By Adedapo Adesanya

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has backed plans to set up an oil trading house called Africa Trading Minerals (Atmin), which will finance the purchase of refined petroleum products by African and Caribbean oil buyers.

The bank has invested $3 billion in the trading house, which it expects to finance about $10 billion to $14 billion of Intra-African petroleum imports.

Atmin will be based in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, and is expected to have around 15 employees.

It will start with crude and then expand into oil products and minerals, according to reports.

Afreximbank will be a controlling shareholder at Atmin, while employees will own some 15 per cent of the firm.

The move takes place as oil majors and Western banks retreat from Africa, and the continent is facing a decline in oil and gas production due to under-investment, while also spending $30 billion annually on fuel imports.

It is also seeking to address Africa’s persistent reliance on imported refined petroleum products, which accounted for an amount of $30billion annually in petroleum import costs due to inadequate refining.

Key products to be traded are refined petroleum products including but not limited to Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO), Jet Fuel, and Kerosene. The eligible exporters are refineries operating in Africa.

According to Reuters, Atmin will be run by Mr Ajay Oommen,a former Shell executive who worked for the oil major for for 17 years as well as Mr Vikram Thakur, who worked for 18 years at Shell, including in business development, trading origination and structured finance, as well as Mr Joseph Kanaan, a trader at Shell for 11 years.

Speaking on this, Mr Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Afreximbank, said that the development will have a direct impact on the volume of the refined petroleum products produced and consumed in Africa.

“It will also have a multiplier effect on the downstream petroleum value chain as it will catalyse critical investments in shipping and marine logistics for intra and extra African trade of crude oil and refined products.

“The multiplier effect will also be seen in marine cargo insurance and other ancillary businesses within the sector. We want to see an increased proportion of the about 4 mbpd of crude oil produced in the Gulf of Guinea refined in Africa,” he said.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

A popular Lagos-based socialite, Mr Emeka Daniel Okonkwo, otherwise known as E-Money, has been apprehended by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The younger brother of a well-known musician, KCee, whose real name is Mr Kingsley Okonkwo, was reportedly arrested by the agency on Monday night at his residence at Omole Estate, Lagos.

He was accused of spraying foreign currency at a public function recently, an act believed to be against the Foreign Exchange Act.

At the time of filing this report, the EFCC has not reacted to reports of E-Money’s arrest.

The organisation is said to be looking into the matter with a view to prosecuting the socialite for the alleged offence.

He was said to have been flown to Abuja for questioning and should be taken to court to face the full wrath of the law if the agency is certain that he has committed an offence.

Recall that some days ago, E-Money was at the 50th birthday of another socialite, Mr Obinna Tochuukwu Iyiegbu, otherwise known as Obi Cubana, in Abuja.

He was also spotted at the wedding ceremony of Iyabo Ojo’s daughter in Lagos.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria’s Mining Cadastral Office (MCO) says it processed 955 applications for mineral title grants but approved a total of 867 licenses during in the first quarter of 2025.

The Minister of Solid Minerals, Mr Dele Alake, made the disclosure in a statement, saying the licenses included 512 exploration licenses, 295 small-scale mining leases, 60 quarry leases, and 5 mining leases.

He revealed this as he announced that the government generated over N6.95 billion in mining fees and registered 118 new private mineral buying centres in the period under review, in what has been described as a major leap toward reforming Nigeria’s mining sector and attracting new investments.

According to him, the achievements reflect the government’s aggressive push to reposition the sector and raise its global competitiveness.

In a related mining development, Nigeria and South Africa last week signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening cooperation in the mining sector, with a focus on investment, knowledge sharing and technology transfer.

The agreement, which falls under the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission framework, was signed in Abuja by South Africa’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Mr Gwede Mantashe, and his Nigerian counterpart, Mr Alake.

The MoU lays the foundation for increased investment and collaboration, particularly in areas such as the use of drone technology and spectral remote sensing for geological mapping and mineral exploration.

Additionally, the agreement includes the exchange of geoscientific data between Nigeria’s Geological Survey Agency and South Africa’s Council for Geoscience. It also outlines plans for training programs on mineral processing, local capacity building and the transfer of advanced technologies, including Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry for mineral analysis.

Beyond investment and technology, the MoU also includes joint exploration efforts focused on agro-minerals and energy minerals in Nigeria.