Experts Differ on Buhari’s Plan to Assume Role of Petroleum Minister

President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent declaration that he would oversee the Ministry of Petroleum Resources has stirred diverse reactions from experts in energy law and policy in the country.

Two of the experts, Prof. Yinka Omoriegbe and Jaji Ahmed who spoke recently in Abuja at the public presentation of a book, “Structuring of Innovative Finance Schemes for Petroleum Production in Nigeria: Legal and Tax”, written by Dr. Perisuo Dema shared their divided views on how the president’s decision would impact on Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.

 

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OPERATORS SEEK NIGERIA LNG MODEL FOR FUNDING JOINT VENTURE PROJECTS

Executives of some exploration and production (E&P) have advocated for the adoption of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) model for funding joint venture projects by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and some local and international oil companies operating in the country

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NIGERIA SHUNS WORLD BANK-BACKED ZERO GAS FLARING SUMMIT

Chief Executives from major oil companies joined senior government officials from several oil-producing countries in Washington to commit, for the first time, to end the practice of routine gas flaring at oil production sites by 2030 at the latest. The commitment was made on the sideline of the IMF/World Group Spring Meetings in Washington.

On the list of participating countries, Nigeria was absent. Those who endorsed the move are Norway, Cameroon, Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Gabon, Uzbekistan. Others are Republic of Congo, Angola and France.

Read more @ SweetCrude Reports

LOCAL OIL FIRMS' PRODUCTION HITS 300,000BPD

Indigenous players in the exploration and production (E&P) value chain of the oil and gas industry account for 300,000 out of the about 2.2 million barrels (bbls) of oil produced daily in the country.

The daily production, according to data, is supposed to be between 2.4 million barrels and 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd), but owing to vandalism and oil theft, the volume sometimes drops to 2.1 million bpd.

Read more @ The Nation

FG EARNS N9.4TN FROM SHELL IN FIVE YEARS

Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited paid to the Federal Government a total of $48bn (N9.46tn) in royalties and taxes from 2010 to 2014, Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the parent company of the SPDC, has said.

 

The oil major, in its ‘Sustainability Report 2014’ released on Friday, said its share of royalties and taxes paid to the government in 2014 was $3bn (SPDC, $1.8bn and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, $1.2bn

 

Read more @ Punch Online

LOCAL FIRMS' CRUDE OUTPUT HITS 252,000 BARRELS P/D

Indigenous crude producers in Nigeria jacked up output to over 252, 000 barrels in February, 11 per cent of the total 2.32 million barrels per day output in the month under review. The country’s crude production statistics obtained by New Telegraph at the weekend showed that the daily output in the month peaked at 2.47 million.

Read more @ New Telegraph

INDIGENOUS OPERATORS TO CONTROL 50% OF NIGERIA’S PRODUCTION

The Director of Petroleum Resources, Mr George Osahoh, who made this assertion in Lagos recently, said the cheering development would however put a lot of pressure on the regulatory authority which must therefore be clear about its roles and responsibilities and be in position to ensure compliance without stifling commerce and operational activities.

Read more @ The Guardian

WORLD OIL MARKETS AWAIT OPEC DECISION TODAY

As the meeting between Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Russia and Mexico on Tuesday failed to achieve a consensus on whether to cut production, world oil markets, oil-dependent economies and investors are increasingly looking forward to the outcome of today’s meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum-Exporting Countries.

A cut in production by OPEC, which supplies a third of the world’s crude oil, is needed to shore up prices, which have fallen more than 30 per cent from more than $110 per barrel in June.

Read more @ The Punch

OPEC MAY NOT CUT OIL PRODUCTION

Ahead of the meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries this Thursday, industry analysts have highlighted some of the factors that may prevent the 12-member oil cartel from agreeing to slash oil production to revive crashing oil prices.

International Brent crude, against which most of the world’s oil is priced, has fallen by over 30 per cent from more than $110 per barrel in June, putting pressure on the budgets of oil-exporting countries, including Nigeria. It recently tumbled below $80 per barrel.

Read more @ The Punch

FG URGED TO PREVENT LEAKAGES IN OIL PRODUCTION

In view of the effects of dwindling crude oil price on the Nigerian economy, the federal government has been advised to intensify efforts at preventing leakages and pipeline vandalism, which disrupt oil production.

This, according to analysts at the Financial Derivatives Company Limited (FDC), would help increase the Nigeria‘s oil production and in turn, minimise the impact of falling oil prices on revenues and external reserves.

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SAMSUNG ADMITS SUBMITTING COST VARIATION FOR EGINA FPSO

Samsung 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

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

TOTAL CUTS PRODUCTION TARGET FOR NIGERIA, OTHERS

Oil major, Total, has cut its 2017 output goal to 2.8 million barrels of oil equivalent per day from the previous three million.

The firm, which has struggled with production outages in Libya, Kazakhstan and Nigeria, said on Monday that it would step up asset sales and overhaul exploration after cutting its oil output targets.

Read more @ The Punch

$3.8BN EGINA PROJECT TAKES OFF IN APAPA

The $3.8 billion Egina floating production storage and offloading  (FPSO) situated at Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) base, Apapa has commenced operation.
This is sequel to a renewed pact between the technical facilitators, LADOL and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI).

The two companies are expected to inject not less than $300 million into the creation of the new facility, which is expected to provide employment opportunities to many unemployed Nigerians.

Read more @ Thisday