Connect with us

Economy

NSIA, Vitol Launch CarbonVista to Meet Sustainable Development Goals

Published

on

Vitol

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria’s sovereign wealth fund, Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), and Vitol have launched a joint venture to invest in a range of carbon avoidance and removal projects.

The NSIA said an initial $50 million had been committed and that both firms were in the process of reaching a final investment decision on the first projects.

The new entity called CarbonVista was first considered last July to invest exclusively in projects in Nigeria.

It said the first investment would be in a household energy efficiency program aimed at improving clean cooking and water filtration.

The JV will commence with projects in Nigeria, partnering with local firms with proven track records of successfully delivering high-quality projects, combining carbon offsetting with social outcomes that contribute to the attainment of UN Sustainable Development Goals.

It was announced that investments would focus on various sectors, including infrastructure, agriculture, and energy.

This initiative will also seek to mobilize capital from funding partners to the voluntary carbon market in support of the effort of the Nigerian government toward a more equitable energy transition for Africa.

Approximately one billion people in sub-Saharan Africa rely on wood and charcoal for daily cooking and water purification, a major cause of the nearly 4 million hectares of annual deforestation and degradation across the continent, the NSIA said.

The NSIA said the joint venture will provide rural households with efficient devices that would reduce wood fuel consumption and related greenhouse gas emissions while also saving them money and time.

It added that the firm would deploy up to 200,000 devices initially.

Speaking on this, Mr Aminu Umar-Sadiq, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NSIA, said: “The realization of Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan requires a radical rethink of our energy consumption mix beginning from the micro-level.

“Without incremental steps to address the fundamental issues, including water security and homestead energy access and consumption, achieving the ETP goals may remain unrealized and further exacerbate our climate risks.”

“Carbon Vista adopts a pragmatic approach to these challenges. We are pleased to be leading this novel path for delivering Nigeria’s net-zero targets,” he added.

“This joint venture should be a catalyst in the creation of the domestic emissions trading scheme, a pioneer in the Africa Carbon Market Initiative (ACMI) and will create a pipeline of high-quality credits into the global voluntary carbon markets,” NSIA noted.

Adedapo Adesanya is a journalist, polymath, and connoisseur of everything art. When he is not writing, he has his nose buried in one of the many books or articles he has bookmarked or simply listening to good music with a bottle of beer or wine. He supports the greatest club in the world, Manchester United F.C.

Economy

NASD Index Opens Week in Green Territory After 0.15% Growth

Published

on

NASD securities exchange

By Adedapo Adesanya

There was a 0.15 per cent appreciation at NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Monday March 17, with the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increasing by 4.90 points to close at 3,368.64 points, in contrast to last Friday’s 3,363.74 points and the market capitalisation of the bourse rose by N2.83 billion to settle at N1.945 trillion compared with the preceding trading day’s N1.942 trillion.

Okitipupa Plc gained N7.66 during the session to close at N307.66 per unit compared with the preceding session’s N300.00 per unit, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc expanded by 78 Kobo to settle at N39.01 per share versus last Friday’s price of N38.23 per share, and Geo Fluids Plc grew by 6 Kobo to trade at N2.90 per unit, in contrast to the previous trading day’s N2.84 per unit.

On the flip side, Afriland Properties Plc lost N2.01 to close at N21.19 per share compared with its previous rate of N23.20 per share.

Yesterday, the volume of securities traded at the bourse went down by 55.8 per cent to 288,383 units from the 652,237 units recorded last Friday, the value of securities traded by investor depreciated by 45.3per cent to N18.2 million from the N33.1 million quoted at the preceding session, and the number of deals executed at the first session of the week shrank by 27 per cent to 27 deals from 37 deals.

When the market closed for the session, Impresit Bakolori Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with a turnover of 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 13.0 million units valued at N505.1 million, and Afriland Properties Plc with 17.4 million units sold for N357.0 million.

Also, Impresit Bakolori Plc remained as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million, trailed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 69.9 million units sold for N23.7 million, and Afriland Properties Plc with 17.4 million units valued at N357.0 million.

Continue Reading

Economy

Naira Depreciates 0.63% to N1,531 Per Dollar at Official Market

Published

on

Naira-Denominated Assets

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira depreciated against the United States currency at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Monday by N9.61 or 0.63 per cent to settle at N1,531.98/$1, in contrast to last Friday’s value of N1,522.37/$1.

Similarly, the Nigerian currency weakened against the Pound Sterling during the trading session by N20.41 to quote at N1,984.61/£1 compared with the previous trading day’s rate of N1,964.20/£1 and against the Euro, it tumbled by N14.68 to sell for N1,668.46/€1 versus the preceding session’s value of N1,653.78/€1.

The depreciation trend continued after the exchange rate had appreciated just once over the last week as supply factors and the Dollar strengthening across the global market continues to impact other local currencies.

Nigeria’s inflation cooled to 23.18 per cent in February, a month after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) rebased its Consumer Price Index (CPI) to reflect changes in consumption patterns. A month earlier, the inflation was 24.48 per cent.

However, the the domestic currency appreciated against the US Dollar in the official market yesterday by N5 to quote at N1,585/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,590/$1.

In the cryptocurrency market, most of the tokens fell as investors expect the US Federal Reserve to keep interest rates steady this week, with analysts saying policymakers might pause or stop the central bank’s balance sheet runoff.

There are also trade tensions and concerns around a slowdown in the US economy at a time when it is increasingly uncertain how much more accommodation the US central bank can offer.

Solana (SOL) slumped by 2.8 per cent to trade at $125.04, Litecoin (LTC) fell by 2.7 per cent to $89.70, Dogecoin (DOGE) lost 2.5 per cent to settle at $0.1673, Ripple (XRP) dropped 2.2 per cent to end at $2.28, Cardano (ADA) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.7072, Bitcoin (BTC) crashed by 0.4 per cent to $83,103.91, and and the US Dollar Tether (USDT) went down by 0.03 per cent to $0.9998.

Conversely, Binance Coin (BNB) appreciated by 0.8 per cent to $634.55, and Ethereum (ETH) added 0.5 per cent to close at $1,907.25, while the US Dollar Coin (USDC) was flat at $1.00.

Continue Reading

Economy

Crude Oil Rises as US Vows to Intensify Attacks on Houthis

Published

on

crude oil sales

By Adedapo Adesanya

Crude oil rose on Monday after the United States vowed to keep attacking Yemen’s Houthis until the Iran-aligned group ends its assaults on shipping, which is affecting prices.

As a result, Brent futures went up by 49 cents or 0.7 per cent to $71.07 per barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 40 cents or 0.6 per cent to settle at $67.58 a barrel.

The US carried out airstrikes that reportedly killed at least 53 people.

This is the biggest US military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump took office in January.

According to Reuters, the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah and the Al Jawf governorate north of the capital Sanaa were targeted on Monday.

Mr Trump said on Monday he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks carried out by the Houthi group that it backs in Yemen.

Meanwhile, the Houthi group said it would target US ships in the Red Sea as long as the country continues its attacks on Yemen.

Also, Chinese economic data buoyed hopes for higher demand.

Retail sales growth quickened in the world’s largest oil importer in January-February, indicating positive signs to boost domestic consumption.

However, unemployment rose and factory output eased.

Support also came as the US Dollar eased against a basket of currencies as investors worried about the economic fallout from President Trump’s protectionist trade policies.

A weaker Dollar makes oil less expensive for overseas buyers, boosting demand.

On the supply front, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) plan to raise oil output from April has also pressured prices.

However, market analysts noted that the prospect of tighter US sanctions against Iran more than offsets the gradual OPEC+ production increase.

The market will also looking forward to and to the Russia-Ukraine war as President Trump said he would speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday about ending the Ukraine war.

Continue Reading

Trending