Economy
Reps Commend NEXIM Bank’s Support for Local Firms
By Dipo Olowookere
The relentless contributions being made by NEXIM Bank to the Nigerian non-oil export sector, especially in funding factories have received the recommendation of the House of Representatives.
Chairman, House Committee on Banking and Currency, Mr Jones Chukwudi Onyereri, during a recent visit to Ladgroup Ltd, a foremost indigenous Nigerian conglomerate with a state of the art oil mill extraction factory located in Ikenne, Ogun State, said the bank has contributed to the growth of the country’s economy.
He appealed to the Federal Government to increase funding support to institutions like NEXIM Bank, promising that his committee will continue to do all within its jurisdiction and mandate to ensure that such funds are applied very judiciously.
The lawmaker, who led other members of the committee to the factory on oversight function, noted that, “The current economic recession facing the country has opened our eyes to the immense opportunities and abundant blessings God has heaped on Nigeria, not just in oil and gas, but more especially in agriculture and solid minerals.”
Also speaking during the visit, the Acting MD/CEO of NEXIM Bank, Mr Bashir Wali, revealed that the bank had in March 2015 approved the sum of $5.8 million to Ladgroup Limited to set up a Shea Nut processing factory.
He said the facility was made up of Equipment Finance of $2.8 million and Working Capital Facility of $3 million and has enabled the company to purchase and install a Shea Butter Refining Unit, a step down transformer and augment its working capital base.
According to Mr Wali, “The interest of NEXIM Bank in Shea Nut processing for export was borne out of the very high demand for Shea Butter with the impressive potentials for foreign exchange revenue stream as well as massive job creation at various levels of its value chain.”
Citing available statistics, he said nearly 2 billion Shea trees grow naturally on parklands in 21 African countries stretching from Senegal to South Sudan with more than 16 million women living in rural communities individually collecting the fresh fruits and the kernel which they process to extract a healthy vegetable oil known as “Shea Butter.”
With approximately 600,000 tons collected each year, the industry provides a critical source of jobs and incomes to millions of often poor and underserved communities.
Mr Wali stated that the global demand for Shea Butter is worth about $10 billion and is projected to be more than $30 billion by 2020, hence the interest of NEXIM in providing funding for increased proactive measures to reposition agricultural products such as Shea as part of its non-oil export sector interventions in the agro-processing sub-sector.
According to him, it has been estimated that over 680,000 metric tons of Shea Nuts are produced annually in West Africa, with about 56 percent of the nuts exported, while the remaining is consumed locally.
Available data shows that Nigeria is the world largest producer of Shea with the wildly grown Shea trees predominant in 21 states across the country.
This accounts for over 53 percent (or 370,000 MT) of the production in West Africa as confirmed by the reports of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Oil Seeds Association of Nigeria (OSAN).
Sadly, nearly N345 million is lost in the smuggling of Shea products out of the country every year.
Chairman of Ladgroup Ltd, Mr B. A. Onafowokan, expressed immense appreciation to NEXIM Bank for the quality of loan given to his company, and also thanked the lawmakers for their ‘oversight function’ stating that more of such activities is required to curtail misapplication of such funds provided by the government to assist local entrepreneurs keen on manufacturing for export.
Ladgroup Ltd is acclaimed to be the largest Shea Nut processing factory in Africa with an intake capacity of 40,000 Metric tons per annum.
The factory is dedicated to sourcing of Shea Nuts and processing them into Shea Butter of the highest quality, for sale to both domestic and export markets, but with a special bias for the export market.
The firm has set its target on major European importing companies in the Confectionary/ Chocolate industry and Cosmetics/ Pharmaceutical industry based in Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and the UK that import well over 95,000 MT annually.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Seplat Energy Plc will revive hundreds of Nigerian oil wells laying fallow after completing the acquisition of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) from ExxonMobil.
The company said it aims to lift oil output to about 200,000 barrels a day, a move that will help boost Nigeria’s oil production levels, as it aims to reach 2 million barrels per day next year.
The transaction, according to Seplat, “is transformative for Seplat Energy, more than doubling production and positioning the company to drive growth and profitability, whilst contributing significantly to Nigeria’s future prosperity.”
The completion of the Seplat-ExxonMobil deal has created Nigeria’s leading independent energy company, with the enlarged company having equity in 11 blocks (onshore and shallow water Nigeria); 48 producing oil and gas fields; 5 gas processing facilities; and 3 export terminals.
Recall that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) in October approved the deal as part of a series of approvals, while it blocked Shell’s asset sale of up to $2.4 billion to the Renaissance consortium.
The acquisition of the entire issued share capital of MPNU adds the following assets to the Seplat Group: 40 per cent operated interest in OML 67, 68, 70 and 104; 40 per cent operated interest in the Qua Iboe export terminal and the Yoho FSO; 51 per cent operated interest in the Bonny River Terminal (‘BRT’) NGL recovery plant; 9.6 per cent participating interest in the Aneman-Kpono field; and approximately 1,000 staff and 500 contractors will transition to the Seplat Group.
MPNU adds substantial reserves and production to Seplat Energy; 409 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) 2P reserves and 670 MMboe 2P + 2C reserves and resources as at 30 June 2024 and 6M 2024 average daily production of 71.4 kboepd (thousand barrels of oil equivalent).
Business Post reports that Seplat will be part of the payment this year, and will defer some to next year,
Speaking on the transaction, the Chairman of Seplat Energy, Mr Udoma Udo Udoma commended President Bola Tinubu for supporting this transaction and appreciated the support and diligence of the various ministries and regulators for all the work to reach a successful conclusion.
“We are delighted to welcome the MPNU employees to Seplat Energy. We are excited to begin our journey in a new region of the country, and we look forward to replicating the positive impacts we have achieved within our communities in our current areas of operations.
“Seplat’s mission is to deliver value to all our stakeholders, and we treasure the good relationships we have developed with the government, regulators, communities and our staff.”
On his part, the chief executive of Seplat Energy, Mr Roger Brown, described the acquisition as a major milestone, adding, “I extend my thanks to the entire Seplat team for their hard work and perseverance to complete this transaction.
“MPNU’s employees and contractors have a strong reputation for safety and operational excellence, and I welcome them to the Seplat Energy Group.
“We have acquired a company with one of the best portfolios of assets and related infrastructure in a world-class basin, providing enormous potential for the Seplat Group. Our commitment is to invest to increase oil and gas production while reducing costs and emissions, maximising value for all our stakeholders.
“MPNU is a perfect fit with our strategy to build a sustainable business that can deliver affordable, accessible and reliable energy for Nigeria alongside attractive returns to our shareholders”.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) is projected to close the year with over N22 trillion in pension assets impacted by challenges like inflation and monetary policies.
This is according to PenCom Director-General, Mrs Omolola Oloworaran, at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday.
She said as of October 2024, the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) had 10.53 million registered contributors and pension fund assets worth N21.92 trillion.
Speaking at the conference-themed Tech-driven Transformation Shaping the Pension Landscape, which showcased PenCom’s strategic commitment to innovation, she said that the numbers reflected the agency’s unwavering commitment to fund safety, prudent management, and sustainable growth.
She explained that the pension environment was impacted by the wider economic challenges facing the country, noting that the sector battled multi-year high inflation, Naira devaluation, and the lingering effects of unorthodox monetary policies by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Business Post reports that the apex bank hiked interest rates by 875 basis points this year alone to tackle persistent inflation which peaked at 33.8 per cent as of October.
She said that these challenges eroded the real value of pension funds and impacted contributors’ purchasing power.
“To address these issues, the commission has initiated a comprehensive review of its investment regulations.
“It is focusing on diversifying pension fund investments into inflation-protected instruments, alternative assets, and foreign currency-denominated investments.
“The goal is to safeguard contributor savings and ensure resilience against future economic volatility,” she said.
She restated the commission’s commitment to expanding pension coverage, particularly through the advanced micro-pension plan designed to encourage participation from the informal sector using technology.
“This initiative will make it easier for everyday Nigerians to save for retirement, aligning with our vision of inclusive growth and financial stability for all.
“The backlog in retirement benefits for retirees of the Federal Government’s Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) will soon be settled.
“The federal government recently disbursed N44 billion under the 2024 budget to settle approved pension rights.
“We are collaborating with the Federal Government to institutionalise a sustainable solution to ensure retirees receive their benefits promptly, eliminating delays,” Mrs Oloworaran said.
She said that PenCom’s technology-driven transformation aimed to make the CPS more accessible, reliable, and sustainable.
“From data management to seamless contributions and regulatory supervision, we are paving the way for a future where the pension industry serves all Nigerians effectively,” she said,
Mrs Oloworaran also said that the e-application portal for pension clearance certificates has replaced the manual processes and enhanced the ease of doing business in the sector.
“Since its deployment, 38,528 pension clearance certificates have been issued. This initiative ensures compliance and secures the future of Nigerians working in organisations that interact with the government,” she said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed flat on Thursday, December 12 after it ended the trading session with no single price gainer or loser.
As a result, the market capitalisation remained unchanged at N1.055 trillion as the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) followed the same route, remaining at 3,012.50 points like the previous trading session.
However, the activity chart witnessed changes as the volume of securities traded at the bourse went down by 92.5 per cent to 447,905 units from the 5.9 million units transacted a day earlier.
In the same vein, the value of securities bought and sold by investors declined by 86.6 per cent to N3.02 million from the N22.5 million recorded in the preceding trading day.
But the number of deals carried out during the session remained unchanged at 21 deals, according to data obtained by Business Post.
When trading activities ended for the day, Geo-Fluids Plc remained the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 1.7 billion units sold for N3.9 billion, Okitipupa Plc came next with 752.2 million units valued at N7.8 billion, and Afriland Properties Plc was in third place with 297.5 million units worth N5.3 million.
Also, Aradel Holdings Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 108.7 million units worth N89.2 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 752.2 million units valued at N7.8 billion, and Afriland Properties Plc with 297.5 million units sold for N5.3 billion.
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