Friday 31 July 2015

OIL PRICES DIP AS OPEC OFFICIAL SAYS NO CUTS PLANNED

oil priceUS oil prices dipped Thursday, snapping a two-day streak of gains after a top official with OPEC reiterated that the cartel has no plans to cut petroleum production.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in September dropped 27 cents to $48.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

DPR SHUTS 22 FILLING STATIONS IN FCT

Mordecai Danteni Baba Ladan,, Director, DPRThe Abuja office of the Department of Petroleum Resources has closed down 22 filling stations in the Federal Capital Territory and its environs due to what it described as undue profiteering.

The department said 19 of the affected filling stations were sealed for selling above the N87 per litre official price, while two others were shut for diversion of petroleum products.

Read more @ SweetCrude Report

SHELL TO SACK 6,500; CUT SPENDING TO COPE WITH LOWER OIL PRICES

Shell logoRoyal Dutch Shell says it will axe 6,500 jobs this year and step up spending cuts, to deal with an extended period of lower oil prices.

Besides, the company announced on Thursday in London the sale of a 33 per cent stake in the Showa Shell refinery in Japan to Idemitsu, for about $1.4 billion.

Read more @ SweetCrude Report

DESPITE COURT ORDER, GE DIRECTS ARCO TO VACATE AGIP’S CONTRACT SITE

Despite the subsisting order of a Federal High Court that all parties should maintain the status quo, General Electric (GE) International Operations Nigeria Limited has directed Arco Petrochemical Engineering Company Limited to demobilise from the multi-million dollar maintenance service contract for gas turbines and related equipment for OB/OB, Ebocha and Kwale Gas plants in Delta State.

Read morte @ SweetCrude Report

Thursday 30 July 2015

ENI CONTEMPLATING ASSETS SALES ONSHORE AMID OIL PRICE DROP

Another  gale of oil block divestment may hit Nigeria  very soon, as Eni SpA, Italy’s largest oil company, is considering selling part or all of its onshore Nigerian operations as it seeks to divest peripheral businesses amid a drop in oil prices, people familiar with the matter say.

If  this happens, analysts say it would  boost local capacities of Nigeria in the  upstream sector  of the oil and gas industry

Read more @ Businessday online

NIGERIA LNG TO TAKE DELIVERY OF FOUR CARRIER SHIPS THIS YEAR

Nigeria-Liquefied-Natural-G.jpg - Nigeria-Liquefied-Natural-G.jpgThe Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Company (NLNG)  is expected to take delivery of four LNG carrier ships before year-end and another two next year, its chief executive said, positioning the state-backed gas exporter to expand its share of the growing market.

 NLNG signed agreements with South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries and Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2013 to acquire six LNG carrier ships, costing more than $1.2 billion, to boost its fleet of 23.

Read more @ Thisdaylive

CRUDE OIL PRICES FREEZE N44TR OIL, GAS INVESTMENTS

Oil-Price-Fall-Oil and gas investors around the world may have decided to put over $200 billion (about N44 trillion) investment on hold due to the declining crude oil prices.

Already, companies like British Petroleum, Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Statoil, and many other oil and gas firms have are causious to spend on new projects in other to protect investors’ funds.

Read more @ The Guardian

OIL WORTH $13.7BN STOLEN UNDER NNPC, SAYS NEITI

Executive Secretary, NEITI, Mrs. Zainab AhmedThe Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Hajiya Zainab Shamsuna-Ahmed, on Wednesday said between 2009 and 2012, about 160 million barrels of oil valued at $13.7bn was stolen under the watch of the national oil giant, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

She also said that subsidy payment from 2005 to 2012 indicated that $11.63bn had been paid to the NNPC but that “there is no evidence of the money being remitted to the federation account.”

Read more @ Punch Online

P’HARCOURT, WARRI REFINERIES BEGIN CRUDE PRODUCTION – NNPC

Warri RefineryThe Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has announced the successful re-streaming of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries after nine months of phased rehabilitation conducted by its in-house engineers and technicians.

The national oil company made the announcement on Wednesday through a statement.

Read more @ Punch Online

Wednesday 29 July 2015

NUPENG SUGGESTS WAY FORWARD FOR PETROLEUM INDUSTRY

Oil workers, member sof PENGASSAN. Photo: naijThe Independent Marketers Branch (IMB) of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has called for total reforms to check the rot and corruption in the petroleum industry.

The group called on President Muhammadu Buhari to be cautious of the “racketeers and cabals” whom they said have taken over the sector

Read more @ The Guardian

US GAVE BUHARI NAMES OF OIL THIEVES –SOURCE

US gave Buhari names of oil thieves –SourceThe United States of America has handed over the names of Nigerian oil thieves to President Muhammadu Buhari, a member of the President’s entourage during last week’s visit to the US confided in the Punch on Tuesday.

“I can tell you that the President already has the list of names of the people engaging in the stealing of Nigeria’s oil. The list, when released by the President, will shock Nigerians. But let’s wait and see first,” the source said.

Read more @ Punch Online

TOTAL NIGERIA REPORTS 10% H1 PRE-TAX PROFIT DECLINE

Total Nigeria reports 10% H1 pre-tax profit declineTotal Nigeria Plc has posted 10 per cent drop in profit before tax for the half year ended June 2015. In a filing with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the company’s pre-tax profit declined from N2.178 billion during the comparable period of 2014 to N1.967 billion, accounting for a drop of 10 per cent. Gross earnings of the fuel marketer also dipped to N111.974 billion from N120.157 billion in the previous year.

Total had reported 79 per cent drop in net earnings for the first quarter ended March 31, 2015.

Read more @ New Telegraph

NIGERIA’S UNTAPPED GAS RESERVES AND DECLINING CRUDE OIL FORTUNES

Nigeria’s untapped gas reserves and declining crude oil fortunesWith 188 trillion standard cubic feet (SCF), of gas resources, making Nigeria the seventh most endowed gas nation in the world and number one in Africa, the nation could have been immuned from the plummeting crude oil business if strategies focus had been made on this strategic option

Oil and gas experts believed that Nigeria could even earn more from full utilisation of gas resources than what it is currently been realised from crude oil exports.

Read more @ The Guardian

Tuesday 28 July 2015

HOW INACTION DELAYED SPLIT OF NNPC UNDER JONATHAN

Andrew YakubuThe decision to split the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was taken by the management of the corporation under former Group Managing Director, Andrew Yakubu but the plan did not materialise before he was eased out of office last year.

So, the plan to split the corporation unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari during his state visit to the United States of America is indeed not new.

Read more @ The Guardian

NIGERIA’S GAS RESERVES LIFE INDEX STANDS AT 79 YEARS, SAYS DPR

070212T.gas-flare.jpg - 070212T.gas-flare.jpgThe Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has stated that Nigeria’s gas reserves of 188 trillion cubic feet (TCF) would be exhausted within 79 years from January 1, 2015.

Speaking at a recent meeting of the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA) in Lagos, DPR’s Deputy Director in charge of Gas Monitoring and Regulation, Mr. Antigha Ekaluo noted that 52 per cent of Nigeria’s gas is Associated Gas (AG), while 48 per cent is Non-Associated Gas (NAG)

Read more @ Thisday

NIGERIA EXPECTS FURTHER RISE IN RESERVES AS NNPC MOVES MORE FUNDS TO CBN

Nigeria’s dollar reserves are to increase in the medium term as the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), continues to move dollar denominated deposits out of commercial banks into the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This is being complimented by efforts to block leakages, which helped to shore up government revenues for the month of June.

 Read more @ Businessday

Monday 27 July 2015

AGAIN, AGIP OIL SPILL DEVASTATES BAYELSA COMMUNITIES

A massive oil spill from the Ossiama-Ogboinbiri and Ogboinbiri-Tebidaba pipelines of Nigerian Agip Oil Company has devastated the environment of Keme-Ebiama, Okpotuwari and Ondewari communities in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

It was gathered at the weekend that the oil leak, which spewed volumes of crude oil from the ruptured spot on the oil-bearing pipe was reported by community people on the July 14,2015.

Read more @ Sweetcrude Rep

AGIP BEGINS $5BN ONSHORE ASSETS SALE IN NIGERIA

 
Anxiety over memo banning 113 vessels from lifting oilItaly’s largest oil company, Eni SpA, has joined Shell and Chevron in the sale spree of its onshore assets in Nigeria. It was gathered that the company’s subsidiary in Nigeria, Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) has already set a target of $5 billion that it would realise from the sale of the onshore assets it operates in Nigeria.

“Nigerian Agip Oil Company, which operates under a joint-venture agreement with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and ConocoPhillips, is already at the second critical stage of the sale,” a source disclosed.

Read more @ New Telegraph

JV FUNDING: PENGASSAN TASKS FG ON PAYMENT OF CASH CALL ARREARS

Workers in the oil and gas industry under the aegis of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have called on the federal government to put machinery in place for the payment
 of billions of dollars in cash call arrears in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Joint Venture (JV) operations with the oil companies

 
Read more @ The Guardian

ANXIETY OVER MEMO BANNING 113 VESSELS FROM LIFTING OIL

Anxiety over memo banning 113 vessels from lifting oilOne of the rather more intriguing issues in the nation’s capital, Abuja, is the origin of the recent Presidential directive reflected in a memo by an official of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) banning 113 vessels from crude oil/gas loading activities in any of the 27 terminals in Nigeria “until further notice.” The ban, however, is causing ripples in the international oil and gas industry.

Read more @ The Guardian

Friday 24 July 2015

BUILDING BLOCKS FOR NIGERIA’S ELECTRICAL FUTURE

Despite a population of over 170 million and the largest economy in Africa, chronic lack of electricity prevents Nigeria from achieving its potential economic and social status.  The wide gap between electricity demand and supply adds greatly to the cost of operations by forced reliance on diesel generators at four times the cost of normal grid power as well as major lost work-time.  From a personal standpoint, there is a universal reduction in quality of life due to the lack of dependable electricity to homes and places of work.

Past governments have generally responded to this electricity debacle by announcing new targets for electricity capacity, along the lines of “10,000 MW by the end of the year”.  In the last 15 years, public money spent in the electrical sector has accumulated to nearly $30 billion and two years have passed since the privatization of the Generation Companies (GENCOs) and Distribution Companies (DISCOs).   Yet despite these major efforts, the daily electricity distributed remains almost unchanged between 2500 – 4000MW and Nigerians see little or no improvement.   Electrical capacity has physically increased, only for the owners to discover there is not enough gas to run them.  Even if there was enough fuel, as the Vice President Professor Osinbajo noted recently, the transmission capacity is only about 5000 MW.   

Both before and after privatization, Nigerian electrical supply has been underpinned by two sources:  
  • the hydro-power facilities that despite problems with water level, partly due to global warming,  remain a dependable core supplier;
  • the dependable operation of the two combined-cycle power plants in the Niger-Delta that belong to two Joint Ventures (JVs) of the International Oil Companies (IOC) and NNPC.   
These two IOC/NNPC power plants have been the workhorses of the existing gas-fired capacity.  With the right policy support, the number and capacity of IOC/NNPC power plants could expand significantly and continue to play a core role in the nation’s electricity. Importantly, several IOC/NNPC JVs already have plans and designs in place to increase the capacity of existing facilities and to build new ones.  The merits of the IOC/NNPC JV power plants derive from several key factors – gas supply certainty, advanced technology, available financing, and extensive expertise.  

First reliable domestic gas supply continue to be major challenge due to the lack of gas infrastructure, often poor maintenance, and deliberate vandalism.   These IOC/NNPC plants avoid these supply problems by being located on the oil block that produces the gas, and the operators provide both the gas supply and the infrastructure to treat and connect the gas to the power plant, thus allowing uninterrupted supply.   Being located within the oil block, on-going maintenance and security are provided by the operators.

Second, the IOC/NNPC operators are technologically advanced companies, expert in the design and implementation of major capital investments.  These companies have chosen to use combined cycle gas technology that use one third less gas to produce a kWh of electricity – thus reducing both gas needs as well as carbon and local emissions.  While combined-cycle gas power plants are the international norm, only one other power plant in the country uses this level of technology.  A priority for the country should be to build the electrical infrastructure to be in line with best international standards, which allows for major benefits to economic well-being and long-term competitiveness.

Third, while many of the new GENCOs have financing constraints, IOC/NNPC JVs have a much stronger financial balance sheet that allows them to fund new, high-quality investment in the electrical generation sector.  Indeed to ensure that the electrical capacity can be utilized, some of these JVs are willing to undertake substantial investments on transmission facilities to secure that power from these lines reach the grid.

Finally, these companies have the experience as well as the procedures and capacity in-place to implement such projects on a timely and reliable basis.   They routinely manage multiple large-scale projects of this magnitude.   Given that such projects require negotiations and contributions from a wide range of international companies both technical and financial, a large global presence is a distinct advantage.

There is no easy fix to Nigeria’s power dilemma and a proper response needs to be wide-ranging and multi-faceted.  The country has moved in the right direction with the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act of 2005 and the creation of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), have been a major steps.  The privatization process, which saw the emergence of the GENCOs and the DISCOS, is clearly positive.   These policies have encouraged other meaningful, privately-owned systems, for example one company in the Delta which has integrated gas supply with transmission infrastructure and entered into firm contracts with power producers.   The on-going initiative on embedded power in Lagos State is another useful example.  The new owner of one of the GENCOs in Delta State has almost tripled  generating capacity within the first six months of operations, showing that some new entrants can act decisively.  Renewables such as solar could have an important space, if given the right policies and incentives.

Meeting the electricity demand in the country has to be built on the foundation of a conductive investment environment that supports and builds a modern, efficient electrical system.  The IOC/NNPC JVs are one group of private actors that has contributed substantially to the electrical sector and could contribute substantially more.  The Government needs to be pro-active toward these companies, indeed all companies, in the policies and incentives put in place to ensure a positive investment framework and ensure that implementation occurs in the timeliest manner. 

EXPERTS ADVISE AGAINST SCRAPPING OF NNPC, SUGGEST REFORM

Experts in the petroleum industry have admonished the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure continued existence of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), just as they canvassed structural reform for the oil giant.

The experts’ position came on the heels of a recent call by the Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, for scrapping of the NNPC, to foil alleged corruption in the corporation, believed to have seriously hampered growth of the nation’s economy.

Read more @ The Guardian

LAGOS PIPELINE DISASTER WORSENS FUEL SUPPLY, AS PPMC ORDERS SHUTDOWN


arepo-pipeline-fireThe relative stability enjoyed from the recent fuel supply crises across the country may have been worsened by the Arepo pipeline explosion on the system 2B that allegedly claimed over 100 lives on Tuesday. Due to the crisis, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) took up the challenge to cover up the importation gap created by the aggrieved marketers

Read more @ The Guardian

EXPLOIT GAS RESERVES TO DIVERSIFY ECONOMY, STAKEHOLDERS TELL GOVT

EXPLOIT GAS RESERVES TO DIVERSIFY ECONOMY, STAKEHOLDERS TELL GOVTStakeholders have raised alarm over the non-utilisation of the 188 Trillion Cubic Feet (TCF) of Nigeria’s gas reserves, with a large portion of it regarded ‘stranded’.

Stranded gas is essentially commodity is wasted or unused. Estimates of remote or stranded gas reserves range from 40 to 60 per cent of the world’s proven gas reserves.

Read more @ The Guardian

Thursday 23 July 2015

BONNY CHIEFS, LAWMAKERS FLAY PROPOSED NLNG SHIPYARD IN LAGOS

DockPlans by the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) to site its proposed shipyard in Lagos State rather than its key operational base in Bonny Island, Rivers State, are a great injustice to the people of the area, the chiefs and lawmakers in Bonny Kingdom have said.

The people described as “a grand conspiracy against the people of Bonny Kingdom and the Niger Delta region the planned relocation,” adding that it violates the Nigerian Content Act, 2000, is disappointing and condemnable.

Read more @ The Guardian

TOTAL BEGINS PRODUCTION FROM DALIA FIELD

Total said it has started production from Dalia Phase 1A, a new development on the offshore operated Block 17, located 83 miles off the coast of Angola.

The Dalia Phase 1A project involves the drilling of seven infill wells tied back to the Dalia Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) unit. The project will develop additional reserves of 51 million barrels and will contribute 30,000 barrels per day to the Block’s production, according to Total.

Read more @ The Nation

BUHARI VOWS TO RECOVER STOLEN OIL MONEY

 
BuhariPresident Muhammadu Buhari has pledged to recover “mind-boggling” amounts of stolen oil money and bring those responsible to book, his spokesman said on Wednesday.

The 72-year-old head of state, in Washington for talks with US officials, alleged that 250,000 barrels of crude were being stolen every day, with the profits going into individual bank accounts.

Read more @ The Guardian

FINALLY, NERC, BPE VALIDATE GEOMETRIC POWER’S RIGHT OVER ABA

Barth-Nnaji-360x270The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) have both validated the rights of Geometric Power Aba Limited, to generate, transmit and distribute power to and within the Aba and Ariaria districts in Abia State.
This is coming after months of legal wrangling between Geometric and another private power firm, Interstate Electrics, over who owns the rights to operate in the area.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reps

SCORES DIE IN NNPC PIPELINE EXPLOSION IN AREPO

Pipeline fireFor the umpteenth time, another explosion was recorded on Wednesday at one of the pipelines of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) at the Arepo area of Ogun State and purportedly killed several pipeline vandals.

The incident, which is merely one in a series of acts of pipeline vandalism at the Arepo area, occurred after some vandals exchanged gunfire.

Read more @ SweetCrude Rep

Wednesday 22 July 2015

CRUDE OIL BUSINESS CHALLENGES ASSAIL NIGERIA'S ECONOMY

USAN FPSONigeria's economy may face tougher times this year due to a cocktail of challenges assailing the country’s crude oil business. The country has been contending with the plummeting crude oil prices and the United State’s shale boom, which resulted to total halt in import to U.S.Besides seeing its oil revenue drastically reduced in the wake of global oil price slump and domestic production shortfalls due to oil theft and pipeline vandalism, Nigeria has been struggling to find buyers for its premium quality Bonny Light crude in recently times.

Read more @ The Guardian

NIGERIA'S LIGHT SWEET CRUDE FALLS TO $50.10 A BARREL

brent crudeCrude oil prices struggled to stay around $50 yesterday, amid persistent concerns over global oil glut as against the $53.79 it recorded the previous day.

Specifically, Nigeria’s light, sweet crude futures for delivery in August traded at $50.10 a barrel, down four cents, or 0.1 per cent, on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

 Read more @ The Guardian

EXXONMOBIL, CHEVRON, TOTAL OPT OUT OF MEXICO'S HISTORIC AUCTION

ExxonMobil, Chevron and Total have opted out of Mexico’s historic oil auction because the fields are too small. None of the 14 shallow-water prospects in the Gulf of Mexico holds more than 384 million barrels of crude, according to Mexico’s National Hydrocarbons Commission. That is far short of the billion-barrel finds prized by major international oil producers, according to analysts.
 

NNPC, MARKETERS TRADE BLAME OVER PRODUCT DIVERSION

Group Managing Director, NNPC, Dr. Joseph DawhaAs the scarcity of petrol persists across the country, marketers of the commodity have denied allegation of product diversion levelled against them by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
 
This is coming as the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, a subsidiary of the NNPC, announced on Tuesday that it had revoked the licences of three marketers allegedly involved in the diversion of products.
 

Tuesday 21 July 2015

GLOBAL LNG TRADE RISES 2.4% IN 2014, PARTLY OFFSETS LOWER PIPELINE TRADE: BP

Global LNG trade increased by 2.4% on year to the LNG equivalent of 333.3 Bcm of gas in 2014, partly offsetting weakness in global pipeline gas trade, which fell by 6.2% to 663.9 Bcm, the largest decline on record, BP said Wednesday in its latest annual statistical review.

The increase in global LNG trade was largely driven by higher imports by China (up 10.8%) and the UK (up 20.1%) as well as the start-up of the 6.9 million mt/year Papua New Guinea LNG project.

Read more @ Platts online

HOST COMMUNITY SHUTS SHELL GAS PLANT, DEMANDS ELECTRICITY SUPPLY

Indigenes of Koroama community, which is host to Shell’s Gbarain-Ubie Integrated Gas Plant in Bayelsa State have shut down operations at the gas field and are demanding electricity supply from the power plant component of the facility.

Read more @ The Guardian

BUHARI URGED TO UNVEIL POLICY ON OIL THEFT

President Muhammadu Buhari has been urged to urgently unveil a policy direction and action his government will take to eradicate oil theft.

An anti-oil theft initiative, ‘Seal the Crude,’ which made the call in a statement by its Programme Officer, Stephen Hemba, said the problem was no longer ‎tolerable and since it is a recurring issue passed on to the Buhari administration, the President must waste no time in outlining a policy thrust to address it.

Read more @ The Guardian

US-IRAN DEAL: NIGERIA COULD LOSE N333BN BY YEAR END

Decline in US's Shale, Crude Oil Output May Boost Global DemandNigeria could lose about N333billion in crude oil revenues by year end, following the nuclear deal reached with Iran by world powers on Tuesday July 14, 2015.
 
The reduction in earnings will come from a further drop in crude oil prices in the international market, due to an exercabation of the supply glut, as Iran increases its crude oil exports, resulting in lower demand by Nigeria’s clients.
 

DECLINE IN US SHALE, CRUDE OIL OUTPUT MAY BOOST GLOBAL DEMAND

130115F-Crude-Oil.jpg - 130115F-Crude-Oil.jpgThe current drop in the shale and crude oil production by the United States may boost prospects for increased global demand, which has the potential to increase the price at the international market.

The increased production of Shale oil and crude oil by the United States had contributed largely to the country’s zero imports from Nigeria and the attendant supply glut at the global market.
 

Thursday 16 July 2015

WIKE INSPECTS PORT HARCOURT REFINERY AS OPERATIONS BEGIN

WIKE INSPECTS PORT HARCOURT REFINERY AS OPERATIONS BEGINRivers State Gover­nor, Nyesom Wike has commended Nigerian technical staff of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) for efficiently concluding the Turn Around Main­tenance (TAM) of the facility.

Wike, who spoke dur­ing a facility visit to the PHRC yesterday, said the success of the turn­around maintenance (TAM) proved the ca­pacity of Nigerian en­gineers.

Read more @ SunNewsOnline

WHY WE ARE INVOLVED IN FIGHT AGAINST MALARIA, BY MOBIL

Mobil Producing Nigeria (MPN) said yesterday that it has donated over N19billion globally to the fight against Malaria, with Nigeria haviing over N3billion.
 
The multinational oil firm’s Group Medical Director, Dr. Mohammed Bello spoke in Lagos at the inauguration of the Victoria Island Primary School sick bay donated by the Daniel Ogechi Akujobi Memorial Foundation (DOAMF).
 

OPC WILL NOT PROTEST PIPELINE CONTRACT WITHDRAWAL — GANI ADAMS

Gani Adams says his faction of the O’odua People’s Congress will not participate in the protest against the withdrawal of the contract for the protection of NNPC Pipelines.

Mr. Adams, the factional National Coordinator of the group, in an interview on Wednesday in Lagos, said that protest would not solve the problem of the contract withdrawal.

Read more @ Premium Times

NNPC CUTS JULY OIL TO 10-YEAR LOW AS 15 CARGOES REMAIN UNSOLD

Against unsavoury background of global market glut, Nigeria’s crude oil’s appeal to consuming nations may have sagged further, with over 15 cargoes remaining unsold for July delivery alone.

The fortunes of August and September deliveries remain uncertain, even as oil prices continue to hover on the lower band of $58.51 a barrel.

Read more @ Guardian

Wednesday 15 July 2015

JONATHAN KICKS AS BUHARI PLANS $2.1B OIL CASH PROBE

Holidaying former President Goodluck Jonathan has dashed into Abuja to launch a protest, The Nation has learnt.

Dr Jonathan is disturbed by the determination of President Muhammadu Buhari to probe how $2.1billion was illegally withdrawn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA), sources said yesterday, pleading not to be named “because of the sensitivity of the matter”.

Read more @ The Nation

AAPG, EXXONMOBIL COLLABORATE ON CAPACITY BUILDING

Lecturers representing geoscience departments of thirty Nigerian universities completed a workshop in sequence stratigraphy in Lagos last week.

The five-day intensive course on “Sequence Stratigraphic Concepts and Principles” was organized through collaborative efforts between the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), Africa Region and ExxonMobil Nigeria.

Read more @ Guardian online

NNPC DIRECTOR QUESTIONED 11 TIMES BY DSS OVER CRUDE SWAP DEALS

A director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has said that operatives of the Department of State Services have interrogated him 11 different times since May over crude oil swap deals with traders.

Last month President Muhammadu Buhari dissolved the board of the NNPC, and more sackings are expected. Meanwhile, the Department of State Services (DSS) intelligence agency has been carrying out investigations.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reps

NIGERIA, JV PARTNERS EARN $3.44BN IN JUNE

NIGERIA, JV PARTNERS EARN $3.44BN IN JUNENigeria and her Joint Venture (JV) partners which include ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, Agip, Total and others, earned $3.44 billion from crude oil export in June 2015 going by the daily production output of 1.903 million bpd at the monthly average price of $60.21 per barrel for the month of June.
 

PETROVIETNAM, EXXONMOBIL EXPECT FIRST GAS FROM CA VOI XANH FIELD IN 2021

State-owned PetroVietnam and US' ExxonMobil expect to produce first gas from the Ca Voi Xanh gas field off central Vietnam by 2021, PetroVietnam said in a statement on Thursday.

"Under the most favorable conditions, the project can pump first gas by about 2021," PetroVietnam said. PetroVietnam Chairman Nguyen Xuan Son discussed the project with ExxonMobil Vice President Raymond E Jones in Washington on Wednesday.

Read more @ Platts Online

Tuesday 14 July 2015

LAGOS ARRESTS BLACK MARKET OPERATOR WITH 47 KEGS OF PETROL

fuel-pumpThe Ojodu Local Council Development Area of Lagos State on Monday apprehended a middle-aged man Innocent Nwevo, with 47 kegs of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as Petrol in Ogba area, Lagos State.

Executive Secretary of the Council, Mallam Ahmed Moyosore Jaji, said a combined team of members of the Caretaker Committee and Men of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps attached to the LCDA arrested the culprit.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

RIVERS COMMUNITY SUES SHELL OVER £55M COMPENSATION

People of Goi community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State have sued Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and others over alleged exclusion from a recent payment of £55 million as compensation to residents of Bodo community.

A United Kingdom-based law firm, Leigh Day, had, in 2011, represented Bodo community in an appeal before a London court for the oil company to pay about £300 million in compensation to its clients for the spillage of 500,000 barrels of oil into their environment in 2008/2009.

Read more @ Nigerian Tribune

‎BUHARI ORDERS REVIEW OF NNPC’S OIL SWAP DEALS

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the review of crude swap deals initiated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, with several companies for refined products.

Meanwhile, The governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el Rufai, has said Nigeria must do away with its “corrupt” oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, or stand the risk of itself being destroyed.

Read more @ SweetCrude

NLNG PAYMENTS: BUHARI'LL CONSIDER PROBE CALL, SAYS PRESIDENCY

Managing Director, NLNG, Mr. Babs OmotowaThe Presidency on Monday said President Muhammadu Buhari would consider the All Progressives Congress’ call for the probe of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration over $5.5bn dividends said to have been paid to the Federal Government by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited.
 
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said this in an exclusive interview with our correspondent.
 

Monday 13 July 2015

VICTIMS OF AGIP PIPELINES EXPOLSION IDENTIFIED

Victims of the Agip pipeline explosion that claimed 12 persons along the Tebidaba-Clough Creek line in the Azuzuama area of the State were on Sunday identified.

Among them were staff of the Bayelsa State Ministry of Environment and the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), six staffers of a maintenance team of a local oil servicing company known as M.G Vogas Nigerian Limited, two members of Agip staff and a soldier.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

NIGERIA REFINERIES BEFORE JULY 2015

The announcement that Nigeria local refineries will commence operation by July 2015 is a welcome development but what the refineries will offer if allowed to work at full capacity should be an issue for consideration.
 
Several times in the past, the four local refineries have undergone turn around maintenance which has gulped money from the country.
 

MINING LEASE: COALITION PETITIONS EFCC OVER MOBIL'S $600M OIL DEAL

Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC), a coalition of over 150 anti-corruption organizations has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) demanding an investigation into a $USD600million deal that resulted in the renewal of three oil mining leases ( OMLs 67, 68 and 70) for Mobil Producing Nigeria.

Read more @ Newtelegraph

FG, FIRMS LOSE N67BN AS OIL EXPORTS FALL

Group Managing Director, NNPC, Dr. Joseph Dawha; Crude oil vesselAmid sustained low oil prices in the international market, Nigeria saw a significant decline in the import of its crude by some of the main buyers, including India, in the first quarter of the year.
 
The Federal Government and oil companies in the country may have lost at least N67bn ($339m) in February and March this year as the country’s crude oil exports dropped by 1.860 million barrels and 4.085 million barrels respectively, compared to the January export level
 
 
 

REPORT DAMPENS BUHARI’S ENERGY REFORM AMBITIONS

The Nigerian government’s ambitions for improving electricity supplies are “not remotely realistic”, a report by experts advising the presidency says, an early blow to one of President Muhammadu Buhari’s most important reform promises.

Chronic power shortages are one of the biggest constraints on investment and growth in the country. Fixing the problem was one of the key battlegrounds during campaigning ahead of a presidential election Buhari won in March.

Read more @ SweetCrude Report

Friday 10 July 2015

FG GIVES 29 OIL MARKETERS NOD TO IMPORT 1.6MMT OF FUEL FOR Q3

040715F-Muhammadu-Buhari.jpg - 040715F-Muhammadu-Buhari.jpgIn a bid to end the fuel shortages across the country, the federal government has approved fuel import allocations for the third quarter of 2015 to 29 oil marketing and trading companies. The 29 marketers include the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which in the last couple of months has struggled to sustain supply.

 It was learnt that the approval was given by President Muhammadu Buhari to the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) to allow NNPC and other oil marketers to import fuel into the country this quarter.
 

GAS TO POWER PROJECTS NOT ATTRACTIVE – EXPERTS

Gas turbine exhaust stacks, Ihovbor power stationThe absence of a bankable commercial framework continues to pull the plug on huge gas investments badly needed to meet the country’s growing power supply needs, industry experts have said.

Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer, is estimated to have at least 185 trillion cubic feet in natural gas reserves, making it the most endowed country on the continent in terms of gas reserves, ahead of Algeria, Egypt and Libya.

Read more @ Punchonline

PORT HARCOURT REFINERY MISSES JUNE TARGET

The NNPC refinery in Port Harcourt, Rivers StateDespite assurances by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation that the Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited will start refining crude oil by the end of last month, findings have shown that the plant has yet to start delivering on the target. This is coming as civil society organisations have called on the Federal

Government to cut down the volume of crude being supplied to the four refineries based on the fact that the facilities are producing far below the 445,000 barrels, which they get on a daily basis.

Read more @ Punchonline

Thursday 9 July 2015

OPEC BEWARE: WEST AFRICA COULD LEAD THE WORLD’S NEXT PRODUCTION BOOM

Crude Oil Prices Record Highest Drop in Three MonthsDuring the early 1970s, Saudi Arabia cut production as a reminder that it held the cards to the world’s petroleum resources. What the swing country did not count on was the slew of development and production that would subsequently take place in the North Sea. As a result, a new oil supply was born far away from the Middle East. Fast forward to today: With oil saturating the market again, Saudi Arabia has kept its spigots on this time to try and prove once again its place on top of the hydrocarbon pyramid.

Read more @ Sweetcrude Report

NGSA PUBLISHES 12 MAPS FROM EXXONMOBIL'S UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHP PROGRAMME

Twelve maps of different geographic locations in Nigeria have been published by the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA), as a result of the University Partnership Programme (UPP) of Esso Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited (EEPNL), a subsidiary of ExxonMobil subsidiary.

Director General of the agency, Mr. Alex Ndubuisi Nwegbu, disclosed this at the recent 2015 UPP presentation ceremony in Abuja.

Read more @ Guardian

BUHARI'S SILENCE AFFECTING PETROLEUM DOWNSTREAM

Stakeholders in the downstream sub-sector of Nigeria’s petroleum industry say the silence of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government on policy direction is causing more harm than good for the segment and the nation’s economy at large.
President Muhammadu Buhari
They said the President’s muteness over critical issues like the subsidy arrears owed oil marketers, the future of the subsidy regime for Premium Motor Spirit (petrol), the Petroleum Industry Bill and other matters bordering on the general regulation of the downstream petroleum business, was unhealthy for the country.

Read more @ Punchonline

FG TO PAY N159BN SUBSIDY DEBT TO MARKETERS

FG to pay N159bn subsidy debt to marketersThe Federal Government has reportedly agreed to pay outstanding subsidy claims of N159bn to oil marketers, who import refined petroleum products into the country although some of the marketers say the debt has climbed to N300bn.
 
“They (government) agreed to pay the remaining balance last week. Nothing has come yet but maybe this or next week. It is N159bn” the spokesperson for the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Yakubu Suleiman.
 

Wednesday 8 July 2015

SHELL MOVES AGAINST ILLEGAL OIL REFINING IN OGONI LAND

The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC) has kicked off the second phase of its grassroots campaign against crude oil theft and illegal oil refining activities in Ogoni land. The first phase of the campaign in 2014 reached over 7,000 community people from Eleme, Gokana, Khana, and Tai local government areas.

Read more @ Guardian

NIGERIA'S CRUDE EXPORTS MAY RISE IN AUGUST

crudeoil--There are indications that Nigeria’s crude oil export would spike up in August against the previous months, even as some overhang July cargoes struggle to find buyers.
The provisional August loading programme already showed that about 58.6 million barrels of crude would be shipped on 64 cargoes at a rate equivalent to 1.89 million barrels per day (bpd), while the planned shipment for Bonny Light is yet to emerge.

Read more @ Guardian