$300bn in oil investments lost globally in three years – Kachikwu

31 July 2017, Lagos – The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, on Monday, lamented the loss of $300bn in oil investments globally in three years, due to the decline in oil price. Kachikwu, who stated this at the 2017 Society of Petroleum Engineers’ Nigeria Annual International Conference & Exhibition in Lagos, […] More »

Oil workers’ Ambush: Nigerian Army regrets misleading public on rescue of NNPC staff

Oscarline Onwuemenyi 01 August 2017, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The Nigerian Army has tendered unreserved apology to the public over its last week’s information that claimed military troops in the North East successfully rescued members of the oil exploration team and members of Civilian Joint Task Force, abducted by the Boko Haram terrorists. The apology came […] More »

Protesters picket EKEDC’s HQs over lack of electricity

OpeOluwani Akintayo 31 July 2017 Sweetcrude, Lagos – A group of angry protesters picketed the office of the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) on Monday over “refusal” of the company to provide them with electricity. SweetcrudeReports was at the scene of the protest at EKEDC’s head office at Marina, Lagos, encountered both men and women, singing […] More »

Iran begins high-quality LPG production

31 July 2017, Tehran — Iran now is producing the most high-quality liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as a strategic product in its South Pars Gas Field, said the supervisor of the sixth refinery of the energy complex in southern Iran. High-quality LPG production in South Pars Gas Field ‘The allowed maximum of sulphur in export-worthy […] More »

Shell plans 400 job cuts

31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Royal Dutch Shell Plc plans to cut more than 400 jobs in the Netherlands, mainly at its major projects and energy technology operations, as the oil giant shifts its business model in response to lower oil prices, according to an internal document seen by Reuters. The world’s second-largest oil […] More »

Boko Haram can’t stop oil search in Chad Basin – UNIMAID VC

Senior lecturers of the university and staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) were part of the team ambushed by Boko Haram insurgents during an oil exploration mission near Lake Chad. More »

Kerosene explosion claims 4 children in Rivers

Mkpoikana Udoma 31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – Four children of same parents in Ozuoba community, Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, are feared dead following a kerosene explosion at the weekend. The explosion, according to witnesses, occurred when the mother of the children, who is a kerosene dealer, tried to light her stove […] More »

Total invests $10bn in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector

Chuks Isiwu 31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Multinational oil company, Total, has invested $10 billion in Nigeria oil and gas sector in the last five years, according to Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Total Upstream Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Nicolas Terraz. Mr. Terraz, who spoke on Monday at the opening ceremony of […] More »

Financial market products & services update

31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The local and international financial market products and services update. NIGERIA: As a half year, 2017 (H1’17) earning reports continue to roll into the market, analysts have said that the market will witness another mix trading this week. The market halted a four-day rally on Friday leading to loss […] More »

OPEC daily basket price close at $49.46/b

31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $49.46 a barrel on Friday, compared with $48.88 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Zafiro (Equatorial […] More »

Nigeria govt to shut non-performing refineries

Ike Amos …Says Kaduna refinery likely to fail 30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Federal Government has stated that it would close down any of the country’s petroleum refinery that fails to become commercially viable or profitable within a certain period of time. The Federal Government disclosed this in the National Petroleum Policy recently […] More »

MOMAN to explain N329bn recovered from Oando, others by EFCC

OpeOluwani Akintayo 31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – The Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, MOMAN, has said that it will later this week release its own side of the story on the N328.9 billion alleged recovered from its members by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. News broke last Wednesday that the managing […] More »

Youths barricade Eroton Oil in Rivers over alleged marginalisation, others

Mkpoikana Udoma 31 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – Youths of Bakana in Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State barricaded the entrance of the Port Harcourt office of Eroton Exploration and Production Limited,  over what they described as injustice against the host community. Recall that Degema is one of the DAA3 OML18 cluster board which […] More »

Dangote remains Africa’s richest man

30 July 2017, Lagos – Although, Africa’s richest man, Nigerian Aliko Dangote dropped to 105th on the 2017 Forbe’s real-time billionaires’ ranking, he maintains the lead in Africa, as the richest man. Dangote, who was ranked 51st in 2016 with a net worth of $15.4 billion, currently has a net worth of $12.2 billion, africannews.com […] More »

How govt, market operators want NSE demutualised

30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos –  The Nigerian Government has expressed its support for the current efforts by the National Assembly to amend the existing Nigerian Stock Exchange Act of 1960 to enable the NSE convert from a company limited by guarantee to a company limited by shares. Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun, who made […] More »

Nigeria’s aims to diversify as ‘era of oil booms’ ends

30 July 2017, News Wires – Nigeria plans to cut its oil exploration costs and move away from reliance on crude for export revenues, according to a national petroleum policy approved by the federal executive council this week. Africa’s largest oil exporter said it expects oil prices to stay near $45 per barrel “for the […] More »

Tullow plans more Ghana wells once maritime-border spat settled

30 July 2017, News Wires –  Tullow Oil Plc plans to drill more wells off Ghana once a ruling on a border dispute is out of the way. Ghana and Ivory Coast disagree over their maritime boundary, frustrating projects to pump oil and gas offshore. In September, the International Tribunal for the Law of the […] More »

Egypt: IFC approves investment in world’s largest solar photovoltaic generation park

30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Cairo — Cairo — The Board of Executive Directors of IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, approved on July 20 an investment of $635 million that will help construct, operate and maintain up to 11 solar power plants in Egypt. The combined capacity of the plants amounts to 500 […] More »

Mauritius to benefit from Indian expertise in energy sector

30 July 2017, Port Louis — A five-member Indian delegation from the energy sector paid a courtesy call on the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Public Utilities, Mr Ivan Collendavelloo, yesterday at the Sicom Tower in Ebene, to discuss areas of cooperation in the field of energy. The delegation comprised representatives from […] More »

Tanzania: Talks on Sh67tr LNG plant reach crucial stage

30 July 2017, Dar es Salaam — International oil companies engaged in the construction of a Sh67-trillion) $30-billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project are establishing a commercial framework for the scheme, BusinessWeek has learnt. The framework will define and compare alternative commercial and financial arrangements involving government and the private sector in a way that […] More »

EFCC’s N329bn recovery from Forte Oil, Total, Oando, others

*MOMAN to release report this week OpeOluwani Akintayo 30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Major Oil Marketers of Nigeria (MOMAN), has said that it will release its own side of the story over the N328.9 billion diverted by its members in connivance with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Pipeline and Product Marketing […] More »

Nigeria’s former Finance Minister Okonjo-Iweala named Director at UK bank

30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has been named an independent non-executive director at Standard Chartered PLC. Standard Chartered PLC is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, England and with a presence in 70 countries. According to a statement released by the company yesterday, her appointment is […] More »

Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Angola export over 20m tonnes LNG yearly

OpeOluwani Akintayo 30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos —Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea and Angola export a combined amount of 20 million metric tonnes each year (mtpa) of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), mainly to Europe and Asia, according to data obtained by Sweetcrude Reports. *For Nigeria, a total of 388,000 metric tons of gas was exported through Onne […] More »

Shell welcomes proposal to phase-out vehicles powered by fuel from France, Britain

OpeOluwani Akintayo 30 July July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Royal Dutch Shell, has welcomed proposals from France and Britain to phase-out vehicles powered by fossil fuels. According to Shells CEO, Van Beurden, the new move is needed to combat global warming. Shell is looking at “very aggressive scenarios” as it makes plans to remain competitive […] More »

Nigeria govt demands increased representation in IMO Council

Vincent Toritseju 30 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — THE Association of African Maritime Administration, AAMA, has called for increased representation of the continent on the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Council and its Secretariat. The group’s Chairman, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, made the appeal when he led a delegation of some members of AAMA Executive Committee to […] More »

Nigeria earns N325bn from PPT, royalties

Ike Amos 29 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Nigeria earned N325.38 billion from Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) and royalties from oil and gas companies in the first quarter of 2017, according to latest data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN. The CBN in its Economic Report for the First Quarter of 2017 stated […] More »

Nigeria oil earnings dip by N65bn

Ike Amos 29 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Nigeria’s crude oil revenue dipped by N65.3 billion to N238.1 billion in the month of May 2017, compared to N303.4 billion recorded in April. According to latest data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, in its Economic Report for May 2017, crude oil accounted for […] More »

OPEC Secretary General meets with the President and Prime Minister of Equatorial Guinea

29 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — OPEC Secretary General, HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, met yesterday with the President of Equatorial Guinea, HE Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and the Prime Minister, HE Francisco Pascual Eyegue Obama Asue, in the city of Djibloho. The meetings were also attended by the country’s Minister of Industry, Mines and Energy, […] More »

Subsidy: NNPC records N68bn under recovery

Ike Amos 29 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has borne a loss of N67.719 billion, listed as under recovery, over a five-month period, from January to May 2017. This was contained in the Monthly Financial Statement of the NNPC for the month of May 2017, released recently. The listing […] More »

Resign if you are not capable, House Committee on Steel slams Ministers

*Every company & the individuals involved in Ajaokuta mess shall be held accountable – Hon Akinlade OpeOluwani Akintayo 29 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos —The House of Representatives Committee on Steel led by the Chairman, Hon. Idris Lawal has called out the Ministers of Mines and Steel and Solid Minerals and other concerned government authorities who failed […] More »

Oil hits two-month high in strongest week of the year

29 July 2017, New York — Oil ended its strongest week this year with a surge on Friday, built on receding fears of oversupply, as U.S. crude came within striking distance of $50 a barrel for the first time since the end of May. Traders attributed the activity to short-covering of previous bearish bets as […] More »

African LNG exports to get boost from offshore projects

29 July 2017, Dakar — Cameroon plans to begin exporting liquefied natural gas later this year using a newly designed offshore plant that analysts say could slash production costs and unlock African reserves not previously considered economically viable. West and Central Africa’s Gulf of Guinea has seen a wave of new oil and gas exploration, […] More »

Halliburton to pay $29.2m to settle US charges tied to Angola

29 July 2017, Washington — Oil company Halliburton Co will pay $29.2 million to settle civil charges it violated federal anti-bribery rules related to books, record-keeping and internal accounting controls while doing business in Angola, U.S. regulators said on Thursday. The Securities and Exchange Commission said Halliburton’s former vice president, Jeannot Lorenz, separately agreed to […] More »

Pemex crude output drops slightly in June, exports up 21 percent

29 July 2017, Mexico City — Mexican national oil company Pemex’s crude output dropped slightly in June compared with the previous month, while exports rose 21 percent, the company said. Pemex produced 2.01 million barrels per day (b/d) in June, down from 2.02 million in May, the company said. Exports rose to 1.157 million b/d […] More »

Physical oil market tightens as refiners scramble for crude

29 July 2017, London — Physical crude markets are at last showing signs of tightening as record refinery consumption in the United States coincides with a slowdown in oil exports from the Middle East Gulf. U.S. refineries processed an average of almost 17.3 million barrels of crude per day last week, an increase of 620,000 […] More »

Exxon Mobil profit disappoints Wall Street, Chevron shines

29 July 2017, Houston — Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) posted a rare earnings miss on Friday, the only international oil producer to do so last quarter, as production slipped in its African and Canadian operations. Exxon’s results were overshadowed by rival Chevron Corp (CVX.N), which easily exceeded Wall Street’s expectations with a double-digit percentage increase […] More »

10 burnt beyond recognition as petrol tanker, bus collide in Lokoja

28 July 2017, Lokoja – Ten people were burnt beyond recognition while six others sustained serious injuries when a petrol tanker went up in flames in Felele area of Lokoja on Friday. The Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps in Kogi State, Mr Segun Martins, said most of the victims were passengers travelling […] More »

NSE All-Share Index hits 37,000 mark

28 July 2017, Lagos- Investors on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Thursday continued to react positively to half year earnings season resulting in further growth in market indicators. The News Agency of Nigeria  (NAN) reports that the All-Share Index crossed the 37,000 mark to close at 37,245.17 as against 36,740. 77 recorded  on Wednesday, due […] More »

NUPENG threatens strike in Abuja over dispute with AMCON

The retrenchment of the workers followed the company’s indebtedness to a commercial bank to the tune of N25 billion which led to AMCOM taking over the assets and liabilities of Seawolf. More »

Daily power generation peak at 4,079MW in Q2 2017

Similarly, the highest daily energy generated per hour attained a peak of 97,891 MWh on the 29th, May 2017 and daily energy sent out per hour on the same date was 96,334 MWh. More »

Cars using gas as fuel to hit 60 million by 2020 – NIPCO boss

…urges govt on gas use to power vehicles OpeOluwani Akintayo 28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Managing Director, NIPCO, Mr. Sanjay Teotia, has said that the international markets indicates exponential growth in support of natural gas vehicles, stating that it is expected that the number of vehicles using gas as fuel will hit 60 million […] More »

Chevron wins court case over fraudulent arbitrary awards

OpeOluwani Akintayo 28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Appeals Court of The Hague, has ruled in favor of Chevron Corp., upholding a 2016 trial court decision that rejected an attempt by the Republic of Ecuador to nullify, or set aside, several arbitral awards rendered against Ecuador by an international arbitration tribunal that is hearing […] More »

Chevron swings to quarterly profit as costs drop

28 July 2017, San Ramon, California — Chevron Corp (CVX.N) swung to a quarterly profit on Friday, helped largely by a resurgence in oil and gas production as prices jumped and costs slipped. Projects that Chevron had been building for years have started to come online and allowed Chevron to progress from spending on construction […] More »

ExxonMobil earns $3.4b in Q2 2017

28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Exxon Mobil Corporation announced Friday estimated second quarter 2017 earnings of $3.4 billion, or $0.78 per diluted share, compared with $1.7 billion a year earlier, as oil and gas realisations increased and refining margins improved. “These solid results across our businesses were driven by higher commodity prices and a continued […] More »

Shell announces 31% rise in net income Q2

28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Royal Dutch Shell has announced that its net income for second quarter of the year, shot up by 31 percent. The 31 percent rise, according to the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Ben Van Beurden today, pegged its net earnings at $1.55 billion. He said the second-quarter earnings more than […] More »

NNPC importing crude oil from Chad, Niger Republic: More reactions

OpeOluwani Akintayo 28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos —More reactions have continued to trail the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC’s recent declaration that the country is looking into importing crude oil from neighbouring countries, Chad and Niger Republic for refining at the Kaduna refinery which has lacked supply. NNPC had said the reason for the decision […] More »

Nigerian Senate to amend 3 power-related bills

OpeOluwani Akintayo 28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The Nigerian Senate is currently working on amending three power-related bills, Sweetcrude Reports has gathered. We gathered that the Senate has been meeting with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Board, NERC, House of Representatives Committee on Power, including representatives from the distribution companies, DisCos, Generation Companies, GenCos and […] More »

World oil transit chokepoints released by U.S. EIA

28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Washington, D.C. — “World chokepoints for maritime transit of oil are a critical part of global energy security. About 61% of the world’s petroleum and other liquids production moved on maritime routes in 2015. The Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of Malacca are the world’s most important strategic chokepoints by […] More »

Nigeria: Transmission capacity in Ajah increase to 220MVA

Michael James 28 July 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos — Transmission capacity in Ajah sub station in Lagos has increased to 220MVA sequel the installation of an additional 60MVA 133/33kV power transformer. The installation and commissioning of the transformer were done on July 11th, 2017 by the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN. In a statement signed by […] More »

ExxonMobil earns $3.4b in Q2 2017

28 July 2017, Irving, Texas — Exxon Mobil Corporation on Friday July 28th, 2017 announced estimated second quarter 2017 earnings of $3.4 billion, or $0.78 per diluted share, compared with $1.7 billion a year earlier, as oil and gas realizations increased and refining margins improved. “These solid results across our businesses were driven by higher commodity prices and […] More »