Thursday 30 June 2016

POWER SECTOR OWES GAS FIRMS N100BN

Power sector gas invoice arrears increased to N100bn from N40bn as of September 2014, the Chairman, Oil Producers Trade Section and Managing Director, Chevron Nigeria, Mr. Clay Neff, said on Wednesday.
 
He stressed the need to immediately implement the gas supply aggregation agreements and put a stop to the build-up of arrears under the legacy Nigeria Gas Company contracts regime
 

FG EYES OFFSHORE, INLAND BASIN GAS RESERVES

The recent militant attacks on oil and gas facilities may have prompted the Federal Government to look towards developing alternative sources of gas supply for power generation in the country.
 
Government officials, who gave the indications on Wednesday at the Nigerian Gas Association’s Business Forum 2016 in Lagos, highlighted a number of options being considered to diversify the nation’s sources of gas supply.
 

FG SUSPENDS WEST AFRICAN VENTURES FROM NIGERIA’S OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY

The federal government has suspended West African Ventures (WAV) from participating in ongoing and future tenders in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry for violating the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act of 2010, better known as the Nigerian Content Act.
 
The government has also directed ExxonMobil Companies in Nigeria, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Total E&P, Addax Petroleum and Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) to stop doing business with the company because of their frequent and flagrant disregard of the provisions of the NOGICD Act
 

KACHIKWU SIGNS $80BN OIL AND GAS INFRASTRUCTURE DEALS IN CHINA

Kachikwu Signs $80bn Oil and Gas Infrastructure Deals in ChinaThe Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with several Chinese firms for over $80 billion new investments, spanning five years, in the oil and gas industry covering pipelines, refineries, gas and power, facility refurbishments and upstream financing.
 
Speaking exclusively to THISDAY yesterday from Beijing, China, Kachikwu said the agreements had been executed during the three-day roadshow in the Asian country to attract investments to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
 

Wednesday 29 June 2016

OIL PRICES REBOUND IN POST-BREXIT BARGAIN HUNTING

Oil prices topped $48 a barrel on Tuesday, as investors took advantage of a two-day slide in crude oil triggered by Britain’s vote to leave the European Union.

The vote’s impact on oil, despite sending global stocks and currencies spiraling, has so far been limited due to expectations of strong summer demand in Asia and the United States and tightening supplies after a two-year rout.
 
 

NNPC, NIPCO FUEL DISTRIBUTION DEAL HITS 1.8 BILLION LITRES MARK

NNPC HeadquartersThe storage arrangement otherwise known as thru put operated by the Nigerian Independent Petroleum Company (NIPCO) for the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has reached a record mark of 1.8 billion litres in the last nine years.

The thru put programme, which allowed the NNPC to use NIPCO’s storage facility for storage and distribution of petrol and kerosene commenced in 2007 and has significantly aided smooth distribution of petroleum products in the country.

Read more @ Guardian

TOTAL’S OFON EPC CREATES 3,000 JOBS

Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited has said that its Engineering, Procurement and Construction, EPC, contract for its 65,000 barrels per day Ofon 2 oilfield project, undertaken by Nigerdock, created over 3,000 jobs for Nigerians and recorded 3.2 million man-hours without Lost Time Incident, LTI.

Read more @ Today

GAS SUPPLY TO ELECTRICITY PLANTS DROPS TO 541MMSCFD

A gas processing plantGas supply to electricity plants in Nigeria has dropped from the 686mmscfd it recorded in April to 541mmscfd in May, according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The corporation said in its analysis on domestic gas supply to power sector that the country’s average power generation also declined from 2,969mw to 2,466mw in the month of May.

Read more @ Guardian

Tuesday 28 June 2016

NEITI: HOW DPR UNDERVALUED NNPC’S 8 OIL BLOCKS

The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Mr. Waziri Adio has explained how the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) undervalued eight Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
 
Speaking recently when he visited the Corporate Head Office of THISDAY in Lagos, Adio said DPR valued NNPC’s 55 per cent stake in the eight OMLs at $1.8 billion, while Shell, Total and Agip valued their 45 per cent stake in the eight OMLs at over $2 billion.
 

NIGERIA OIL OUTPUT RISES TO 1.9 MILLION BPD DUE TO RESPITE FROM ATTACKS – NNPC

*NNPC Towers.The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has announced that the country’s oil production has risen to about 1.9 million barrels per day, b/d, from 1.6 million b/d, due to repairs and more than a week having passed since a major pipeline attack in the Niger Delta region.

Militants in the region who say they want a greater share of Nigeria’s oil wealth to go to the impoverished Delta region have carried out a spate of attacks on pipelines in the last few months.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

KACHIKWU IN CHINA, SHOPS FOR $50BN INVESTMENT FOR OIL AND GAS SECTOR

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe KachikwuNigeria is looking toward China to raise about $50 billion to upgrade and build new oil and gas infrastructure, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, who is currently in the Asian country to hold an investment roadshow, has said.
 
Kachikwu, in an interview he granted to Bloomberg yesterday, said he was in the country to attract investments that would help Nigeria bridge the infrastructure gap in her upstream; midstream and downstream petroleum sectors
 

Monday 27 June 2016

OPEC REPORT HIGHLIGHTS MIXED PERFORMANCE OF GLOBAL OIL INDUSTRY

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Secretariat has launched the 51st edition of its Annual Statistical Bulletin (ASB). The report shows that in 2015, world crude oil production increased by 1.75 million barrels/day (mb/d), or 2.4 per cent, compared with 2014, marking the second-highest increase within the last 10 years.

Read more @ BusinessDay

$17BN GAS PIPELINE IN LAGOS WILL PROVIDE UNHINDERED PETROL- DANGOTE

Dangote refineryAfrica’s richest man and owner of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has said that ongoing $17 billion Gas pipeline, fertiliser, petrochemicals and refineries project at the Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ), Lagos, would provide unhindered availability of petrol in the country. He pointed out the the Gas pipeline when completed would also generate power for the country.

Read more @ Vanguard


NEITI, EFCC GO AFTER OIL FIRMS OVER UNREMITTED $11 BILLION

NEITI, EFCC go after oil firms over unremitted $11 billionThe Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will soon embark on probe of erring oil firms in Nigeria over unremitted oil revenue to the Federal Government.

To ensure that anyone found guilty of misappropriation of the country’s oil revenue is prosecuted, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the EFCC have formed alliance to study the reports and identify areas where financial crimes have been committed against the nation.

Read more @ The Guardian

Friday 24 June 2016

OPEC REPORT HIGHLIGHTS MIXED PERFORMANCE OF GLOBAL OIL INDUSTRY

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Secretariat has launched the 51st edition of its Annual Statistical Bulletin (ASB). The report shows that in 2015, world crude oil production increased by 1.75 million barrels/day (mb/d), or 2.4 per cent, compared with 2014, marking the second-highest increase within the last 10 years.

Read more @ BusinessDay

OSINBAJO: PIB WILL NOT SOLVE ALL PROBLEMS IN OIL INDUSTRY

The Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo, has warned that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), when passed into law, will not cure all the ills afflicting the oil sector. Osinbajo, who spoke last Wednesday’s night in Abuja at the opening ceremony/dinner of the 10th annual business law conference organised by the section on Business Law of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), said there were more pressing problems in the oil and gas industry.
 
The vice president was responding to issues raised by the NBA’s President, Augustine Alegeh (SAN). Allegeh had in his welcome address delivered before the vice president’s speech, noted that the non-passage of the PIB by the National Assembly in the last 14 years, had stalled developments in the sector.
 

EFCC PROBES EXXONMOBIL OVER $3.75BN OIL DEAL

ExxonMobil’s deal to secure some oil blocks in Nigeria is under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, according to documents obtained by The Guardian of the United Kingdom.
 
ExxonMobil, the world’s largest oil company, was said to have secured the lucrative oil rights in 2009 by beating out China’s fourth-largest oil producer for access, despite apparently underbidding its rival by $2.25bn.
 

NIGERIA’S OIL TRADE DEFICIT HITS 27-YEAR RECORD N4.5TR

opecNigeria posted a current account deficit of $15.5 billion (N4.5 trillion) in 2015 compared with a surplus of $1.3 billion it recorded in the previous year. It represents the highest in 27 years.

At the global level, members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) collectively suffered a current account deficit of $99.6 billion in the same period compared with $237 billion in 2014.
 
 Read more @ The Guardian

AMBODE SEEKS PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNERSHIP ON GRADUATE INTERNSHIP-SCHEME

Governor Akinwunmi AmbodeThe Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on Wednesday called on members of the Organized Private Sector to key into the graduate internship scheme of the State Government aimed at equipping fresh graduates with necessary skills to transform them into job creators rather than job seekers.
 
Governor Ambode, who spoke at the Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja when he received a delegation from Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited on a courtesy visit, said there was the need for the private sector to deploy their Corporate Social Responsibility towards empowering youths with relevant trainings, with the ultimate goal of making them to contribute to the
 

Thursday 23 June 2016

GRADUATE INTERNSHIP: AMBODE SEEKS PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNERSHIP

Governor Akinwumni Ambode of Lagos stateLagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode has called on members of the Organized Private Sector (OPS) to key into the graduate internship scheme of the State Government aimed at equipping fresh graduates with necessary skills to transform them into job creators rather than job seekers.

Governor Ambode, who spoke at the Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja when he received a delegation from Total Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited on a courtesy visit, said there was the need for the private sector to deploy their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) towards empowering youths with relevant trainings with the ultimate goal of making them to contribute to the advancement of the Nigerian society.

Read more @ Naij News

NIGERDOCK DELIVERS TOPSIDES FOR TOTAL’S OFON PHASE 2 PLATFORMS

Nigeria’s oil and gas sector has recorded another landmark achievement in the area of local content as Nigerdock, a leading indigenous Nigerian oil services company and a member of Jagal Group, has successfully completed the fabrication and sail-away of the topsides of 90,000 barrels per day capacity, Ofon 2 oilfield project, being developed by French oil giant Total E&P Nigeria Ltd.
Read more @ BusinessDay

OIL WORKERS FRET OVER BREACH OF AGREEMENT BY FIRMS

PENGASSANOil workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have expressed displeasure over the incessant breach of labour agreement by the petroleum sector operators.

Besides, the workers have threatened to shut down operations and activities in the industry if some employers don’t desist from anti-labour practices.

Read more @ The Guardian

Wednesday 22 June 2016

SHELL DELAYS GAS PROJECTS OVER FUNDING CONSTRAINTS

General Manager, External Relations, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Igo Weli (left); Managing Director SPDC and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Osagie Okunbor; and Communications Manager, Mrs. Sola Abulu, at the official launch and presentation of Shell Briefing Notes in Lagos. The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) may be groaning under insufficient fund to float some of its gas projects that are positioned to further reduce gas flaring in the county.

The Oil multinational, in its 2016 Facts Sheets, said “the planned start-up dates for two major gas gathering projects – Forcados Yokri Integrated Project (FYIP) and Southern Swamp Associated Gas Gathering (SSAG) Solutions have been delayed due to a lack of adequate joint-venture funding”.

Read more @ The Guardian

NIGERIA’S OIL PRODUCTION DOWN TO LOWEST LEVEL IN 3 DECADES – REPORT

*Crude oil export pipeline.Attacks by militants on oil installations cut Nigeria’s production by 10 percent in May and has resulted in the lowest output by the country in more than thirty years, a survey revealed.
 
Nigerian crude production declined by 160,000 barrels a day to 1.45 million over the past month, according to a recent Bloomberg News survey, .

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

NIGERDOCK’S OFON FIELD PLATFORM TO REDUCE GAS FLARING

Gas flaring  PHOTO: daniumenergy.comThe commissioning and sale away of the topsides platform for the Ofon 2 project executed by Nigerdock, one of the leading indigenous oil services company, is expected to boost the country’s gas sector and reducing flaring.

The platform, which was developed for Total E &P Nigeria Limited, will also raise additional oil and gas production of the field from 25,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (bpd) to 90,000 bpd).

Read more @ The Guardian

GOVERNMENT MOVES TO ACHIEVE 2,050 BPD REFINING CAPACITY

Government moves to achieve 2,050bpd refining capacityNigeria is on the path of self-sufficiency in the production of petroleum products as the Federal Government has introduced strategies to increase the country’s refining capacity to about 2.050 million barrels per day of crude oil.

This was almost the nation’s daily production of about 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) before the current attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta.

Read more @ The Guardian

Tuesday 21 June 2016

WARRI, KADUNA REFINERIES POST LOSSES, P’HARCOURT MAKES N5.18BN

Latest figures from the oil and gas industry have shown that at the close of business in April, two of the country’s three refineries posted losses, while the other succeeded in making a profit despite the attacks on oil installations by militants.
 
Since February this year, militant groups in the Niger Delta region have increased the attacks on oil installations, a development that has reduced the country’s crude production to around one million barrels per day from over 2.2mbpd.
 

TOTAL OFON FIELD’S OIL OUTPUT TO HIT 65,000BPD

With the completion of Ofon phase 2 wellhead platforms, Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited is set to increase oil production from Ofon field to 65,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 25,000bpd, its Managing Director, Nicholas Terraz has said.

Terraz spoke yesterday at the commissioning and sail away ceremony of the platforms at the Nigerdock’s Snake Island Integrated Free Zone in Lagos.

Read more @ The Nation

GAS SUPPLY PROJECTS DELAY EXXONMOBIL, CHEVRON, TOTALS’ POWER PLANTS

The delay in the construction of the multibillion dollar upstream gas supply projects to feed Chevron’s Agura Power Plant, ExxonMobil’s Qua Iboe Power Plant and Total’s Obite Power Plant has delayed the projects, which were conceived by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo as part of the efforts to monetise Nigeria’s gas resources, reduce flaring and boost electricity generation.
 
Investigation revealed that out of the five power plants Obasanjo’s administration had planned to be constructed by the joint venture companies between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the international oil companies (IOCs), only Shell’s Afam VI Power Plant in Rivers State and the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC)’s Okpai Power Plant in Delta State were constructed.
 

Monday 20 June 2016

SHELL WON’T EXIT NIGERIA – COUNTRY CHAIR

*Osagie Okunbor, Managing Director SPDC and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria.Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, SPDC, and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Osagie Okunbor, has hinted that the company won’t exit Nigeria as widely speculated.
 
Okunbor ‎stated this in Lagos, saying the company was committed to Nigeria because of its huge deepwater and shallow water assets in the country.
 

OIL WORKERS THREATEN STRIKE OVER ANTI-LABOUR PRACTICES

Oil workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria on Sunday threatened to shut down activities in the nation’s oil and gas industry if some employers did not stop their anti-labour practices.
 
The union issued a seven-day ultimatum to employers in the industry to put an end to all anti-labour practices in their companies, warning that the nation would face an industrial action that would lead to a total shutdown of the oil and gas industry.
 

FG SAVING N1.4TRN PER ANNUM FROM SUBSIDY REMOVAL, SAYS KACHIKWU

FG saving N1.4trn per annum from subsidy removal, says KachikwuFollowing the recent removal of subsidy from the pump price of premium motor spirit, the Federal Government will be saving over N1.4 trillion annually. The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources,

Ibe Kachikwu, who disclosed this when he visited the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa, explained that the deregulation policy has also re-awakened the downstream sector and will help the nation become a net exporter of petroleum products in a few years.


Read more @ BusinessDay

Friday 17 June 2016

AVENGERS BLOW UP NNPC PIPELINE IN AKWA IBOM

Niger-Delta-Avengers-1406-696x522The Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), the militant group, which has claimed responsibility for most attacks on oil installations in the Niger Delta, claimed responsibility for blown up pipeline of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in Akwa Ibom State, yesterday.
 
The militants made the claim in a tweet yesterday. “At 4:00am @NDAvengers blow up NNPC Pipeline in Oruk Anam Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom,” the tweet read.

Read more @ SunNews

FG SAVING N1.4 TRILLION PER ANNUM FROM SUBSIDY-KACHIKWU

The Federal Government is saving over N1.4 trillion from recent removal of subsidy from the pump price of premium motor spirit that would have been expended on subsidy claims per annum, Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, has said.

Read more @ BusinessDay

Thursday 16 June 2016

SENATE CONSTITUTES C’TTEE TO PROBE NON-REMITTANCE OF N1TN BY NNPC

The move was a spontaneous reaction to the submission by the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr. Waziri Adio, before the National Assemblyduring yesterday’s plenary. Adio had been summoned by the Senate last week to appear before it yesterday and brief it on the allegation of non-remittance of over N1 trillion to the federation account by NNPC.

Adio had in his submission, said the audit of the 2013 oil and gas report showed that the country made $58.07 billion out of 800.3 million barrels of crude oil adding that out of this sum, the total outstanding revenue from NNPC stood at $3.787 and another N358.287 billion.


Read more @ Thisdaylive

OPEC MEMBERS’ NET OIL EXPORT EARNINGS MAY CRASH TO $341 BILLION

opecThe United States (U.S.) Energy Information Administration (EIA) has projected that members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) net oil export revenues could fall from the $404 billion it earned in 2015 to about $341 billion in 2016.

The EIA, which made this disclosure in OPEC revenues fact sheet released yesterday, stated that the cartel’s revenue declined by 46 per cent from the $753 billion earned in 2014 to $404 billion, mainly as a result of a precipitous fall in average yearly crude oil prices during the year.

Read more @ The Guardian

US IMPORTS OF NIGERIAN OIL RISE BY 558%

Imports of Nigerian crude oil by the United States grew significantly in the first three months of the year, after plunging to record lows in recent years on the back of the US shale oil boom.
 
US imports of Nigerian oil rise by 558%The US imports of Nigerian crude, which has come under pressure since the start of the decline in global oil prices, rose by 577.8 per cent to 26.3 million barrels in the first quarter of 2016, compared to 3.88 million barrels in the same period last year, latest data from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation showed.
 

Tuesday 14 June 2016

LOCAL CONTENT LEVEL HITS 35% IN OIL, GAS INDUSTRY

The Nigeria local content drive in the Oil and Gas industry has hit 35 per cent, according to Abdulmalik Halilu, Manager, Strategy and Policy Development Division (SPDD),of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB)who disclosed this while making a presentation to the Ugandian delegation that visited the Board.

Read more @ Businessday

KACHIKWU: BUHARI WILL ALLOCATE OIL BLOCKS TO SOUTH-SOUTH INDIGENES

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe KachikwuThe Minister of Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, has said President Muhammadu Buhari has not allocated a single oil block since he came into office. Kachikwu said when the president eventually starts, South-south indigenes would have their share.
 
At a town hall meeting in Uyo, the Akwa-Ibom State capital, organised by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, a Nigerian asked the minister why oil block allocations favoured the North rather than the South-south, where most oil blocks are located.
 

POWER: NPDC, IOCS TO INAUGURATE FOUR GAS PROJECTS

The Federal Government on Monday announced the readiness of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company and some international oil companies to inaugurate four gas projects that would considerably improve power supply across the country.
 
It stated that the projects would come on stream in a couple of months, adding that they would improve gas supply to power generation plants, as a total of 855 million standard cubic feet of gas per day would be added to domestic gas supply in the short term.
 

GOVERNMENT MAY EXIT $712.46B MONTHLY JOINT VENTURE FUNDING

Government may exit $712.46b monthly joint venture fundingIndications emerged yesterday, that from August this year, the Federal Government may hands off from Joint Venture (JV) cash call and allow International Oil Companies (IoCs) to embark on self-funding of oil and gas activities.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had said in its monthly financial report that 2016 budget requires monthly funding of about $712.46 million to JV cash calls.

Read more @ The Guardian

Monday 13 June 2016

SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE TOTAL’S N4.07 BILLION FINAL DIVIDEND

For increasing shareholders value on investment through dividend payout and adherence to corporate governance principles, shareholders’ of Total Nigeria Plc, at the weekend, commended the company’s board on the efficient running of the affairs of the firm, even as they approved a final dividend of N4.07 billion, translating to N12.00 per share.

The company had earlier paid an interim dividend of N679 million, culminating to N2.00 due to every shareholder of the company.

Read more @ The Guardian

EGINA, OTHERS APPROACH FINAL CONSTRUCTION PHASES

Jeremy Beckman, in this report, explained that despite the recent fall in oil price, Total Exploration & Production Nigeria, has forged ahead with the  construction of three giant deep offshore projects in Nigeria, Republic of Congo and Angola. He noted that all three projects have reached final construction phases and will begin operations soon.

The Egina offshore Nigeria is projected to go onstream in 2018, followed by Moho Phase 1b in Republic of Congo in 2017 while Kaombo’s two FPSOs in block 32 offshore Angola will start up in 2017 and 2018. According to Total’s E & P Secretary General for Africa, Abiodun Afolabi, “there has never been any question of suspending activity., and Total will maintain its commitments, while ensuring that all three projects are profitable.”

Read more @ Businessday

GOVERNMENT LOSES N10B DAILY TO OIL FACILITIES’ ATTACK

pipelineWith the series of attacks carried out by the Niger Delta militants in the last few weeks, the country’s crude oil production has dropped to about 1.1million from the normal output level of 2.2 million barrels per day.

Using the international benchmark of crude oil price of $50 per barrel, the Federal Government is losing $55 million or about N10 billion daily as the militants vow to continue to destroy oil facilities in the Niger Delta.

Read more @ The Guardian

Friday 10 June 2016

MILITANTS BLAST ANOTHER PIPELINE IN WARRI, SEEK INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR SELF DETERMINATION

Niger Delta militants last night blew up another pipeline belonging to the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), at Chanomi Creeks in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.
 
Security sources told THISDAY that the militants stormed the facility in two fast boats at about 7.45 pm and used dynamite to blow up the crude oil pipeline at Kurutie. The pipeline, it was learnt, supplies crude oil to Warri and Kaduna Refineries.

Read more @ Thisdaylive

NNPC PAYS N56BN TO FEDERATION ACCOUNT

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said it paid N56.22 billion into the Federation Account in April, 2016.
 
This is contained in the corporation’s Monthly Financial Report released in Abuja yesterday. “NNPC transferred N56.22 billion to the Federation Account for the month of April being proceeds from local sale of petroleum products.
 

NNPC LIFTS N1.2 TRILLION CRUDE OIL IN 12 MONTHS

NNPC HeadquartersThe value of the domestic crude oil purchased by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) between April 2015 and April 2016 was $1.8 billion (N1.2 trillion).

Besides, the combined value of output by the three refineries (at import parity price) for the month of April 2016 amounted to ₦28.57 billion while the associated crude plus freight cost was ₦21.57 billion, giving a positive margin of ₦1.30 billion after considering overhead of ₦5.70 billion.

Read more @ The Guardian

Wednesday 8 June 2016

SENATE QUERIES CHEVRON OVER $7.4B CONTRACT INFLATION

SenateThe Senate yesterday began investigation into the inflation of the contract sum of the Escravos Gas To Liquid Project (EGTL) from $2.9 billion to $10.3 billion, an increase of $7.4 billion, by Chevron Nigeria.

The Senate Committee on Gas at a public hearing queried Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) for increasing the contract sum without recourse to its partner, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC

Read more @ Guardian Online

OIL HITS 2016 HIGH ON NIGERIA SUPPLY DISRUPTIONS

The global oil benchmark, Brent crude, extended its gains on Tuesday, trading above the $50 per barrel mark for the first time since October last year.

The further rise in Brent comes as expectations the United States’ crude draws underpinned a market already worried about potential supply shortages from attacks on Nigeria’s oil industry. It hit $50 per barrel for the first time in 2016 on May 26.
 

ECONOMY SLUMP TO CONTINUE AS SHELL SUSPENDS FORCADOS REPAIRS

 Economy slump to continue as Shell suspends Forcados repairsHopes of a quick rebound in the Nigerian economy from increased dollar earnings and crude oil output were further dashed yesterday as oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Corporation suspended the repairs of Forcados oil terminal since it cannot guarantee the safety of its workers.

Read more @ BusinessDay

Tuesday 7 June 2016

SHELL’S ASSET DISPOSAL PLANS FACE DELAY

Oil drums containing lubricant oil sit on a conveyor belt as they are prepared for shipping at the Royal Dutch Shell Plc lubricants blending plant in Torzhok, Russia, on Tuesday, March 1, 2016. Royal Dutch Shell Plc has surpassed Chevron Corp. as the world's second-biggest non-state oil company after completing the acquisition of BG Group Plc. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/BloombergRoyal Dutch Shell’s $30bn asset disposal programme put in place after its takeover of BG Group is likely to drag on beyond 2018 if oil prices remain depressed.
 
Shell is planning to sell off a large chunk of its portfolio because the BG takeover — the biggest energy deal in more than a decade — significantly increased the combined group’s debt load.
 

CRUDE OIL PRICES HIT $50.23 A BARREL

crude oilCrude oil prices bounced back to above $50 a barrel as militants continue to carry out their threats against Nigeria’s export pipelines and oil wells in the Niger Delta.

At the early trading hours on Monday, Brent crude futures were up by 59 cents at $50.23 a barrel while the U.S. crude futures were up by 57 cents at $49.19 a barrel.

Read more @ The Guardian

NLNG DENIES LINK WITH $3.1BN FUND RECOVERY

The Nigerian LNG Limited has said none of its accounts is being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission or any other anti-graft agency.
 
The NLNG said this on Monday in a statement signed by its General Manager, External Relations Division, Mr. Kudo Eresia-Eke.
 

Monday 6 June 2016

SCARCITY, PRICE HIKE SLOW NIGERIA’S 300,000 MT LPG MARKET

Market operators have warned that unless scarcity and price volatility is addressed, Nigeria’s 300,000 metric tons domestic LPG market may be in jeopardy, and efforts at deepening LPG penetration could be scuttled. Already, intense scarcity of LPG has set in, as private dealers have no product and those who have are charging a 100 percent.

Read more @ Businessday

MOSOP URGES GOVERNMENT TO SET UP MECHANISMS FOR OGONI CLEAN-UP

OgonilandThe Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has called on the Federal Government to, without further delay, inaugurate the governance mechanisms for the implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report on Ogoniland.

President Muhammadu Buhari had last Thursday flagged off the clean-up and restoration of Ogoniland at Bodo, Gokana Local Council of Rivers State but did not announce the governance mechanism for the implementation of the UNEP recommendations.

Read more @ The Guardian

NNPC, JVPS LOSE N1.3BN DAILY TO ATTACKS ON OIL FACILITIES

eni_pipelineAttacks by Niger Delta militants on facilities operated by Eni and Aiteo oil firms have led to a combined loss of 140,000 barrels of crude per day, translating to the loss of about N1.3 billion daily, at an estimated price of $48 per barrel, amounting to $6.72 million or N1.3billion.

The attacks, believed to be carried out by the militant group, the Niger Delta Avengers, caused the huge loss from their oilfields in Bayelsa State, according to Eni and Aiteo.

Read more @ Leadership Online

Friday 3 June 2016

AVENGERS ATTACK ANOTHER SHELL FACILITY

Less than 24 hours after the Federal Government launched the clean up of oil spills in Ogoni, in the South-South, the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) on Friday attacked Shell Petroleum Development Company’s Forcados 48″ Export line.

The militant group claimed responsibility for the attack on its Twitter handle. “At 3:00 am today @NDAvengers blow up the SPDC forcados 48″ Exportline. We warned SPDC not to go ahead with repair works but they refuse,” said the group.

Read more @ The Guardian

AKWA IBOM ORDERS EXXONMOBIL TO CLEAN UP OIL SPILL

Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel, has ordered ExxonMobil to clean up the oil spill that occurred at Ndito Eka-Iba in Ibeno, Akwa Ibom on May 8.

Ibeno Communities’s youth president, Mr Godwin Ikot, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, in Ibeno Local Government Area of the state on Thursday

He said the governor, who spoke through the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Etekamba Umoren, instructed the company to commence the cleanup exercise immediately in the area.

Read more @ Punch NG

GULF OPEC MEMBERS MAY REVIVE GLOBAL OIL OUTPUT DEAL

OPECGulf members of Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, including Saudi Arabia, appeared set to revive the idea of coordinated oil-output action by major producers, when the group met on yesterday, which may include establishing a new output ceiling inside the group, OPEC sources said, according to Reuters.

Saudi arch-rival and OPEC member Iran said the country was not yet ready for an output pact, but several OPEC sources said the atmosphere inside the group had improved and a compromise was possible.

Read more @ The Guardian

NIGERIA’S OIL OUTPUT RISES TO 1.6 MBPD, BARKINDO APPOINTED OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL

Nigeria’s crude oil production has climbed to 1.6 million barrels per day (mbpd), following repairs on some of the oil and gas installations damaged by militant groups in the Niger Delta, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, disclosed yesterday.
 
Nigeria’s Oil Output Rises to 1.6mbpd, Barkindo Appointed OPEC Secretary-GeneralAccording to reports from Reuters and Bloomberg, Kachikwu said in Vienna, Austria, where oil ministers of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) unanimously appointed the former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Mohammed Barkindo, as the cartel’s Secretary-General, that the country’s production had rebounded to this level after it fell to about 1.4mbpd in May due to a string of militant attacks and an accident on the ExxonMobil Qua Iboe export platform.
 

Thursday 2 June 2016

RISING NNPC UNPAID BILLS THREATEN OIL PRODUCTION

Crude oil and gas production in Nigeria will decline further amid the $7bn cash call which the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has yet to pay to its joint venture partners, industry experts have said.
 
The funding problem, which has lingered for over two decades, has been exacerbated by the steep fall in global oil prices which drove down the country’s earnings from the commodity, its major revenue-earner.
 

N’DELTA AVENGERS BLOW UP MORE CHEVRON OIL WELLS

Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt, Senator Iroegbu in Abuja, Sylvester Idowu, Monday Osayande in Warri, Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia and David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka.
 
Despite the deployment of troops to the Niger Delta to curtail the growing attacks on oil and gas facilities by militants, the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), in the early hours of wednesday blew up two more oil wells operated by Chevron Nigeria Limited in Delta State.
 

INSECURITY KILLING BUSINESSES IN NIGER DELTA —TOTAL DMD

Deputy Managing Director of Total E and P, Port Harcourt District, Mr Nicolas Brunet, has declared that insecurity, occasioned by killings and kidnappings, is forcing businesses to close shops in the Niger Delta region.

He made the disclosure in his keynote address at a stakeholders’ meeting with offshore communities in Rivers State at the company’s head office in Port Harcourt, last week.

Read more @ Nigerian Tribune

AT LAST, OGONILAND CLEAN-UP BEGINS AS BUHARI VISITS RIVERS

At last, Ogoniland clean-up begins as Buhari visits RiversAfter decades of widespread pollution, President Muhammadu Buhari will today begin the remediation of the Ogoni environment in line with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) recommendations.

UNEP which conducted an independent scientific investigation on Ogoni had noted that the environmental restoration of Ogoniland could prove to be the world’s most wide-ranging and long-term oil clean-up ever undertaken, if contaminated drinking water, land, creeks and important ecosystems such as mangroves are to be brought back to full, productive health

Read more @ The Guardian

Wednesday 1 June 2016

AMNESTY TACKLES SHELL AHEAD OF OGONILAND CLEAN-UP

Amnesty International has said Shell must not be allowed to shirk its responsibility to clean up decades of oil pollution in the Niger Delta. This comes ahead of the commencement of the Federal Government’s clean-up programme of Ogoniland on Thursday.
 
The human rights watchdog said on Tuesday that scores of oil spills from Shell operations in the Niger Delta had yet to be properly cleaned up, and even sites the multinational company claimed to have cleaned remained polluted.
 

BARKINDO MAY EMERGE OPEC SECRETARY GENERAL JUNE 2

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is likely to choose a former Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mohammed Barkindo, as the next Secretary-General of the producer group, three sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters yesterday.

This is coming as OPEC’s oil output fell in May from near a record high, a Reuters survey found on Tuesday, as attacks on Nigeria’s oil industry and other outages outweighed increases in Iran and Gulf members.
 

OIL PRICE: NIGERIA LOSES $45.9M REVENUE IN APRIL

*Kemi Adeosun, Nigeria's finance minister.Nigeria recorded a revenue loss of $45.9 million in April, according to Minister for Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adesun.

The revenue loss was as a result of the drop in the average price of crude oil from $39.04 in December 2015 to $29.02 in January this year, the minister said.
 

NIGERIA REMAINS A TOP GAS FLARING COUNTRY, SAYS EIA

Despite recording significant decrease in the level of gas being flared per day, the U.S State Energy Information Administration (EIA) said that Nigeria remained one of the top five gas flaring countries in the world.
Gas flaring PHOTO: daniumenergy.com
Besides, oil output has fallen to a 20-year low in the continent’s assessed economic super power, as militants renewed attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta.

Read more @ The Guardian