Economy

NPDC Attains 100% Local Content Input in Edo Gas Project

Published

6 years ago

26/10/2018

By Dipo Olowookere

The Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), an Upstream Subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has achieved a 100 per cent local content input in the development of Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility.

Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr Maikanti Baru, declared this Wednesday during a tour of the NPDC’s Oredo Flow Station, Oredo Gas-to-Pan-Ocean Facility, Oredo Integrated Gas Handling Facility (IGHF), as well as the Oredo LPG Dispensing Facility, all in Edo State.

Commending NPDC on the feat, Mr Baru said he was proud that a world-class facility was being put in place by a Nigerian engineering contractor in conjunction with another Nigerian company, the NPDC.

“From engineering, construction to erection of the various units, we feel very encouraged by the huge man-hours which you are putting in here, day and night, with full local content,” Mr Baru told over 500 workers at the site.

The IGHF is currently at 80 percent completion. When completed in December, it will make provision for dehydration of gas and liquid extraction. It is expected to also produce both Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Propane, in addition to dry gas to the Escravos Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS).

He described the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 111, where the gas projects are located, as one of the most significant assets of the NPDC because it is where the corporation’s staff and their contractors design, build and operate facilities hitherto operated by the International Oil Companies (IOCs).

“You could see that right from the well-design through to reception of the various liquids to the processing and disposal of the various outputs, it is fully indigenous. So, it cannot be better than this,” he added.

He said as a National Oil Company (NOC), the corporation was using this to showcase its ability to intervene, stressing that “we are not just a player, we are also building capacity that can enable us intervene by taking over any assets whenever any contractor decides to opt out,” he added.

Mr Baru stated that the project’s funding constraints would be addressed soonest, stressing that NNPC was considering alternative means to support and complete the project.

“All these projects are located within OML 111, one of our critical assets which we are keen on deriving maximum benefits from,” he stated.

Earlier, Managing Director of NPDC, Mr Yusuf Matashi, thanked the NPDC Board led by the GMD, for coming down to inspect the gas facilities, saying it was the first time the company was witnessing a highly-synchronised support towards these projects.

He said the LPG Dispensing Facility strategically offered 40% solution for Nigeria’s domestic LPG market which would translate into extra cash flow for the company.

“Another advantage is that it will ensure ease of distribution and penetration into the market. You can take LPG to every nook and cranny of the country from here. So, it is quite strategic,” he noted.

The MD said in line with NPDC’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts, the company had engaged youths within the host community area, with a number of them fully involved in the local contracts around the project as well as the pipeline Right Of Way (ROW).

“We have also completed a Skills Acquisition Centre which is currently being furnished in line with the component of the project. We intend to commission the centre even before the project is completed. From our records, this is one project that has engendered cordial relationship with the Oredo community and we hope to replicate similar understanding in other areas within the Niger Delta,” Mr Matashi stated.

In his remarks, the NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Upstream, Mallam Bello Rabiu, who expressed happiness that the project would be delivered within time and budget, also charged the workers to double the over one million man-hours achieved so far in the project without any incidence.

While further assuring of timely funding for the project, the NNPC Chief Financial Officer, (CFO) Mr Isiaka Abdulrazaq, commended the NPDC Management for performing impressively on the project and for its drive towards making NPDC the E&P Company of choice in Nigeria.

Located 34km southeast of Benin City, the OML 111 is an onshore field comprising five fields viz: Oki-Oziengbe-South, Aroh North, Koko, Oghama as well as Oredo, which has twelve (12) out of its fifteen (15) wells currently producing.

Economy

Brent Nears $80 Per Barrel on Fresh Russian Sanctions

Published

5 seconds ago

11/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Brent neared the $80 price mark on Friday, gaining $2.84 or 3.7 per cent to sell fr $79.76 per barrel as traders braced for supply disruptions from the broadest US sanctions package targeting Russian energy revenue.

In the same vein, the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose by $2.65 or 3.6 per cent to settle at $76.57 per barrel yesterday.

President Joe Biden’s administration imposed fresh sanctions on Russian oil producers, tankers, intermediaries, traders, and ports, aiming to affect every stage of Russia’s oil production and distribution chains.

The move is meant to cut Russia’s revenues for continuing the war as the sanctions also include networks that trade petroleum.

According to the US Government, close to 180 vessels, several senior Russian oil executives, dozens of traders and two major oil companies were targeted by the sanctions.

Many of the sanctioned tankers have been used to ship oil to India and China as a price cap imposed by the Group of Seven countries in 2022 has shifted trade in Russian oil from Europe to Asia. Some tankers have shipped both Russian and Iranian oil.

This followed US sanctions in November on banks including Gazprombank, Russia’s largest conduit to the global energy business, and earlier last year on dozens of tankers carrying Russian oil.

Market analysts note that India and China, which have always patronised Russia, will have to find alternatives.

This move just a few days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, making it likely that he will keep the sanctions in place and use them as a negotiating tool for a Ukraine peace treaty.

Oil prices were also buoyed as extreme cold in the US and Europe has lifted demand for heating oil while fire rages on in California affecting supply.

JPMorgan analysts said in a note on Friday that the weather in the US could record a significant year-over-year increase in global oil demand of 1.6 million barrels a day in the first quarter of 2025, primarily boosted by demand for heating oil, kerosene, and Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG), by-products of crude oil.

Economy

NASD Index Sheds 0.37% as Geo Fluids, FrieslandCampina Count Losses

Published

1 day ago

10/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange dropped 0.37 per cent on Thursday, January 9 as investors booked profit in Geo-Fluids and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc.

The sell-offs in the two securities brought down the value of the bourse by N4.13 billion at the close of business to N1.052 trillion from N1.056 trillion.

In the same vein, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) made a loss of 12.05 points to wrap the session at 3,069.86 points compared with 3,081.91 points recorded at the previous session.

There were two price losers and three price gainers at the Thursday session, indicating a weak investor sentiment.

Geo-Fluids depleted by 25 Kobo to close at N4.60 per unit compared with midweek’s price of N4.85 per unit and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc went down by N1.78 to trade at N38.22 per share versus Wednesday’s value of N40.00 per share.

Conversely, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc appreciated by 2 Kobo to end at 24 Kobo per unit compared with the preceding day’s 22 Kobo per unit, UBN Property Plc gained 2 Kobo to close at N2.00 per share versus N1.98 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc expanded by 1 Kobo to N16.01 per unit from N16.01 per unit.

The volume of trades recorded yesterday increased by 82.9 per cent to 6.6 million units from 3.6 million units, but the value of transactions declined by 24.8 per cent to N27.5 million from N36.6 million, and the number of deals went up by 157 per cent to 36 deals from the 14 deals.

FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 1.9 million units worth N74.2 million, 11 Plc came next with 12,963 units valued at N3.2 million, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI )Plc was in third with 10.7 million units sold for N2.1 million.

IGI Plc closed the day as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 10.6 million units sold for N2.1 million, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc came next with 1.9 million units valued at N74.2 million, and Acorn Petroleum Plc occupied the third spot with 1.2 million units worth N1.9 million.

Economy

Naira Gains 47 Kobo at Official Market, Stable at Black Market

Published

1 day ago

10/01/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Pressure eased on the Naira on Thursday, January 9, in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) segment of the currency market.

It was the first time the local currency was appreciating against the United States Dollar in the official market this week.

The value of the Naira improved against the greenback yesterday by 0.03 per cent or 47 Kobo to sell for N1,541.23/$1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,541.70/$1.

Equally, the domestic currency gained against the Pound Sterling in the spot market during the trading session by N41.11 to quote at N1,858.51/£1, in contrast to Wednesday’s closing price of N1,899.62/£1 and improved its value against the Euro at NAFEM by N5.78 to trade at N1,589.29/€1 versus N1,584.96/€1.

As for the black market, the Nigerian Naira was stable against the Dollar on Thursday as it remained unchanged at N1,650/$1.

In the cryptocurrency market, profit-taking continued after a major fourth-quarter 2024 rally spurred by Donald Trump’s November victory and the hope of a friendlier regulatory environment out of Washington DC.

Also supporting the market was the US Federal Reserve having cut its overnight interest rate by 100 basis points since September. However, that has been cut out after a series of economic reports showed the US economy and inflation have been far stronger than markets and the US central bank expected.

Bitcoin (BTC) went down yesterday by 0.03 per cent to finish at $94,130.63, Dogecoin (DOGE) recorded a value depreciation of 1.9 per cent to sell at $0.3314, Ripple (XRP) also slumped by 1.9 per cent to $2.30, Solana (SOL) fell 1.7 per cent to trade at $190.50, Ethereum (ETH) dropped 1.5 per cent to end at $3,268.93, and Binance Coin (BNB) went south 0.9 per cent to settle at $692.52.

On the flip side, Litecoin (LTC) increased its price by 1.9 per cent end at $104.26 and Cardano (ADA) leapt by 0.6 per cent to close at $0.9359, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.