Economy
NCDMB, IOCs laud Yulong Steel Pipe Mill
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), major operating companies and other stakeholders of the industry have commended Yulong Steel Pipe Mill for the speed and quality of their investment, describing the factory as comparable to similar facilities in China and India.
The Executive Secretary of the Board, Mr Simbi Kesiye Wabote recently led top executives of the oil and gas industry on a pre-commissioning visit to Yulong facility located at Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos.
He stated that the Board will work with the oil companies under the aegis of the Oil Producers Trade Section and Yulong to invite international certifying bodies to certify the new pipe mill.
Mr Wabote pledged the Board’s commitment to support companies that invest in the Nigerian economy so as to create employment for Nigerians and challenged multinationals and indigenous service companies to emulate Yulong by investing in manufacturing facilities in Nigeria.
He indicated that the Board had clear guidelines for implementing Nigerian Content requirements in Free Zones through collaborations with the Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority (OGFZA) and the Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA).
The Executive Secretary stressed that Yulong and other Oil and Gas companies operating in the Free Trade Zones were bound by the provisions of the Nigerian Content Act especially as it pertains to Expatriate Quota Utilization and employment of Nigerians. According to him, “this facility provides a good opportunity for Yulong to gradually build the skills of Nigerians to eventually operate the facility. The Board is interested in seeing the laid out plans by Yulong to ensure that Nigerians are gradually trained to take over those responsibilities especially in the skilled areas.”
Speaking after inspecting the factory, the Nigerian Content chieftain recalled that “the case for the establishment of pipe mill was reinforced following a gap analysis conducted in 2011 which established an annual demand of about 83,000mt per annum compared to the capacity at the time of 100,000 metric tonne per annum in SCC pipe mill.”
He further said that, “ramp-up local capacity policy inventions were introduced to stimulate investment in the establishment of at least four pipe mills. The interventions include direct investment in Polaku Pipe Mill by NCDMB along with investors with an exit plan and support to third party investors by granting first consideration in procurement of line pipes for oil and gas projects.”
The Executive Secretary disclosed that the interventions were working as SCC had since expanded its capacity to 207,000mt per annum Helical Submerged Arc Welding (HSAW) line pipes. This capacity growth is about 30 per cent of industry demand with Yulong about to add 400,000mt of HSAW pipes and is targeting industry needs in Nigeria and other West African countries.
He reiterated that the Board will rely on the provisions of the Act that give first consideration to services provided within Nigeria and to goods manufactured in Nigeria to ensure that operators in the industry patronise the facility and other laudable investments.
The Executive Secretary commended the speed with which the factory was built, noting, “from what I am told, the factory actually started construction work in February 2016 and nine months later manufacturing has actually started. This is commendable.”
He also tasked the company to consider introducing another production line that will be dedicated to other types of line pipes required in the industry. He noted that there was excess capacity of HSAW pipes in Nigeria with a huge demand gap for Longitudinal Submerged Arc Welding (LSAW) pipes, High Frequency Welded (HFW) pipes and Seamless pipes. He added that investment in these mills will help address the remaining 70 per cent of industry demand that is still sourced abroad and ensure huge impact in spend retention, job creation and technology acquisition.
Earlier in his presentation, the Chief Marketing Officer of Yulong Steel Pipe Company Limited, Mr A. Abbas stated that the intention of the company was to build the steel pipe complex in three phases. He noted that the first is to produce Spiral Submerged Arc Welding (SSAW) pipes, the second will be for Longitudinal Submerged Arc Welding (LSAW) pipes and the third will be the ER Welding pipes.
“What you see today is only the first phase of the Spiral Submerged Arc Welding Pipe. The production capacity will be 250,000mt per annum as well as a coating facility which can cover all types of coating reaching almost 3 million square metres per year,” Mr Abbas affirmed.
He acknowledged the plant is integrated with a pipe coating facility which during peak construction will employ about 600 Nigerians for the project. Abbas also hinted that Yulong Lekki investment owns 51 per cent stake in Jiangsu Yulong Steel Company of China while in future, 49% equity of Yulong Lekki will be dedicated to Nigerian investors operating inside the Lekki Free Zone.
He also asserted that with the ground breaking ceremony in December 2015, the first pipe was produced in Nigeria in November 2016.
In his good will messages, the Managing Director of the Lekki Free Zone Development Company, Mr Yonghua Ding stated that Yulong successfully passed the factory test-run at the FTZ and declared the mill fit and ready for production.
While commending Yulong Steel, Mr Ding extolled the company for keeping to its commitment with the Nigerian government with an investment of good quality and fast speed.
The Managing Director of the Zone also said that the company made a great decision to comply with the policy of Nigerian government on Local Content and local industrialization as part of their contribution to the Nigerian society, economy, youth employment and for technical transfer.
Also delivering a message of good will on behalf of the Coordinators of the Zone, the Assistant General Manager (Zone Technical Services), NEPZA, Mrs Pwash Eldon opined that the agency was impressed with the state of work done within the short period. She further commended Yulong for their commitment to ensuring that they deliver as they promised.
The NEPZA official informed that the agency’s management is a strong advocate of the NOGICD Act which is a rallying point for both the Board and NEPZA to collaborate for the overall good of the Nigerian economy and for the investor confidence.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The World Bank has approved a $500 million facility for Nigeria to expand longer-term lending to small and medium sized businesses.
Approved under the Fostering Inclusive Finance for MSMEs in Nigeria (FINCLUDE) project, the package comprises a $400 million International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan and a $100 million International Development Association (IDA) credit. Both IBRD and IDA are members of the World Bank Group.
The scheme will be implemented by the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), with credit guarantees provided through DBN’s subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Limited (ICGL).
FINCLUDE is designed to address constraints faced by micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria which despite accounting for most businesses and nearly half of gross domestic product (GDP) face long-standing barriers to formal finance.
Fewer than one in 20 MSMEs have access to bank credit; loans are often short-term and costly; and collateral requirements exclude many viable firms. Women-led enterprises, which make up a substantial portion of MSMEs, are disproportionately affected, facing higher rejection rates and limited tailored products. Agribusinesses, central to food security and rural livelihoods, similarly struggle to obtain more extended‑tenor financing for equipment, processing, storage, and logistics.
However, FINCLUDE seeks to address these constraints by expanding access to affordable, longer-term finance and tailored solutions for segments with the most significant development impact.
Speaking on this, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Mr Mathew Verghis, said, “FINCLUDE is about jobs, opportunity, and inclusion. By expanding access to finance for viable MSMEs—particularly women-led firms and agribusinesses—Nigeria can accelerate growth and deliver tangible benefits across communities nationwide.
“The project will make it easier for deserving small businesses to get the finance they need to grow and hire workers. With better support for lenders that practice inclusive finance and fairer, longer-term loans for entrepreneurs, we are backing the people who power Nigeria’s economy—especially women and those in agriculture.”
The FINCLUDE project will help to mobilise private investment and expand access to and usage of inclusive, innovative financial products for MSMEs nationwide.
Through DBN, the operation will strengthen the capacity of banks, including microfinance banks and non-bank financial institutions such as financial technologies (fintechs), to provide larger loans with more reasonable repayment periods, and—through ICGL—will scale partial credit guarantees so that lenders can extend credit to businesses they might otherwise consider too risky.
Targeted technical assistance will modernise loan appraisal by leveraging AI-enabled digital platforms to accelerate decision-making, improve data quality, strengthen impact measurement, and build capacity for both MSMEs and participating financial institutions.
According to the World Bank, a strong emphasis on inclusion will ensure that women-led businesses and agribusinesses benefit from these improvements.
Also commenting, Task Team Leader for FINCLUDE, Mrs Hadija Kamayo, said, “FINCLUDE will help to mobilize approximately $1.89 billion in private capital, expand debt financing to 250,000 MSMEs—including at least 150,000 women-led businesses and 100,000 agribusinesses—and issue up to $800 million in guarantees to catalyse lending.
“By extending the average maturity of MSME loans to about three years, it will help firms invest in equipment, factories, staff, and productivity, translating finance into jobs and growth.”
By Dipo Olowookere
The local stock market firmed up by 1.13 per cent on Friday as appetite for Nigerian stocks remained strong.
Investors reacted well to the 2026 budget presentation of President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly yesterday, especially because of the more realistic crude oil benchmark of $64 per barrel compared with the ambitious $75 per barrel for 2025. This year, prices have been between $60 and $65 per barrel.
Business Post observed profit-taking in the commodity and energy sectors as they respectively shed 0.14 per cent and 0.03 per cent.
But, bargain-hunting in the others sustained the positive run, with the consumer goods index up by 3.82 per cent.
Further, the industrial goods space appreciated by 1.46 per cent, the banking counter improved by 0.08 per cent, and the insurance industry gained 0.04 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 1,694.33 points to 152,057.38 points from 150,363.05 points and the market capitalisation chalked up N1.080 trillion to finish at N96.937 trillion compared with Thursday’s closing value of N95.857 trillion.
A total of 34 shares ended on the advancers’ chart, while 24 were on the laggards’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
Austin Laz gained 10.00 per cent to close at N2.42, Union Dicon also jumped 10.00 per cent to N6.60, Tantalizers increased by 9.80 per cent to N2.69, Aluminium Extrusion improved by 9.78 per cent to N12.35, and Champion Breweries grew by 9.71 per cent to N16.95.
Conversely, Sovereign Trust Insurance dipped by 7.42 per cent to N3.87, Royal Exchange lost 6.84 per cent to trade at N1.77, Omatek slipped by 6.84 per cent to N1.09, Eunisell depreciated by 5.88 per cent to N80.00, and Eterna dropped 5.63 per cent to close at N28.50.
Yesterday, traders transacted 1.5 billion units worth N21.8 billion in 25,667 deals compared with the 839.8 million units sold for N32.8 billion in 23,211 deals in the preceding session, showing a surge in the trading volume by 76.61 per cent, an uptick in the number of deals by 10.58 per cent, and a shrink in the trading value by 33.54 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three stocks stretched the bearish run of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.21 per cent on Friday, December 19, with the market capitalisation giving up N26.01 billion to close at N2.121 billion compared with the N2.147 trillion it ended a day earlier, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) dropping 43.47 points to 3,546.41 points from 3,589.88 points.
The trio of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, and NASD Plc overpowered the gains printed by four other securities.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N6.00 to sell at N54.00 per unit versus N60.00 per unit, NASD Plc shrank by N3.50 to N58.50 per share from N55.00 per share, and CSCS Plc depleted by N2.91 to N33.87 per unit from N36.78 per unit.
On the flip side, Air Liquide Plc gained N1.01 to close at N13.00 per share versus N11.99 per share, Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 70 Kobo to N7.68 per unit from N6.98 per unit, Geo-Fluids Plc added 39 Kobo to sell at N5.50 per share versus N5.11 per share, and IPWA Plc rose by 8 Kobo to 85 Kobo per unit from 77 Kobo per unit.
During the trading day, market participants traded 1.9 million securities versus the previous day’s 30.5 million securities showing a decline of 49.3 per cent. The value of trades went down by 64.3 per cent to N80.3 million from N225.1 million, but the number of deals jumped by 32.1 per cent to 37 deals from 28 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc finished the session as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units valued at N16.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units transacted for N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units traded for N4.9 billion.
The most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was still InfraCredit Plc with 5.8 billion units worth N16.4 billion, trailed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units traded for N524.9 million.
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