Ogoni demands state creation as precondition for oil exploration

Mkpoikana Udoma Port Harcourt — The people of Ogoni under the aegis of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, MOSOP, have pushed for the creation of Bori State as the primary demand for the negotiation of oil resumption in Ogoniland. This was the resolution reached at its 2019 general congress held at … More »

Yinka Folawiyo’s Aje field encounters financial setbacks

*Gas project to cost $250m, no longer priority OpeOluwani Akintayo Lagos — Folawiyo’s operated Aje Field in Oil Mining Lease, OML 113 offshore Nigeria, and his partners are currently finding it difficult to pull through the running and development of the project, SweetcrudeReports has learned. The field is operated by Yinka Folawiyo Petroleum. Other members … More »

African financial institutions promoting integration & economic growth

Nairobi — Aspiration 7 of Africa’s Agenda 2063 envisions “Africa as a strong, united, resilient and influential global player and partner” with a significant role in world affairs. To achieve this Aspiration, the Agenda 2063 framework identifies the need for Africa to improve its partnerships and refocus them more strategically to respond to African priorities … More »

NNPC to partner major oil marketers on stable fuel supply

Ike Amos Abuja — The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Sunday, said it will continue to strengthen its partnership with Major Marketers Association of Nigeria, MOMAN, to ensure a seamless supply of petroleum products across the country. In a statement in Abuja, Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Maikanti Baru, said the corporation, as … More »

Omani oil minister sees prices staying in $65-$75 range until year-end

Dubai — Omani Energy Minister Mohammed bin Hamad al-Rumhy said he expected global oil prices to stay in a range between $65 and $75 a barrel until the end of the year, the state-run Oman News Agency (ONA) reported on Saturday. He was also quoted as saying Oman remained committed to the OPEC+ agreement until … More »

Russia’s Inter RAO seeks gas turbines deal with GE by October

Krasnoyarsk, Russia — The chief executive of Russia’s Inter RAO said on Saturday the energy holding hoped to reach a deal with General Electric Co by October to produce powerful gas turbines in Russia, either as a joint venture or by buying a license from GE. Russia, which does not currently produce mid- or high-power … More »

Brazil’s Petrobras to take part in Israeli gas tender – Israeli minister

Jerusalem — Brazilian state-run oil firm Petrobras will take part in Israel’s latest tender for offshore oil and gas exploration, Israel’s energy minister said on Sunday. Yuval Steinitz announced the agreement as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro began a four-day visit to Israel. Bolsonaro was joined in Israel by his Energy Minister Bento Albuquerque, with whom … More »

Russia expects 1.2 pct yearly increase in electricity demand until 2024 – minister

Krasnoyarsk, Russia, — Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Saturday the country was expecting domestic demand for electricity to increase by 1.2 percent on average every year until 2024. Reuters More »

U.S. judge scraps Trump order opening Arctic, Atlantic areas to oil leasing

Anchorage, Alaska — A federal judge in Alaska has overturned U.S. President Donald Trump’s attempt to open vast areas of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans to oil and gas leasing. The decision issued late Friday by U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason leaves intact President Barack Obama’s policies putting the Arctic’s Chukchi Sea, part of … More »

Russia’s Inter RAO says seeks gas turbines deal with GE by October

Krasnoyarsk, Russia — The chief executive of Russia’s Inter RAO said on Saturday the energy holding hoped to reach a deal with General Electric Co by October to produce powerful gas turbines in Russia, either as a joint venture or by buying a licence from GE. Russia, which does not currently produce mid- or high-power … More »

U.S. drillers cut most oil rigs in a quarter in three years -Baker Hughes

News Wires — U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating to their lowest in nearly a year, cutting the most rigs in a quarter in three years despite a 30 percent hike in crude prices so far in 2019. Drillers cut eight oil rigs in the week to March 29, … More »

Mexico’s sovereign debt credit rating still at risk – financial stability council

Mexico City — Mexico still faces risks to its sovereign debt credit rating, primarily due to state oil firm Pemex’s liabilities and the dependence of public finances on oil revenues, the country’s financial stability council wrote in a report issued on Friday. Delays in the ratification and implementation of the new North American free trade … More »

Appeal court dismisses NLNG case against NIMASA over levies

Michael James Lagos — The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, has set aside the judgement of the Federal High Court, which had exempted the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) from levies payable to the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) under the NIMASA Act, Cabotage Act, Marine Environment (Sea Protection Levy) Regulations, and … More »

W. Africa Crude-Buyers wait for Nigerian diffs to drop, Angolan trades briskly

London — Robust Asian demand and favourable U.S. gasoline cracks prompted sellers of Nigerian lighter grades to push up differentials, but some potential European buyers awaited markdowns. U.S. sanctions on Venezuelan exports continued to support high differentials for comparable medium-heavy Angolan grades. NIGERIA * Around 14-15 cargoes remain for April-loading * Bonny light and Qua … More »

Nigerian govt establishes committee to synchronise oil revenue data

Ike Amos Abuja — The Federal Government has set up a committee to ensure the harmonization of data from the petroleum industry and government earnings from all sectors of the economy. Speaking during the inauguration of the ‘Nigerian Petroleum Fiscal Consistency Network’, Technical Adviser on Petroleum Fiscal Strategy, to the Minister of State for Petroleum … More »

PPMC earns N2.648 trillion from petroleum products sale

Ike Amos Abuja — The downstream subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company, PPMC, earned N2.648 trillion from the sale of petroleum products in 2018. According to data obtained from the NNPC’s Monthly Financial and Operations Report for December 2018, this represented an improvement of 36.71 percent over the … More »

Don’t sell fuel above N133.28, NNPC warns depot owners

Ike Amos Abuja — The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Saturday, cautioned depot owners and terminal operators, against selling Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol, above the regulated ex-depot price. In a statement in Abuja, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu said the official ex-depot price … More »

Trump and Saudi Arabia at odds over oil prices

London — U.S. President Donald Trump and the Saudi government have closely aligned views on most issues but they disagree significantly on the desirable level for oil prices, which could become a source of volatility in 2019/2020. In keeping with his iconoclastic approach to governing, Trump has kept up a public commentary on oil prices … More »

LEKOIL requires ministerial consent for OPL 310 interest – Court

Lagos — A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, and presided by Justice Sule Hassan has ruled that Lekoil’s acquisition of an interest in the OPL 310 block still requires consent from the Minister of Petroleum Resources. Justice Hassan stated that the Executive Order issued by the Nigerian Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo in 2017, … More »

The NNPC: Atiku’s swan song for a redundant organisation

Port Harcourt — It may not have been conceived by him and it appears to have expanded the circle of conspiracy against his ascendance to Nigeria’s presidency but we owe Atiku Abubakar gratitude for starting the conversation that will eventually lead to the liquidation of the NNPC, Nigeria’s worst investment folio, with human collateral that … More »

Shell to become world’s top electricity producer

London — Royal Dutch Shell could ramp up acquisitions of electricity producers to achieve its target of becoming the world’s biggest power company by the 2030s, according to an analysis by Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd. To become the biggest low-carbon electricity provider, the company must produce 214 terawatt-hours of clean power every year by 2035, … More »

German-African Energy Forum a boost for energy security & investment

Hamburg, Germany — The African Energy Chamber congratulates the German Government and the African-German Business Association (Afrika-Verein der Deutschen Wirtschaft) on the success of the 13th German-African Energy Forum that took place in Hamburg on March 27 and 28, under the theme “Realizing & Financing Africa’s Energy Revolution”. With a strong focus on the financing … More »

GA Drilling gets significant funding, signs S/Agreement with MOL Group

Bratislava –- GA Drilling has signed a EUR 4.2 million funding agreement with Lead Ventures and a service agreement with MOL Group. Lead Ventures, a Budapest based venture capital firm invested funds provided by MOL Group, and Hungarian Eximbank. The deal gives GA Drilling access to onshore production wells to test its disruptive PLASMABIT plug … More »

Nigeria loses $22.65 billion due to ALSCON closure – ICEN

Mkpoikana Udoma Port Harcourt — The Institute of Chartered Economists of Nigeria, ICEN, says Nigeria economy lost about $22.6 5billion since the closure of Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria, ALSCON at Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom in 2013. The economists attributed this to the legal tussle over the ownership between BFIG Group and a Russian company, … More »

Oil set for biggest quarterly rise since 2009 amid OPEC cuts, sanctions

London — Oil prices rose on Friday amid OPEC-led supply cuts and U.S. sanctions against Iran and Venezuela, putting crude markets on track for their biggest quarterly rise since 2009. May Brent crude oil futures were up 83 cents at $68.65 a barrel by 1232 GMT, set for a gain of nearly 28 percent in … More »

Nigeria’s DPR get N4 billion from FAAC in February

OpeOluwani Akintayo Lagos — The Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, received the sum of N4.07 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee FAAC in February. Newly released statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, said the money was the cost of revenue collection for the month. Other revenue collecting agencies such as Nigeria Customs … More »

After sanctions lifted, Russia’s Rusal boosts aluminum smelter capacity

Krasnoyarsk, Russia — Russian aluminum giant Rusal has launched new production at its Boguchansk aluminum smelter in Siberia on Friday, doubling its capacity to 298,000 tonnes a year. The new line, part of a larger project, is being started two months after Rusal was removed from a U.S. sanctions list. The world’s largest aluminum producer … More »

Russian minister to discuss ways to boost Venezuela’s oil exports

Krasnoyarsk, Russia — Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday he planned to discuss with his Venezuelan counterpart ways to increase oil exports from Venezuela. He did not give any further details. Venezuelan oil minister and president of state-run oil company PDVSA, Manuel Quevedo, said this month that Venezuela might divert oil originally bound … More »

Japanese refiners halt Iran oil imports as waiver expiry looms

Tokyo — Japanese refineries have put a halt on imports of Iranian oil after buying 15.3 million barrels between January and March ahead of the expiry of a temporary waiver on U.S. sanctions, according to industry sources and data on Refinitiv Eikon. The waiver, which allowed Japan to buy some Iranian oil for another 180 … More »

OPEC daily basket oil price closes at $66.38 per barrel

Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $66.38 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $67.15 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), Djeno (Congo), Oriente (Ecuador), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi … More »

El-Rufai urges customers to pay bills, pledges support for Kaduna Electric.

Kaduna — Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has pledged the state government’s support to Kaduna Electric in ensuring prompt payment of electricity bills incurred by the government. He made the pledge while receiving the Managing Director of the company, Engr. Garba Haruna,  who led his management team to congratulate the governor on his recent re-election … More »

HYPREP in tripartite collaboration with SDN, IITA

Mkpoikana Udoma Port Harcourt — In implementing one of the recommendations in the UNEP Report to provide alternative source of livelihood for the people in oil-impacted communities of Ogoniland,  the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project, HYPREP, has trained 15 Ogoni youths on fabrication of cassava processing machines. Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Dr Marvin Dekil, said the agency … More »

Oil pares losses, shrugs off Trump calls for OPEC to boost output

New York — Oil prices fell on Thursday but recovered from the day’s worst losses that came after U.S. President Donald Trump called for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to boost crude output to lower prices that were heading to their best quarterly gains in a decade. Futures hit a session low immediately … More »

NLNG Train 7, a giant leap for Nigerian Content Development

Markson Ibibo Port Harcourt — A loud cheer erupted in Abuja on March 22, 2019 as the chief executives of two key organisations – Nigerian Content Monitoring and Development Board, NCDMB, and Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG, signed an agreement that will deliver status-changing benefits for Nigeria as a key exporter of liquefied natural gas … More »

Eterna gain, Oando dips in Thursday trading on the NSE

Michael James Lagos — Eterna Oil Plc made gains in Thursday’s trading activities on the floor of Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, as Oando Plc dipped in 46 trade deals valued at 7,699,744.50. Seplat and Japaul remained unchanged Top Gainer Eterna: 0.15 Top Loser Oando: 0.05 More »

UNEP Report: HYPREP trains 15 Ogoni youths on livelihood skills

Mkpoikana Udoma Port Harcourt — In implementing one of the recommendations in the UNEP Report to provide an alternative source of livelihood for the people in oil-impacted communities of Ogoniland, the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project has trained 15 Ogoni youths on the fabrication of cassava processing machines. Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Dr. Marvin Dekil, said … More »

OPEC daily basket oil price closes at $67.15 per barrel

Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $67.15 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $67.03 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), Djeno (Congo), Oriente (Ecuador), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi … More »

Asia’s demand for Nigeria’s crude oil rises

OpeOluwani Akintayo Lagos — Demand for Nigeria’s crude in Asia is beginning to pick up again, according to market reports gathered by SweetcrudeReports. The market schedule says Asian demand is rebounding, putting to rest worries about signs of an economic slowdown and competition from U.S. shale oil. An earlier report by Reuters had said U.S … More »

IBEDC commences vegetation management exercise to improve supply

OpeOluwani Akintayo Lagos — IBEDC says it has begun a vegetation management exercise as part of its strategy to improve power supply and prevent incidences of fire, electrocution and other safety hazards in some states. Mrs. Angela Olanrewaju, Head, Media Communications and Strategy of the company said in a statement on Thursday that the states … More »

NERC says metering is DisCos’ responsibility under MAP

OpeOluwani Akintayo Lagos — The obligation to ensure that all electricity consumers are metered remains with the Electricity Distribution Companies, DisCos under Meter Asset Provider, MAP Regulations 2018, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC has said. In a statement by Dr. Usman Abba Arabi, NERC’s GM, Public Affairs Department on Thursday, the commission said the … More »

Mining: Absence of data responsible for paucity of funding — NEITI

Ike Amos Abuja — The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, NEITI, has blamed the absence of reliable exploration data for the inability to access funds to finance production activities in the Nigerian mining industry. NEITI, in its latest Occasional Paper, titled, ‘Improving Transparency and Governance for Value Optimisation in Nigeria’s Mining Sector,’ disclosed that credit … More »

NNPC recruitment exercise enters second phase, closes portal

Ike Amos Abuja — The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Wednesday, said it has commenced the second phase of its recruitment exercise following the conclusion of the first phase. In a statement in Abuja, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, stated that the second phase of the exercise … More »

Zenith Bank declares N38.5bn energy sector borrowings as NPLs

Ike Amos Abuja — Non-Performing Loans, NPL, from the energy sector in the books of Zenith Bank Plc dipped slightly by 2.88 percent to N38.487 billion at the end of 2018, compared to N39.63 billion recorded in the bank’s books at the end of 2017. In its 2018 Annual Report and Accounts made available to … More »

PPMC earns N2.648 trillion from petroleum products sale

Ike Amos Abuja — The downstream subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company, PPMC, earned N2.648 trillion from the sale of petroleum products in 2018. According to data obtained from the NNPC’s Monthly Financial and Operations Report for December 2018, this represented an improvement of 36.71 percent over the … More »

Nigerian govt establishes committee to synchronise oil, revenue data

Ike Amos Abuja — The Federal Government has set up a committee to ensure the harmonization of data from the petroleum industry and government earnings from all sectors of the economy. Speaking during the inauguration of the ‘Nigerian Petroleum Fiscal Consistency Network’, Technical Adviser on Petroleum Fiscal Strategy, to the Minister of State for Petroleum … More »

Nigeria, Norway mulls platform for proper pricing of perishables

Vincent Toritseju Lagos — The Norwegian Fishery Council, NFC, and the Nigeria Customs are currently in talks with a view to creating a platform for the exchange of information on pricing of fish and other perishable cargoes. Speaking at a meeting in Lagos last week the West and Central Africa Director of the NFC, Mr. … More »

Africa must prioritise domestic revenue mobilisation to triple growth – ECA

*12-20% tax collection increase can raise $400bn *Fund $600bn financing gaps Marrakesh, Morocco — To meet their development goals and targets, African countries need to build resilient economies by prioritising domestic revenue mobilisation efforts while tripling current rates of growth, the Conference of Ministers have disclosed. These were some of the takeaways from the Economic … More »

Weekly SweetcrudeReports March 27, 2019

Read the Monthly SweetcrudeReports: PH refinery: Nigeria to spend $50m on equipment inspection The purported “revamping” of the Port Harcourt refinery by Italian – based Maire Tecnimont will cost Nigeria a whopping $50 million or about N18 billion based on… DOWNLOAD IT DOWNLOAD IT More »

Oil prices reverse earlier gains as market eyes U.S. stocks

London – Oil prices declined on Wednesday, reversing earlier gains, as further disruptions to Venezuela’s crude exports were offset by a report that U.S. inventories rose last week. Brent crude futures were down 22 cents, or 0.32 percent, to $67.75 a barrel at 1021 GMT. U.S. crude futures were down 44 cents at $59.50 a … More »

N/America to add 265 mtpa of LNG liquefaction capacity by 2023

Lagos — North America will be the major contributor to the growth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction capacity between 2019 and 2023, accounting for around 72% of the total global capacity from planned and announced projects, according to GlobalData, a leading data, and analytics company. The company’s report: ‘H1 2019 Global Capacity and … More »