69 burnt to death in Onitsha petrol tanker accident

01 June 2015, Nnewi – No fewer than 69 persons burnt to death Sunday evening when a trailer loaded with Premium Motor Spirit otherwise known as petrol that was descending from Army barracks side of Onitsha Enugu express way lost control and rammed into the Asaba Motor Park at Upper Iwekas Onitsha and exploded. Eleven […] More »

Counting cost of fuel crisis

31 May 2015, Lagos – In what many observers have described as Nigeria’s worst nightmare in recent times, several businesses caught in the web of the protracted fuel crisis are still counting their losses running into hundreds of millions, reports Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf Fuel crisis is not new in this part of the world. But […] More »

Navy parades oil thieves, rescued foreigners

31 May 2015, Warri – As part of its continued efforts to combat the menace of crude oil theft in the Niger Delta swamps, the Nigerian Navy has handed two suspected oil thieves recently arrested over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) in Warri for prosecution. The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta, […] More »

3 policemen, tanker driver killed by Kogi oil bunkerers

31 May 2015, Lokoja – Three policemen and a tanker driver whose identities were yet to be ascertained were said reportedly killed by suspected oil bunkerers at Oguda in Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State. It was gathered that the Oguda area close to the boundary between Kogi and Edo State is a haven […] More »

Sustain power sector reform, CSOs implore Buhari

31 May 2015, Lagos – As President Muhammadu Buhari assumes the mantle of leadership, a group under the aegis of Coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) has urged him to sustain the reform in the power sector, saying any attempt to jettison the map out planned towards improving power supply in Nigeria will retard the growth […] More »

Nigeria, others lose $40bn yearly as 620m people live without electricity – AfDB

31 May 2015, Lagos – African Development Bank (AfDB) has said with about 620 million people lacking electricity in African countries including Nigeria, between $30 and $40 billion may have been incurred as costs on a yearly basis. The bank, which disclosed this in its Financial Presentation and Operational Analysis for 2015 at its just-concluded 50th […] More »

IPMAN’s Leadership Crisis Worsens as Lawson is Expelled

31 May 2015, Abuja – The legal tussle over the leadership of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association (IPMAN) has taken a turn for the worse as the Chief Chinedu Okoronkwo-led Executive Committee of the association has expelled Chief Obasi Lawson for allegedly engaging in acts that violated the association’s constitution. IPMAN’s national president, Okoronkwo, at a […] More »

Domestic participation at NSE rose 26.33% in April

31 May 2015, Lagos – There are strong indications that the Nigerian stock market is becoming attractive to domestic investors as local participation at the nation’s bourse increased to N102.91 billion (about $0.52 billion) in April 2015, up 26.33 per cent from March 2015. Information obtained from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) last week showed that […] More »

Supply cuts: Ubah urges Buhari to probe oil marketers

31 May 2015, Abuja – The Managing Director of Capital Oil, Mr. Ifeanyi Ubah, at the weekend urged President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the recent cuts in supply of petroleum products that almost grounded the country with a view to bringing to book guilty marketers. Ubah’s request to Buhari who on Friday assumed leadership of […] More »

Civil society urge Buhari to sustain power sector reform

31 May 2015, Abuja – As President Muhammadu Buhari assumes the mantle of leadership, a group under the aegis of Coalition of Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, has urged him to sustain the reform in the power sector, saying any attempt to jettison the map out planned towards improving power supply in Nigeria will retard the […] More »

igeria: Badeh lauds Navy for checking crude oil theft

31 May 2015 – Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh has commended the Nigerian Navy for checking crude oil theft in the country adding that it has improved the nations revenue earning. The CDS spoke Thursday during the Commissioning of the Nigerian Navy Senior Officers Accommodation Complex in Kado, Abuja. Badeh stated […] More »

NNPC not allocating fuel in Kano depot – Marketers

31 May 2015, Kano — Kano chapter of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) yesterday told corporate bodies demanding supply of diesel from the association that they have not received any allocation from the state’s NNPC depot, despite the recent claims that directives were given by NNPC headquarters to do so. Addressing newsmen […] More »

13 ships arrive Lagos ports with food, petroleum products

31 May 2015, Lagos – Thirteen ships carrying various products have arrived at the ports in Lagos, the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, said on Thursday in Lagos. This is contained in the daily ‘Shipping Position’ published by the NPA, which was made available to newsmen. The NPA said that seven of the ships arrived with […] More »

Can Buhari fix Nigeria?

31 May 2015 – Muhammadu Buhari, the new president of Nigeria, is starting from point zero. The country has all but come to a sudden halt. Schools, hospitals and the civil service have closed down. Shops have run out of goods. The street markets are empty. Most will not see the inauguration of the new President […] More »

Chinese Teapots provide edge over US for world’s top oil buyer

31 May 2015 – China’s lead over the U.S. as the world’s biggest buyer of crude oil is poised to get bigger, and it’s largely thanks to teapots. Dozens of small refiners, known as teapots to those in the industry, account for a third of the Asian nation’s processing capacity. They are now expanding as […] More »

Premier oil exits onshore block 2B in Kenya

31 May 2015, Sweetcrude, London – UK independent Premier Oil Plc has exercised its right to exit a joint venture that is seeking to develop Block 2B, onshore Kenya, according to partners involved in the project. Tower Resources and Lion Petroleum, a subsidiary of Taipan Resources and the block’s operator, said that Premier’s exit from […] More »

End of oil glut seen nigh as world’s use set to top production

31 May 2015 – Make the most of abundant oil because by the end of the year the world may be consuming more than it pumps. The global crude market will shift into a deepening deficit in the fourth quarter amid a draw down in U.S. stockpiles, according to Standard Chartered Plc. While Qatar’s former […] More »

Why we’re against last minute OML 42 deal – Oil workers

31 May 2015, Abuja – Oil workers in the employ of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiary, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) have said that their contention over the transfer of operatorship of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 42 was to salvage the industry from being hijacked by few individuals in the […] More »

Nigeria earns N2.8trn from crude oil, petroleum in 3months

31 May 2015, Lagos — Nigeria earned N2.838 trillion from the export of petroleum products in the first quarter of 2015, according to data released, yesterday, by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS. The amount is 64.18 per cent of the Federal Government’s 2015 budget of N4.425 trillion. The NBS, in its Foreign Trade Statistics […] More »

Traders profit from illegal Nigerian fuel in Togo

31 May 2015, Lome – While Nigerians have had to go without fuel, some of the country’s petrol is being sold in Togo. Illegal traders are smuggling it via the sea to Togo’s border with Benin to Nigeria’s west, and are making huge profits. Those selling the fuel in Togo, who on a good day […] More »

Brand owners groan over endemic energy challenges

31 May 2015, Lagos – BEFORE the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, announced the suspension their strike action on Tuesday, the Nigerian economy was on the verge of total shutdown. For five days, fuel scarcity virtually grounded Africa’s largest […] More »

Abuja Disco sues Nigerian Army for battery

31 May 2015, Abuja – The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has filed an action against the unlawful trespass of military personnel who invaded the business premises of AEDC office at Keffi, Nassarawa State, noting that the action by the Nigerian Army was also a violation of human right of the staff In a undamental […] More »

Nigeria: Labour pledges to support Buhari on power

31 May 2015, Kaduna — The National Union of Textile, Garment & Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN), says Labour is ready to partner with President Muhammadu Buhari to realise the vision of uninterrupted power supply. The General Secretary, NUTGTWN, Isa Aremu, made the pledge in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria […] More »

AfDB deploys $70.5m for Tanzania’s power sector reform

…Governance Support Programme 30 May 2015, Sweetcrude, Houston – Power sector reform and a governance support programme are central to the African Development’s actions to accompany Tanzania’s economic growth. It is in line with this, that the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance of the United Republic of Tanzania, Servacius Likwelile and the African […] More »

US rig count stops hemorrhaging, but for how long?

30 May 2015 – For the first time in six months, the onshore U.S. rig count is showing signs of life. Up by a scant three rigs – each designed for onshore horizontal oil – the increase is small but significant, analysts at Raymond James said in an industry comment Tuesday. “It is symbolic in […] More »

OPEC seen backing Saudi Arabia’s plan to keep supplies elevated

30 May 2015 – When Saudi Arabia argues next week that OPEC should keep up production to fight the rise in U.S. shale oil levels, prices will be on its side. Crude plunged for eight of nine weeks prior to group’s November gathering, when the kingdom faced down opposition from the majority of fellow members, […] More »

Total reaches 2 billion barrel milestone offshore Angola

30 May 2015 – Total has reached the milestone of producing two billion barrels of oil from its deep offshore Block 17, which is located approximately 90 miles off the coast of Angola. Block 17 is currently Total’s most prolific site with a production rate of over 700,000 barrels per day. Total operates the region […] More »

Expect stable electricity supply, Buhari tells Nigerians

*Says over $20bn investment has brought “darkness, misery and resignation” among Nigerians Oscarline Onwuemenyi 29 May 201, Sweetcrude, Abuja – President Muhammadu Buhari has said careful studies are already under way to identify the quickest, safest and cost-effective way to ensure adequate and stable power supply to Nigerians. Buhari, who made the remark in his […] More »

‎Shell, NNPC celebrate 17 years of education and football in Nigeria

Oscarline Onwuemenyi 29 Maay 2015, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The NNPC/Shell Cup football competition for secondary schools reached its seventeenth year in 2015. This milestone year ended with Rochas Okorocha Foundation College, Ogboko, Imo State, emerging winners of the 2015 cup, after defeating Government Day Secondary School, Gwale Kano by 2-1 inside the main bowl of […] More »

Nigeria energy challenge a national shame – Buhari

29 May 2015, Abuja – The newly inaugurated President Muhammadu Buhari has described the epileptic power supply in the country as a “national shame” which must be tackled urgently. The President said this in his inaugural speech at the Eagles Square in Abuja on Friday. “The power situation is a national shame. It is not […] More »

Afren to receive $93m cash boost following revenue decrease

29 May 2015 – Junior energy firm, Afren announced Friday that it will receive an extra $93 million in net cash proceeds, following a difficult financial year. Holders of the company’s 2016, 2019 and 2020 notes have agreed to subscribe for further new senior notes up to the maximum level permitted of $369 million. This […] More »

Polarcus signs seismic services deal with NAMCOR

29 May 2015 – Polarcus announced Friday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia that will see it collaborate with NAMCOR on geoscience initiatives and also provide specialist business support services. The deal will see Polarcus provide 3D and 4D marine seismic acquisition and processing services together […] More »

BMT clinches contract for Africa’s first LNG import terminal in Ghana

29 May 2015 – BMT Group Ltd. announced Thursday that its subsidiary BMT Asia Pacific (BMT) has been appointed Owners Engineer and lead design consultant by Endeavor Energy for the development of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage and regasification facility, a part of the Ghana 1000 Gas to Power Project and Africa’s first LNG […] More »

In questionable financial times, profits are still possible in Africa

29 May 2015 – As oil prices continue to fluctuate and leave industry players in limbo, many are looking for new investments that will still allow for profitable returns in an uncertain market. While many shale and some deep water plays have been put on hold until oil prices begin to rebound – a process […] More »

Niger Delta groups shut down two of ENI’s oil facilities

29 May 2015, Yenagoa, Nigeria – Two oilfields run by Nigerian Agip Oil Co. Ltd, a unit of Italian oil major ENI, were shut down this week in the Niger delta region by local communities over disputes with the company, the protesters said on Wednesday. Oil production in the delta, in the southeast of Africa’s […] More »

Prices rise as inventories fall

29 May 2015 – Crude futures rose about 1% on Friday after American inventories fell for a fourth straight week although prices are set for a weekly drop on a stronger dollar. Oil saw steep falls earlier this week as a resurgent dollar weighed on the market amid concerns that US crude supplies may have […] More »

OPEC daily basket price close at $59.33/b

29 May 2015, Sweetcrude, Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at 59.33 dollars a barrel on Thursday, compared with $60.43 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), […] More »

Akinwumi Adesina of Nigeria elected 8th President of the AfDB

29 May 2015, Sweetcrude, Abidjan, Cote d’ivoire — Akinwumi Adesina was elected as the 8th President of the African Development Bank on Thursday, May 28. A Nigerian citizen, Adesina is currently serving as Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. He succeeds Donald Kaberuka, whose second term as President of the Bank ends in August. […] More »

CBN explains delay in disbursing N300bn real sector facility

29 May 2015, Abuja — The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has denied speculations that it had concluded the process of disbursing the Federal Government’s N300 billion real sector intervention facility to operators. The facility was designed to aid the repositioning of the real sector in its contribution to the Nigerian economy. A statement from […] More »

Court stops NERC from increasing electricity tariff

29 May 2015, Lagos – A Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday restrained the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, (NERC), from implementing the new electricity tariff which was to take effect from June 1. The Judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, gave the order, in a ruling on an ex-parte application filed by a Lagos-based lawyer, Mr […] More »

Senate orders DPR to seal-off filling stations hoarding fuel

28 May 2015, Abuja – Senate Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources ( Upstream and Downstream ), currently investigating the lingering fuel scarcity in the country, has directed the Department of Petroleum Resources to seal-off any filling station hoarding the product. Chairman of the committee, Mr. Magnus Abe, told journalists in Abuja on Thursday that the long queues […] More »

Fuel: N20bn claims by transporters may be slashed

28 May 2015, Lagos – The over N20bn claims by the National Association of Road Transport Owners as amount owed them by petroleum product marketers for the lifting and transport of products from depots to filling stations across the country may be slashed, according to findings by our correspondent. Indications emerged on Wednesday that some members […] More »

PENGASSAN faults SURE-P operations

28 May 2015, Lagos – The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria has said the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme for which N21bn is provided in the 2015 Budget should be scrapped. The association alleged that the SURE-P was at the whims of the party in power to settle those it wished to favour. […] More »

Nigeria, others purchase one million Total’s solar lamps

28 May 2015, Lagos – French oil major, Total, said it had sold one million solar lamps in Nigeria and the rest of Africa, targeting sales of five million lamps on the continent in 2020. Total had in 2012 inaugurated the Awango by Total programme to market solar lamps providing affordable access to energy for communities […] More »

Customs agents, freight forwarders disagree over practitioners’ fee

28 May 2015, Lagos – The operation of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria has over the years been hampered by a number of controversies, the latest being the collection of the Practitioners Operating Fee from freight forwarders. Two weeks after the collection of the fee is expected to begin, the process […] More »

Nigeria records N110bn decline in first quarter trade

28 May 2015, Abuja – The National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday released the merchandise trade statistics for the first quarter of this year, noting that the country recorded a N110.2bn decline in trade from N4.98tn in December 2014 to N4.87tn at the end of March. The bureau, in a report, stated that despite a rise […] More »

Nigeria may lose N985bn oil revenue this year – PwC

28 mAY 2015, Abuja – Should oil price average $55 barrels per day this year and recent oil production trends in the country continue, Nigeria could see about $5bn (N985bn) oil revenue shortfall, PricewaterhouseCoopers has said. PwC’s economists, in a new report published on Wednesday, said this financing hole could widen to about $10bn in the […] More »

Petrol sells for N110 at depots

28 May 2015, Lagos – Tankers loading petrol from depots in Apapa, Lagos are currently paying between N90 and N110 per litre instead of the N82 before the advent of the current scarcity of the product in the market. This, according to market sources, is the reason behind the high prices for which the product is […] More »

Seven Energy begins delivery of gas to Alaoji Power Station

*Gas supply adds 504Mw of to the national grid May 22, 2015, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Seven Energy International Limited (“Seven Energy”), the indigenous Nigerian integrated gas company, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Accugas, has commenced supply of gas to the Alaoji Independent Power Project in Alaoji, Abia State. Gas delivery to the 504MW power station […] More »

Man, 28, in court for stealing police fuel

28 May 2015, Lagos – A commercial motorcyclist, popularly called ` Okada rider’, Abiola Salawu, who allegedly stole 50 litres of petrol from the Ketu Police Station, Lagos State, on Thursday appeared before an Ogudu Chief Magistrates’ Court. Salawu, 28, who lives at No. 18, Ishawo Rd., Ikorodu in Lagos State is facing a charge of […] More »