFECT COST –SAMSUNG

Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria Limited has said despite the delay of the in-country facility development of the Egina Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading project, there would not be any change in the overall cost of the project.

A ground breaking ceremony for the start of construction of major infrastructural development associated with the project, took place at the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics on Friday. The modules built in Nigeria will be integrated into the FPSO in 2017.

Read more @ The Punch

TOTAL E&P EGINA OIL FIELD SIGNALS MILESTONE ACHIEVEMENT

TOTAL E&P EGINA OIL FIELD SIGNALS MILESTONE ACHIEVEMENT
Total Exploration and Production Nigeria has said that a lot of milestones have been achieved towards the realisation of the completion of the development of Egina in 2017.

According to the company, such milestones achieved in the past few months include the procurement of the drilling tubulars, the gas export and water injection line pipes, the first wellheads set, the steel cutting in-country for living quarters and subsea manifolds, and finally last week, the sail away of the Drilling Rig West Jupiter to Nigeria

Read more @ Businessday

NIGERIA LAGS AFRICAN COUNTERPARTS IN REFINING CAPACITY

Despite its status as Africa’s top crude oil producer and exporter, Nigeria continues to trail other African countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Libya and South Africa in terms of refining capacity.

The World Oil and Gas Review 2014, released this week, shows Egypt as having the highest primary refining capacity in 2013 among the five countries, followed by Algeria and South Africa.

Read more @ The Punch

Wednesday 8 October 2014

AGIP SIGNS PACT WITH PETAN TO BOOST LOCAL CONTENT

THE Nigeria Agip Exploration (NAE), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria,(PETAN) to foster collaboration in developing capacity within its operations and to boost local content in the country.

Read more @ The Guardian

OBSOLETE LAWS STUNT GOVERNMENT REVENUE IN OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY

The continued operation of obsolete laws as well as delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) by the National Assembly may be costing Nigeria huge sums of revenue accruable to the national coffers, BusinessDay investigations have shown.

Read more @ Businessday Online

NAVY ARRESTS 50 PIPELINE VANDALS

The Western Naval Command (WNC) of the Nigerian Navy (NN) has arrested no fewer than 50 suspected pipeline vandals in an ongoing major operation at Majidun, Ikorodu area of Lagos State.

This is in addition to their recovery of about 6,000 gallons of stolen products siphoned from several vandalised Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipelines.

Read more @ Thisday Live

140 GOLFERS FOR TOTAL CHARITY MEET

About 140 golfers from various parts of the country are expected to participate in the 2014 edition of Total’s annual golf charity tournament which tees off at the Air Assault Golf Course in Port Harcourt on October 11.

According to the Managing Director of Total E&P Nigeria Ltd Elizabeth Proust, the tournament was designed to raise funds for improvement of facilities in selected local charity homes.

Read more @ The Punch

TOTAL’S EGINA $3.5B FPSO PROJECT TAKES OFF

The construction of the Total’s Egina field’s floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, has begun, two years behind the scheduled time due to conflict between the principal contractor, Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) and Lagos Deep Offshore Logistic Base (LADOL), a sub-contractor and one of the local vehicles to the FPSO project.

Read more @ The Nation

Tuesday 7 October 2014

14 LEGAL CASES STALLED EXXONMOBIL SPECIAL PROJECTS IN AKWA IBOM

Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State has expressed concern over fourteen legal cases instituted against American oil giant, ExxonMobil by the host communities.
The governor made his feelings when the Chairman/Managing and Lead Country Manager of ExxonMobil Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Nolan O’Neal, visited him in Government House, Uyo.

Read more@ Thisday Live

Friday 3 October 2014

REPORT IMPLORES FG TO CURB OIL THEFT

THE Federal Government has been urged to initiate an international campaign that would treat crude oil stolen from Nigeria as transnational organised crime in order to stem the $6 billion lost yearly due to oil theft.

In addition, the Federal Government has also been advised to without further delay establish special judicial mechanism that would pave way for special court for the prosecution of oil theft cases.

Read more @ The Guardian