January edition

Finance

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

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Gas flaring

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nding gas flaring would yield over $7.5 billion benefits to the N i g e r i a n economy, according to a Federal Government document detailing some of the highlights and agreements reached at the recently concluded Conference of Parties on Climate Change, otherwise known as COP 21, in Paris, France.

According to the document, which was obtained by our correspondent in Abuja and which quoted the Minister of Environment, Mrs. Amina Mohammed, the Federal Government plans to develop about 13,000 megawatts of off-grid electricity from solar energy.

The minister revealed that government had resolved to reduce gas flaring, adding that Nigeria could generate as much as $7.5 billion worth of benefits if it could put an end to the flaring of gas.

She said, "By ending gas flaring and using the gas for commercial purposes, including power generation, we could generate as much as $7.5 billion worth of benefits.”

Mohammed disclosed that

Ending gas flaring would yield $7.5bn for economy —Report government was also working to diversify the country’s energy mix, stressing that particular emphasis was on renewable energy and efficient gas power.

She stated that it had been established that Nigeria was

willing and eager to take a regional lead by announcing a bold and courageous Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, INDC, that seek to ensure that the Nigerian economy

The minister revealed that government had resolved to reduce gas flaring, adding that Nigeria could generate as much as $7.5 billion worth of benefits if it could put an end to the flaring of gas

continued to grow while reducing its carbon emissions.

She said, “Nigeria’s ambitious INDCs aim at reducing emissions by 20 per cent by the year 2030 with support from the international community.

This will support the restructuring of the economy in a way that will facilitate inclusive growth with vast opportunities to diversify the energy mix, with emphasis on renewable energy and efficient gas power.

“In particular, we plan to develop around 13GW of offgrid solar power, delivering energy access to the poorest communities in a cheaper and healthier manner with less emission. We also plan to create a more efficient, lower carbon oil and gas sector."

She noted that the government would substantially increase the use

of climate smart agriculture through irrigation systems, climate resilient crops a n d b r o a d e r sustainable land management practices.

The minister urged the international community to support and assist Nigeria with financing, technology and capacity building, just as she enjoined the private sector and civil society to partner the government to unlock the opportunities provided by the historic climate change agreement.

“Working together, I firmly believe that we can commit ourselves to actions that will serve as a springboard to Nigeria’s new climate economy,” Mohammed said.

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Transparency, rule of law crucial to Nigeria's growth —IMF Boss ...Says no IMF programme needed for the nation

Christine Lagarde OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI

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h e International M o n e t a r y Fund, IMF, says Nigeria does not need its programme, but urged the country to diversify its revenue to try and get out of its current economic crisis fuelled by the fall in oil prices.

T h e F u n d a l s o complimented Nigeria's efforts at addressing corruption, saying "transparency and the rule of law will be crucial in reducing constraints to the country’s growth".

Managing Director of the Fund, Ms. Christine Lagarde, during a three-day visit to Nigeria, backed President Muhammadu Buhari's fight against corruption terming it "very important" and said the president's reform push could have a positive impact in the region.

According to Lagarde, Nigeria, battling a revenue shortfall caused by the global oil shock, does not need assistance from the IMF. "Frankly, given the determination and

resilience displayed by the presidency and his team, I don't see why an IMF programme is going to be needed," she in Abuja.

Nigeria, Africa's number one oil producer, has seen revenues dive over the last year because of the fall in global crude prices, causing a cash crunch that has forced it to tighten spending.

The naira currency has also slumped and GDP growth stalled to under 3.0 percent,

while inflation is nudging 10 percent.

Lagarde also hailed efforts to fight corruption and create a culture of transparency within the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC. She made particular mention of government's decision to publish monthly data on the finances and operations of the NNPC as

she noted a range of issues the nation must address in order to come out of the quagmire created by falling oil prices across the globe.

"Nigeria has to deal with the difficulties presented by falling oil prices, reduced emerging market demand, and tightening global financial conditions. This has led to sharply lower export earnings and government revenues. The non-oil sector

has also been affected and financing for investment is hard to come by," the IMF boss stated.

She continued: “Against this background, we (during meeting with Nigerian officials) discussed a range of policy recommendations related to improving the competitiveness of the Nigerian economy.

Saraki urges CBN to free forex for businesses

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enate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, has advised the Central Bank of Nigeria to ensure a conducive environment for business to thrive.

To achieve this, he urged the bank to allow foreign exchange flow to businesses, but to avoid naira devaluation.

Saraki, who spoke in Abuja, also urged that CBN grants loans to Small and Medium scale Enterprises, SMEs, provide technical support to them as well as support government policies.

He explained that the 8th Senate Legislative Agenda

under his supervision is of particular interest in Parliamentary Network initiative which brings together parliamentarians and representatives of private sector as well as civil society organisations to discuss how to improve the environment for doing business in the developing world and how countries can increase their ranking in publications such as “Doing Business Report.”

“The purpose of our Legislative Agenda is to enable us focus our lawmaking in areas that will help create jobs,

expand our infrastructure base and make our economy work for the benefit and happiness of the majority of our people. Pivotal to the attainment of this overarching objective is the state of the Nigerian business environment.

“In collaboration with major stakeholders, the 8th Senate is presently signing a m e m o r a n d u m o f understanding on 'The Enhancing Nigerian Advocacy for Better Business Environment Project', a National Assembly business and investment roundtable i n i t i a t i v e , w i t h

d e v e l o p m e n t a l organisations.

“These roundtables will provide opportunity to the private sector to work closely with the legislature in developing friendly-business environment. The initiative will commence with a review of institutional, regulatory and legal instruments currently becoming impediments and bottlenecks to doing business in Nigeria,” Saraki said.

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LNG ship IKE AMOS

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igeria earned N412.983 billion from the export of Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG, Liquefied Petroleum Gas, LPG, and other gaseous materials in the third quarter of 2015.

This is, according to the Foreign Trade Statistics released by National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, for the period.

The report said the revenue for the period represented an increase of 9.5 per cent or N35.813 billion when compared to N377.17 billion earned by the country from similar export in the second quarter of 2015.

Giving a breakdown of the third quarter figures, the NBS stated that income from the country’s LNG export stood at N262.202 billion; liquefied propane export was valued at N106.803 billion, while the export of other petroleum gases, among others, in gaseous state was valued at N22.762 billion.

In addition, the country earned N10.101 billion from the export of LPG, also known as cooking gas, and other gaseous hydrocarbons, while it also earned N8.115 billion from the export of liquefied butanes.

Nigeria earns N412bn from gas exports In comparison, in the second quarter of 2015, the country earned N260.7 billion from the export of LNG; N66.441 billion from the export of LPG and other gaseous hydrocarbons; N43.88 billion from liquefied propane, while liquefied butane export fetched the country N6.15 billion.

Continuing, the NBS said,

“The total value of Nigeria’s merchandise trade at the end of third quarter 2015 was ?4.021 trillion. This was 7.8 per cent less than ?4.359 trillion recorded in the preceding quarter.

“This development arose from a decrease of?320.6 billion or 12.1 per cent, in the value of exports

combined with a marginal decline of?17.4 billion or 1.0 per cent, in the value of imports against the levels recorded in the preceding quarter.

“In comparison with the corresponding quarter of 2014, the value of the total merchandise trade decreased by ?2.497 trillion or 38.3 per

cent. This was as a result of a ?132.4 billion or 7.3 per cent and ?2.365 trillion or 50.3 per cent decline in imports and exports respectively relative to the corresponding quarter in 2014.

“Quarter on quarter, the sharp decline in exports and slight decrease in imports contributed to continued fall in the country’s trade balance, by 32 per cent or ?303.1 billion during the quarter.”

NEITI says subsidy removal will free up billions for development

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he Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, NEITI, has said removal of the subsidy will free over N700 billion annually which can be channeled to provision of infrastructure like roads, education, health service, power, security, creation of jobs and basic benefits for the

poor in the society.

He said the money would come from annual savings from the huge funds being expended so far on subsidy.

“From NEITI’s independent audit report, over N4 trillion has been paid as subsidy to marketers from 20062012. The breakdown of the subsidy shows that

N2.197 billion was paid as subsidy in 2006. This rose to N236.64 billion in 2007 and N360.1 billion in 2008," acting Executive Secretary of NEITI, Dr. Orji Ogbonanya Orji, stated at a policy roundtable on subsidy removal organised by the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.

He added, "In 2009, the country paid N198.1 billion

as subsidy for petroleum products and in 2010 the subsidy payment rose to N416.45 billion.

"The payments skyrocketed to N1.9 trillion in 2011.

Payments of oil subsidy declined to N690 billion in 2012 following the subsidy protests across the country in January of that year.”

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Nigeria’s 2016 budget ‘laudable ambitious, but unachievable’ —Labour

National Assembly

MKPOIKANA UDOMA

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igeria's 2016 budget as proposed by the Federal Government is "laudable" and "ambitious", but is "unachievable," according to the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC. In its new year message for 2016, TUC expressed concern about the nation's history of non-performing budgets and the benchmark oil price for this year's budget.

Nigeria's budget for this year, christened, “The budget of change,” puts the benchmark crude oil price at $38 per barrel, but TUC noted that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, basket price, as at the end of 2015, was $32.14 per barrel which is lower than the budget benchmark crude oil price.

Expressing further fears about oil prices, the Congress said: "More worrisome is that

some analysts including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have projected that crude oil will fall to $20 per barrel in 2016. Also Goldman Sachs insists that the fall in crude oil price will be sustained and that oil price will fall to $20 per barrel.

"Anyone who is a keen observer of the events that are shaping the crude oil price will

recognise that we are in for a sustained low crude oil price regime. Accordingly, it is doubtful if the budgeted oil revenue of N820 billion will be realised in 2016.

"If the budgeted oil revenue is not realised, this will negatively impact on the 2016 budget performance".

The group also noted that

the major challenge with budgets in Nigeria was poor implementation, adding that the history of budget performance in the country showed that "while the recurrent expenditure aspect of the budget usually witnessed over performance, the capital expenditure aspect is usually under achieved".

This, the union said, calls for

careful plans to ensure that the targeted N1.8 trillion capital expenditure is indeed achieved in 2016.

According to it, if this is done, it will be the first time in a long while that capital expenditure budget will be fully achieved in Nigeria.

Nigeria loses N57bn to pipeline vandalism, oil theft

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he Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, says the country lost N56.68 billion to pipeline vandalism, crude oil and petroleum products theft between January and November 2015.

The NNPC, in its Monthly Financial and Operations Report for November 2015, stated that in the period under review, a total of 2,447 vandalised points were recorded, resulting in a total loss of 637,550 cubic

metres of crude oil and products valued at N56.68 billon.

According to NNPC, the loss to vandalism and theft, as well as to the decline in the prices of crude oil in the international market had put it at a disadvantaged market position.

In addition, the report said, “Local operational challenges such as refinery capacity below commercial threshold due to prolonged Turn Around Maintenance

(TAM) issues and pipeline vandalism and products losses have also continued to cost the NNPC huge amount of money.

Despite the challenges, the NNPC stated that it would remain resolute in its determination to survive, grow and consolidate on efforts to move the industry forward for the benefit of industry stakeholders and all Nigerians alike.

To this end, the NNPC explained that its leadership had taken bold steps to

address the Corporation key business and operational challenges through the ‘20 fixes initiatives’.

The initiatives, according to the NNPC, simply seek to grow upstream production, resolve the complex issues in downstream operations, increase efficiency and push for improved operational and financial performance among others.

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Chevron to spend $26.6bn on capital projects, exploration SAM IKEOTUONYE

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S oil giant, C h e v r o n Corporation would be spending $26.6 billion this year, according to its recently announced capital and exploratory investment programme for 2016.

Included in the 2016 programme are $4.5 billion of planned expenditures by affiliates. The 2016 budget is 24% lower than total expected investments for 2015.

"Our capital budget will enable us to complete and ramp-up projects under construction, fund high return, short-cycle investments, preserve options for viable long-cycle projects, and ensure safe, reliable operations," said Chairman and CEO John Watson.

"We gain significant

Oil rig flexibility in our capital programme as we complete projects under construction," Watson continued. "Given the near-term price outlook, we are exercising discretion in pacing projects that have not

reached final investment decision."

F o r U p s t r e a m , approximately $9 billion of planned capital spending is for existing base producing assets, which includes shale

and tight resource investments. Roughly $11 billion is related to major capital projects currently u n d e r w a y , a n d approximately $3 billion relates to projects yet to be

sanctioned. Global exploration funding accounts for approximately $1 billion.

Approximately 80 percent of affiliate expenditures are associated with i n v e s t m e n t s b y Tengizchevroil LLP in Kazakhstan and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC in the United States.

Chevron is one of the world's leading integrated energy companies. Through its subsidiaries that conduct business worldwide, the company is involved in virtually every facet of the energy industry.

The company explores for, produces and transports crude oil and natural gas; refines, markets and distributes transportation fuels and lubricants; manufactures and sells petrochemicals and additives; generates power and produces geothermal energy; and develops and deploys technologies that enhance business value in every aspect of the company's operations.

Labour

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Nigerian workers

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he National U n i o n o f Electricity Employees, NUEE, which is pushing for the review of the N18,000 minimum wage being paid to workers in the country to N54,000, says the Federal Government can pay that amount if it could reduce wastage in the sysyem.

NUEE said the review of the "slave wage is long overdue", urging the workers to close ranks and demand for N54,000 as new minimum wage.

Immediate past President of the union, Comrade Mansur Muhammed Musa, argued that it is only when this is done that workers would put in their best.

He noted, “If we can reduce the areas of wastage, we won’t have problems. Go to any of the Government Houses, nobody drives a Golf car; they are all driving jeeps.

“Look at the convoy of governors when they are going from one place to

Govt can pay N54,000 as minimum wage —NUEE President Muhammadu Buhari should demonstrate the change mantra by increasing the minimum wage to N54, 000 so as to eliminate corruption at that level and also give workers a new lease of life another; look at the cost of fuel for their vehicles, personnel, and other allowances; you can go on and on and on.

"We are not even asking them to pay only N18,000 minimum wage now or

sustain the payment of N18,000, we are asking for a review from N18,000 to about N54,000 or N60,000 as minimum wage.”

Comrade Musa said with the upward review, a

worker can manage to go to work, take care of his children, feed them, pay their school fees so, he can now concentrate on the job.

“The worker’s productivity will be better and there won’t be corruption; it will bring down corruption to the lowest level,” he added.

According to him, President Muhammadu Buhari should demonstrate the change mantra by increasing the minimum wage to N54, 000 so as to eliminate corruption at that level and also give workers a new lease of life.

He maintained that without a review in the wage, workers would continue to work like elephants and eat like ants, adding that the dignity of

labour must be respected.

“There should be dignity in labour. So, N18, 000 minimum wage is out of the question. We should come together and demand for N54, 000 minimum wage,” he insisted.

Speaking with journalists in Lafia, Nasarawa State, after the Union’s fifth Quadrennial/10th Delegates Conference, Comrade Musa, dismissed as huge joke threats by some governors not to pay the N18,000 minimum wage because of the financial crunch induced by the fall in oil prices in the international market.

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Proposed PIB, anti-labour, says PENGASSAN

Oil workers KUNLE KALEJAYE

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il workers, under the auspices of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, have condemned the proposed Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, describing it as anti-labour.

The workers vowed to resist plans by the Federal Government to retrench workers, especially employees of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, as a result of the restructuring of the corporation as proposed under the PIB. In a statement, the association said the planned retrenchment of workers was not in tandem with the “change” the Federal Government promised Nigerians, especially in the area of job creation.

Reacting to the official release of the proposed draft institutional and legal frameworks for reforms in

The workers vowed to resist plans by the Federal Government to retrench workers, especially employees of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, as a result of the restructuring of the corporation as proposed under the PIB the oil and gas industry by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, who is also Group Managing Director of the NNPC, PENGASSAN's acting General Secretary, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, said the provisions in the proposed PIB were not only anti-labour but also not in the national interest.

PENGASSAN noted some of the inconsistencies in the draft bill to include • A subtle ploy in Section 87

(Transfer of Staff) to retrench or drop some of the work force transiting to the new Nigeria Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NPRC) with the contentious clause "transfer of certain employees."

• Inability to specify the role or status of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (Management Board) which hitherto is vested with the responsibility of ensuring uniform pricing of

petroleum products in Section 3 of the draft Bill.

• Apart from the uncertainty of the agency’s institutional role, the bill as currently drafted will create job loss as no provision for absorption or transfer of service for the work force is contemplated. * Cessation of employment and transfer of staff should be automatic and guaranteed as provided by the Public Service rules and constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Comrade Okugbawa, therefore, called on the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources to engage the national body of the union as a matter of priority on the anomalies noticed in the draft bill and quickly address the contentious sections, especially as it affects job loss, so as to avert industrial crisis in the industry.

The PENGASSAN scribe, who commended the renewed effort by the minister to rejuvenate the reforms after several failed attempts in the

past, noted that PENGASSAN has always been in support of the reforms in the oil and gas industry but with a caveat that it must be transparently done to make sure that stakeholders in the oil and gas industry are carried along.

He, however, added that PENGASSAN will not support any reforms that jeopardises the welfare of its members, noting that the restructuring of NNPC will be resisted if it negatively affects members of the association.

On the plan to sack half of the current NNPC employees, Comrade Okugbawa said the plan, if carried out, will further c o m p o u n d t h e unemployment situation in the country, adding that there is nothing wrong with the unbundling of the NNPC to bring about greater efficiency and effectiveness.

Labour

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Refinery

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ollowing the latest call by the World Bank for the F e d e r a l Government to do away with the subsidy system on petroleum products in the face of dwindling oil prices, organised labour in the country has kicked against the idea.

The World Bank told President Muhammadu Buhari that the time to remove petroleum subsidy is now, especially in the face of the current fuel crisis across the country showing no sign of abating.

But, the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, the umbrella body for workers, along with the Trade Union Congress, TUC, would hear none of it.

NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, said subsidy is "a constitutional right" of Nigerians living in a depressed economy as he vowed to resist any attempt to remove it.

Wabba said it was unacceptable that Nigerians are forced to go through perennial fuel shortage and the associated hardships especially towards the end of

World Bank, NLC at odds over oil subsidy removal every year.

The Buhari administration has given hints of its intention to remove fuel subsidy, and in what appears to be a prelude to the eventual removal of fuel subsidy, the president made no provision for kerosene

subsidy in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, and Fiscal Strategy Paper, FSP, which he presented to the National Assembly.Accord According to Wabba's NLC, subvention or subsidy

is a major function of the government which avails it the ability to be able to carry out its core functions of provision of welfare facilities to the citizens.

He further maintained that subsidy in any economic

system cannot be ignored but in Nigeria’s context subsidy has been used to do a lot of havoc to the economy. “Therefore, the quagmire will continue even if you allow the system to be controlled by marketers," he insists.

Labour welcomes plan to unbundle NNPC MKPOIKANA UDOMA

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he two labour unions in the oil and gas sector, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, and the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, have described government's plan to unbundle the Nigerian Petroleum Corporation. NNPC, as a move in the right direction.

“We welcome the plan to unbundle the Nigerian

National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) NPC as proposed in the PIB which will be represented to the National Assembly in the first quarter of 2016", President of PENGASSAN, Mr. Francis Johnson, and his NUPENG counterpart, Mr. Igwe Achese, disclosed at the unions' 4th triennial delegates’ conference.

In a 10-point communique issued at the end of the National Executive Council meeting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, NUPENG and

PENGASSAN said they had always been in support of the unbundling of the NNPC to bring about greater effectiveness and efficiency into the system but stressed that the unbundling exercise should not pose a threat to the job security of their members.

Johnson, on his part, revealed that a memo detailing grievances of workers in the oil and gas sector would soon be forwarded to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe

Kachikwu, noting that the proposed PIB as it is in the draft copy is anti-labour and against harmonious industrial relations On his part, Achese explained that debates on the issue of fuel subsidy would die a natural death if stakeholders in the industry come together to find common ground on resolving the problems bedevilled the refineries.

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Falling oil prices, opportunity for better Nigeria, says TUC

Barrels of crude oil MKPOIKANA UDOMA

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he Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, has described the falling crude oil prices in the international market as an opportunity for a better

Nigeria as it presented an opportunity for government to adopt austerity measures.

"We are of the considered view that the falling crude oil price provides a good opportunity for government at all levels to block all leakages in the system such as corruption, inefficiency, oil

theft and the huge cost of governance in Nigeria", TUC said in a 12-point 2016 new year message.

It maintained that the amount of money lost to corruption and inefficiency in Nigeria was more than 40 percent of the annual budget.

"Also, the amount of money lost to oil theft and pipeline vandalism is humongous. By government’s own admission (which is very conservative) about 10 percent of Nigeria’s total crude oil production of about 2.5 million barrels per day is stolen.

"This is almost two and a

NUPENG cautions NNPC against 'casualisation' of workers

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he Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, has cautioned the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, against alleged plan by it to engage casual workers.

The President, NUPENG, Igwe Achese, who disclosed this, said the policy of the NNPC to engage casual workers was against extant labour

laws of the country and should not be considered.

Achese also counselled the corporation against sacking its workers, describing the NNPC workers as the best.

According to him, they were dedicated to their jobs even when they had to work with obsolete equipment in an indecent environment.

There were reports recently that the NNPC plans to lay off 1,100 of its work force as part of planned reforms at

the corporation.

Achese declared that NUPENG would resist the proposed retrenchment and embark on a joint protest with the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, if the two oil unions in the sector were not consulted.

He said the union would not watch its members, who have served the corporation for years,

thrown into unemployment arising from inconsistent policies of the government.

He advised the government to convene a major stakeholders’ meeting to examine the challenges facing the sector, especially the nonpassage of the Petroleum Industry Bill and proffer solutions.

half times the total production of our neighbour, Ghana," the union stated.

It maintained that this period of falling oil price should therefore be an opportunity for government at all levels to truly fight corruption, reduce the inefficiencies in its operations, pass the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, into law and stop the brazen stealing of Nigeria’s crude oil.

TUC urged the Federal Government to engage key stakeholders, including the labour movement, as a measure towards finding credible solutions to the current energy crises.

According to it, such credible solutions must be anchored on growing the local refining capacity such that within the next five years Nigeria would meet locally all her domestic demand for refined petroleum products and commence export within the next seven years.

Solid Mineral

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Mining site

Mining licences: Govt to enforce ‘use it or lose it' doctrine OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI

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ny current holder of mining licence who fails to use it would forfeit such by March next year when the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development would start enforcing the “use it or lose it” doctrine as enshrined in the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act. Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who gave this indication in Abuja, said the country’s solid minerals sector currently accounts for about 0.34 per cent of Gross Domestic Product, GDP, which translates to about N400 billion in value to the economy.

“While this is a significant role, it is smaller than the true potentials of the sector.

In fact, what has been happening is that the sector has more or less been operating sharply below capacity, with many mining operations manned by small scale artisanal miners as opposed to large scale players,” Fayemi said.

He noted the global decline in prices of commodity, but said the good news was that Nigeria has a great deal of domestic demand for industrial minerals and

…Set to take over Ajaokuta, other privatised steel firms metal.

“So we will focus on working with other MDAs to ensure that demand is met by Nigerian miners and processors,” he said.

Fayemi also disclosed that the Federal Government has commenced an audit of its privatised assets, especially Ajaokuta Steel Company, with a view to taking them over in the new year.

He described the parlous condition of the steel rolling mills in Nigeria as shameful

and unacceptable.

T h e p r e v i o u s administration had faced numerous legal constraints in its bid to take over the Ajaokuta Steel Company of Nigeria located in Kogi State, after its agreement with the last concessionaire fell apart.

The Minister said that before the end of the first quarter of 2016, the Federal Government would take over the enterprise and run it profitably.

He said, “It is not only Ajaokuta. We need to disentangle them (steel rolling mills). We will take that as a priority. It is unacceptable to any sane person to abandon such a project. We will partner people who can make it happen.

"This is a sector that can provide a million direct jobs and more indirect jobs. We need to formalise those jobs (informal jobs) so that we can bring them into the sector."

According to Fayemi, Ajaokuta has a 110 megawatt of power plant that can supply the whole of Kogi and Ekiti. We need to fix Ajaokuta and we will fix it,” he promised.

He added that apart from Ajaokuta, the Federal Government is also interested in taking over the operations of the Delta Steel Company, the Nigerian Iron Ore Mining Company, Itapke, and the Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria, ALSCON.

Fayemi pursues 13% derivation for minerals producing communities

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inister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has advocated that the 13 per cent derivation that goes to oil-producing communities in the country should also be extended to the solid minerals sector.

The minister, who revealed this in Abuja, said he would be

initiating a parley with the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission, RMFAC, to make this happen.

“If the oil and gas sector can have it, there is no reason why the solid mineral sector should not have it,” the minister stated as he called for the support of all Nigerians towards the Federal Government's efforts to

turn the solid minerals sector around.

“One thing we can guarantee is that this administration will make choices that will ensure that Nigeria and her partners, domestic and foreign, create a profitable, safe and sustainable solid minerals growth story.

Hold us to account and challenge us,” he added.

Fayemi

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NEITI says billions in revenue missing in solid minerals sector

Solid minerals

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he Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, NEITI, has said that the relevant government agencies responsible for the management of the nation’s solid minerals sector have not been able to trace the whereabouts of billions of naira in revenue that should accrue to the government from the sector.

The acting Executive

Secretary of NEITI, Dr. Orji Ogbonanya Orji, said at an anti-corruption forum in Abuja that the poor synergy among government agencies in the sector, had contributed immensely to the situation.

Orji explained that, “The scoping study of the sector conducted by NEITI revealed that there are abundant solid minerals in commercial quantities across all the states of the federation.

“However, the report observed that there is poor

The scoping study of the sector conducted by NEITI revealed that there are abundant solid minerals in commercial quantities across all the states of the federation

'Govt studying other nations to turn steel sector around'

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he Nigerian government is studying the experiences of successful steel producing countries to chart a way forward for the industry in Nigeria.

"We are studying how these countries succeeded in building several plants many years after we have started our own.

"What did they do right and what we did wrong to find ourselves at the present situation,” Minister of Solid

Minerals Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said after a fact finding inspection tour of facilities at Ajaokuta Steel Company and National Iron Ore Mining Company, Itakpe, Kogi State.

He also said the government has obtained necessary information and facts about Ajaokuta Steel Company and National Iron Ore Mining Company, NIOMCO, as well as the wider steel industry from relevant stakeholders.

This, he said, would enable the government come up with

realistic decision that would enable it turn the steel industry into a viable sector and foundation for future industrialisatio n of the country.

He said that government’s position had become imperative due to dwindling fortunes of the oil sector.

Steel plant

synergy between the various government agencies such as the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and the Mining Cadastral Office (MCO) on tracking and keeping records of revenues on exported solid minerals.”

Orji further noted that, "Despite the fact that gold and barites were mined across the nation, there were no records of any royalty or similar payments made to this effect.”

Insisting on closer checks on the sector’s operations, Orji said: “NEITI therefore calls for a check on the incessant smuggling of solid minerals products out of the country through deliberate creation of boarder markets at strategic boarder points across the country.”

“The activities of foreign nationals operating in the solid m inera ls sect or should also be regulated in line with best practices in the industry."

Freight

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Containers port

ISPS Code: NIMASA re-iterates commitment to 100% compliance

T

he Nigerian M a r i t i m e Administration and Safety A g e n c y , NIMASA, which is constitutionally mandated as the Designated Authority,

for the implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security, ISPS, Code, says ?it is determined to ensure 100 per cent compliance with the provisions of the code in the country.

In a bid to achieve this, the agency had instituted stringent measures against defaulting facilities, having worked hard to attain its present position of over 80 percent compliance with the nation’s 129 facilities,

...Vows to eliminate criminality in maritime sector

A

cting Director General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Mr. Haruna Baba Jauro, says the agency is determined to stamp out the activities of elements bent on disrupting the peace in the maritime industry.

Speaking as a special guest of honour at the

opening ceremony of the Nigerian Army School of Public Relations and Information, NASPRI, media workshop in Lagos, he said NIMASA had committed itself to ensuring the success of the working agreements with the Nigerian military in order to keep the Nigerian maritime environment safe from criminal activities.

Jauro commended the Nigerian military for its

dogged war against insurgency, explaining that he had a first-hand experience of the security challenges of the northeast region being an indigene of Yobe State who had lived in the Maiduguri/Damaturu axis since 1985 until 2012 when he took up the NIMASA assignment.

He said: “We, the civilian populace, our hearts are now better at peace when

NIMASA said in a statement.

NIMASA said facilities shut as a result of this would remain closed until their managers corrected the identified deficiencies and pay a prescribed fine.

The agency carried its war

we noticed the renewed commitment and motivation demonstrated by our armed forces. Peace is needed for every activity to progress. We raise our thumps up for our military seeing what is happening.

And we want to say ‘kudos’ to you.”

The Commandant of NASPRI, Colonel John Agim commended the NIMASA helmsman for his passion, dedication to duty and love for the military and the country.

against facilities that are yet to comply with the code to Port Harcourt and Calabar late last year, after shutting down a facility in Lagos over non-compliance with the code.

It shut two jetties in the Rivers and Cross River states capitals, the affected facilities being Magcobar Manufacturing Limited jetty at Reclamation Road, Port Harcourt and Shoreline Logistics Limited at Old NPA Port, Marina Road, Calabar.

Earlier, NIMASA had shut the Obat Oil and Petroleum Limited jetty at Ibafon, Lagos, for noncompliance with the ISPS code.

The exercise, according to NIMASA, is a continuous one, with a target to achieve 100 percent compliance that will guarantee the security of ships and port facilities especially in a period when terrorist activities have been heightened.

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

Freight

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MAN, IMAN differ on planned introduction of CTN at ports SAM IKEOTUONYE

T

h e Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, MAN, a n d t h e Importers Association of Nigeria, IMAN, have disagreed on the planned introduction of the Cargo Tracking Note, CTN, by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council.

MAN says the introduction of the scheme at the ports will jerk up the cost of cargo clearance, but IMAN believes its coming will be of huge economic and security benefits to the government and the nation.

The CTN had earlier in 2013 been jettisoned by the Federal Government following clamour by manufacturers to that effect.

According to MAN, a reintroduction of the policy would in raising the cost of cargo clearance have negative effect on businesses and by extension the nation's entire economy.

MAN Director General, Remi Ogunmefun, hinted that in spite of the wellintentioned counsel of manufacturers at different fora, including meetings with the shippers' council, the council was determined to see the reintroduction of the policy.

“In the interest of the manufacturing sector and the Nigerian economy, the Nigerian Shippers Council and by extension the Federal Government should jettison the re-introduction of the CTN as currently crafted until the issue of where the cost burden of its implementation will rest,” Ogunmefun said.

He maintained that he was expressing the reservations against CTN since MAN was the voice of manufacturers in the country, stressing that the association was strongly opposed to the reintroduction of CTN in any form.

But in another twist, the Importers Association of Nigeria, IMAN, advised the Federal Government to disregard the opposition against the reintroduction of CTN, saying those who are against the scheme have not taken into account the huge economic and security benefits accruing from it.

According to president of the association, Dr. Osita Okereke, CTN will expose

Nigerian port decades of excess charges by multinational shipping lines and other unscrupulous importers in the country.

He said CTN is good for Nigeria in terms of safety and security, and that its introduction will not have additional economic cost to shippers and end-users.

Those against the scheme he added, have a hidden agenda and were those likely to be involved in trade malpractices through which

In the interest of the manufacturing sector and the Nigerian economy, the Nigerian Shippers Council and by extension the Federal Government should jettison the re-introduction of the CTN as currently crafted until the issue of where the cost burden of its implementation will rest

government was losing huge revenue at the ports.

He stated in a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari that apart from the economic benefits to the government in terms of increased revenue, it would provide relevant information that will help check maritime security threats caused by carriage of cargo through the sea, air and land borders.

34 ships to arrive Nigeria by January 18, says NPA

3

4 ships would be sailing into the nation's ports within the first 18 days of this month, the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, has said.

This is according to the cargo movement programme for the period December 31, 2015 to January 18, 2016 released by the authority.

The NPA said in its daily publication, 'Shipping Position,' obtained by our correspondent, that 10 of the

vessels would be laden with Premium Motor Spirit, also known as petrol.

15 other ships would arrive with containers, while three would bring in general cargoes. NPA also said that six ships would sail in with frozen fish, buckwheat and rice.

Last week, NPA also announced that 14 ships with petroleum products and general cargoes had

arrived the country and were waiting to berth and discharge their cargoes at the Lagos ports.

Nine of those ships arrived with petrol, while others sailed in with base oil, bulk gas, aviation fuel, general cargoes and containers.

Crude oil tanker

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

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Crude oil ship

Why govt cancelled oil, gas pre-shipment tender

T

he recent cancellation of the tendering process for the engagement of pre-shipment inspection and monitoring agents for oil and gas sector was due to the "huge volume of complaints" against the system, the Federal Government has

said.

Director in charge of Press, Ministry of Finance, Mr. Marshall Gundu, said that under public procurement rules, the receipt of a formal petition requires a suspension of the tendering process to allow an investigation.

“The sheer volume of complaints and the wide range

of sources they emanated from had raised a sufficient level of concerns around the process to warrant a full cancellation rather than a suspension.

"This administration stands for transparency and accountability and it is, therefore, important that all procurement and

tendering exercises must be undertaken in accordance with best practices,” a statement quoting the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, said.

The minister said the complaints and a petition pointed to irregularities in the process.

In June 2015, President

Ghana set to commence $1.5bn Tema Port expansion

G

hana will finally commence expansion work on the port at Tema this year, with the project's first phase expected to gulp $1.5 billion over a three-year period.

When completed the port would triple its current traffic of one million twenty-foot equivalent units, TEUs.

Marketing and public relations manager Paul Asare Ansah, who disclosed this, expects the project "to expand the capacity of the port to handle even 3.5 million TEUs, far in excess of the projections that we have made.”

He said Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, GPHA, would, as part of the project, “reclaim about 120 hectares of

land,” emphasising that the port would become efficient “up to about 2040 to 2050,” after the expansion works.

The GPHA and Meridian Ports Services signed the $1.5 billion agreement for the expansion of the port in June last year.

Before Meridian Ports was picked for the project, GPHA carried out detailed

evaluation of the bids over a four-month period last year.

The expansion work on Tema Ports is as a result of GPHA’s effort to keep up the pace of development and expansion of its ports ahead of the rapid population and socioeconomic demands of the country.

Muhammadu Buhari mandated the Federal Ministry of Finance, under the then Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Anastasia Nwoabia, to commence the process of engaging preshipment inspection and monitoring agents.

Upon the approval of the Bureau of Public Procurement, BPP, a selective tendering process was initiated under which 65 companies were selected and invited to bid.

However, since the inception of the process, she said numerous complaints were sent to the Federal Ministry of Finance, suggesting that the method by which the 65 companies were selected was faulty and lacked transparency.

Additionally, a formal petition was received by the BPP making specific allegations about the process.

Motoring

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

40

2017 Bentley Bentayga: First Drive

Our test drive of the world’s most expensive and fastest SUV reveals a powerful machine wrapped in a new level of luxury

What it is: 2017 Bentley Bentayga Price Range: Starting at $229,100 and rocketing up from there Competitors: Upcoming Rolls Royce SUV (nicknamed Project Cullinan),Land Rover Range Rover SV Autobiography Black Alternatives: Porsche Cayenne Turbo S, Land Rover Sport SVR, Mercedes-Benz G-Class, BMW X5M and X6M, a medianpriced home in the United States.

Pros: Bentley looks and refinement, as comfortable driving or being driven; bespoke packages that include the ultrarare nearly $170,000 Breitling Tourbillon, 600 hp, loads of torque and some minor offroading ability.

Cons: A price tag that can quickly reach $300,000.

Would I Buy It With My Own Money: Sure, If I had tens of millions stashed away in some foreign bank account and I was adding the Bentley Bentayga to my growing fleet of luxury vehicles, yep, I’d totally buy it. I would also buy a ski chalet, a cabin in the woods and a beach house with nothing but sand dunes so I could drive it off-road.

F

or years, a Cold War-style stand-off has kept super-luxury automakers from treading on each other’s domain, with ambition limited by resources. That fragile peace has been shattered, and let history show it was Bentley which fired the first missile. The 2016 Bentley Bentayga makes the phrase “Bentley SUV” a credible reality—and gives Land Rover and Mercedes-Benz another competitor from on high.

In just 48 months from final concept to production, Bentley created something special for those who want the Bentley nameplate on an SUV. When Bentley first made the well-coifed foray into the SUV space with the EXP9 F concept in 2012, the idea and design both seemed overly challenging. After focus grouping to make sure their wellheeled buyers wouldn’t jump ship, and some refinements to the package, Bentley decided to go to market with the allnew super-luxe SUV. You may ask, exactly, what does Bentley offer in the Bentayga (pronounced “ben-TAY-guh,” named after a mountain in the Canary Islands) that can justify a price which begins at $229,100? Start with the typical Bentley combination of a brand-new W-12 engine that makes 600 hp and 663 ft. lb. of torque. Each Bentayga takes 130 hours to handcraft; that’s anywhere from three to six times as long as it takes to build a more ordinary automobile. And beyond the luxury cues, Bentley had to engineer an offroader for the first time.

From behind the wheel, the Bentayga proves pure Bentley. The torque is unbelievably linear; when you step on it, the eight-speed automatic ZF transmission ticks off gears as smooth as silk. Concerned about how many polar bears are drowning as a result of your fossil fuel consumption? Fear not, concerned eco-citizen, Bentley has you covered—the redesigned engine can run seamlessly as a six-cylinder under certain conditions making it more fuelefficient. The engine runs in the more efficient mode below 3,000 rpm and the car is in gears three through eight. The Bentayga also has a “sailing” mode: in fifth through eighth gears, when you ease up on the throttle, the torque converter opens and the engine idles until the car detects a speed increase, at which time the transmission re-engages.

In true Bentley style, performance isn’t sacrificed in the face of efficiency; the new Bentayga does 0-60 in just 4.1 CONTINUES ON PAGE 41

Motoring

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

2017 Bentley Bentayga: First Drive

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 40 seconds. And in case you were worried about its handling, it’s also turned more than 400 laps on the Nürburgring, according to Bentley. A top speed of 187 mph makes the Bentayga is the fastest luxury SUV in the world.

While being quick is quite a feat for something that weighs in just shy of 5,500 lbs, keeping that mass level in corners is something of a Herculean task.

For the Bentayga, Bentley created a 48-volt dynamic ride system that helps the tall SUV turn more like its coupes.

Bentley says that the system helps reduce carsickness on sweeping roads by reducing

lateral roll. Because it’s electrical, it can react three times as fast as hydraulic versions often found in other luxury SUVs. While the system keeps the SUV comfortable, there’s a moderately disconcerting suspension feel from both the passenger and driver positions, and it can (and did) make us just a smidge nauseous in both spots.

Despite slightly woozy tummies, adjusting the drive settings in the Bentayga makes the SUV’s road ride almost perfect. In Comfort the ride is cushy and soft; Bentley mode is the Goldilocks of driving mode where steering and ride are evenly matched; and in Sport, the suspension stiffens and steering feel translates more directly to the cabin. If you should desire it, you can mix and match steering feel, throttle response and suspension in Custom.

In each of the driving modes, the amount of steering assist changes as does throttle response and gearing as you move through the modes up to Sport.

Should you dare to steer the Bentayga away from tarmac, the big Bentley will lightly oblige—although one will need to have checked the proper boxes. While many owners will not wish to get their crystal champagne flutes dusty, the Bentayga can motor off-road when equipped with the AllTerrain Specification. In this form, Bentayga gets an additional four driving modes including Mud & Trail; Sand, Dirt & Gravel; Snow and Ice, and Wet Grass for those frosty mornings on the polo grounds. The modes allow the Bentayga to handle mellow to moderate off-road challenges including high-angle wheel articulation and

climbs. The hill descent assist system is controlled by the gas and brake pedals rather than a stalk on the steering wheel, unlike other off-roaders, which does take a little getting used to.

Where Bentley truly shines, however is on the interior. Its expertise in hand-stitched, supple leather interiors, high-shine custom wood dashes and a suite of some of the most comfortable seats in the business (complete with optional massage settings) surpass anything available in other SUVs. The rear seats can be configured in five-person or fourperson layouts. The four-person version gets the exact same seats that envelope the front passengers, and they come with ventilation, heating, recline, and massage settings. All the high-touch points in the car (dash, dials, and

41

interfaces) are exactly the materials they appear to be—wood, knurled metals, and glass.

For Bentayga, Bentley upgraded its touch screen technology and now boasts a new 8-inch center display complete with a 60-GB solid-state hard drive to store media, a greatly improved touchinput response and a new optional rear-seat entertainment system.

The entertainment system consists of two removable Android-based 32-GB tablets connected to the car via Bluetooth.

The tablets can be used to stream music through the car or send a new destination to the navigation system. In addition, you can control rear climate and seating settings using a smartphone-sized tablet that nestles into the back of the center armrest. The curious rear-seater can use the same tablet to see just how fast a driver may be hustling your SUV down that highway.

If the stock options are insufficient, Bentley’s Mulliner group will craft a bespoke edition with custom colors, leathers and extras that can include a $170,000 Breitling Tourbillon.

According to Geoff Dowding, the head of Mulliner, the idea for the Tourbillon came out of a “what if” conversation at a recent auto show.

“Someone said it would be so amazing if we could put a tourbillon into a car–the concept was that this is a watch that needs to wind itself and doesn’t rely on electronics and the Mulliner group’s response was, well let’s try it and the result is what you have now seen in the Bentayga,” said Dowding.

Whether you are roadtripping or off-roading, the Bentayga feels like a luxury suite on wheels that wouldn’t be fazed by a sudden snowstorm, a dash down loose sand dunes or the worst Los Angeles traffic. U.S. deliveries don’t start until next year, and if you want one, you’re going to have to wait. Bentley had anticipated selling only 3,500 annually, and so far demand has well outstripped their original estimates. Now that the super-luxury SUV war has launched—with Mercedes, Lamborghini and potentially even Rolls-Royce joining the fracas—mutually assured opulence seems guaranteed.

Technology

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

Wind turbine electricity generation

Wind turbine

W

ind energy or wind power is extracted from air flow using wind turbines or sails to produce mechanical or electrical energy. Windmills are used for their mechanical power, wind pumps for water pumping, and sails to propel ships. Wind power as an alternative to fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, and uses little land. The net effects on the environment are far less problematic than those of nonrenewable power sources.

Wind farms consist of many individual wind turbines which are connected to the electric power transmission network.

Onshore wind is an inexpensive source of electricity, competitive with or in many places cheaper than coal or gas plants. Offshore wind is steadier and stronger than on land, and offshore farms have less visual impact, but construction and maintenance costs are considerably higher. Small onshore wind farms can feed some energy into the grid or provide electricity to isolated off-grid locations.

Wind power is very consistent from year to year but has significant variation over shorter time scales. It is therefore used in conjunction with other electric power sources to give a reliable supply. As the proportion of wind power in a region increases, a need to upgrade the grid, and a lowered ability to supplant conventional production can occur. Power management techniques such as having excess capacity, geographically distributed turbines, dispatchable backing sources, sufficient hydroelectric power, exporting and importing power to neighboring areas, using vehicle-to-grid strategies or reducing demand when wind production is low, can in many cases overcome these problems. In addition, weather forecasting permits the electricity network to be readied for the predictable variations in production that occur.

As of 2014, Denmark has been generating around 40% of its electricity from wind, and at least 83 other countries around the world are using wind power to supply their electricity grids.

Wind power capacity has expanded to 369,553 MW by

December 2014, and total wind energy production is growing rapidly and has reached around 4% of worldwide electricity usage.

History Wind power has been used as long as humans have put sails into the wind. For more than two millennia wind-powered machines have ground grain and pumped water. Wind power was widely available and not confined to the banks of fastflowing streams, or later, requiring sources of fuel. Windpowered pumps drained the polders of the Netherlands, and in arid regions such as the American mid-west or the Australian outback, wind pumps provided water for live stock and steam engines.

The first windmill used for the production of electricity was built in Scotland in July 1887 by Prof James Blyth of Anderson’s College, Glasgow (the precursor of Strathclyde University). Blyth’s 10 m high, cloth-sailed wind turbine was installed in the garden of his holiday cottage at Marykirk in Kincardineshire and was used to charge accumulators developed by the Frenchman Camille Alphonse Faure, to power the lighting in the cottage, thus making it the first house in the world to have its electricity supplied by wind power. Blyth offered the surplus electricity to the people of Marykirk for lighting the main street, however, they turned down the offer as they thought electricity was “the work of the devil. Although he later built a wind turbine to supply emergency power to the local Lunatic Asylum, Infirmary and Dispensary of Montrose the invention never really caught on as the technology was not considered to be economically viable.

Across the Atlantic, in Cleveland, Ohio a larger and heavily engineered machine was designed and constructed in the winter of 1887–1888 by Charles F. Brush, this was built by his engineering company at his home and operated from 1886 until 1900. The Brush wind turbine had a rotor 17 m (56 foot) in diameter and was mounted on an 18 m (60 foot) tower.

42

Although large by today’s standards, the machine was only rated at 12 kW. The connected dynamo was used either to charge a bank of batteries or to operate up to 100 incandescent light bulbs, three arc lamps, and various motors in Brush’s laboratory.

With the development of electric power, wind power found new applications in lighting buildings remote from centrally-generated power. Throughout the 20th century parallel paths developed small wind stations suitable for farms or residences, and larger utility-scale wind generators that could be connected to electricity grids for remote use of power. Today wind powered generators operate in every size range between tiny stations for battery charging at isolated residences, up to neargigawatt sized offshore wind farms that provide electricity to national electrical networks.

Wind Farms A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used for production of electricity. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines distributed over an extended area, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other purposes. For example, Gansu Wind Farm, the largest wind farm in the world, has several thousand turbines.

A wind farm may also be located offshore.

Almost all large wind turbines have the same design — a horizontal axis wind turbine having an upwind rotor with three blades, attached to a nacelle on top of a tall tubular tower.

In a wind farm, individual t u r b i n e s a r e interconnected with a medium voltage (often 34.5 kV), power collection s y s t e m a n d communications network.

At a substation, this medium-voltage electric current is increased in voltage with a transformer for connection to the high voltage electric power CONTINUES ON PAGE 43

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Wind turbines

Wind turbine electricity generation CONTINUED FROM PAGE 42

transmission system.

Generator characteristics and stability Induction generators, which were often used for wind power projects in the 1980s and 1990s, require reactive power for excitation so substations used in wind-power collection systems include substantial capacitor banks for power factor correction.

Different types of wind turbine generators behave differently during transmission grid disturbances, so extensivemodellingof the dynamic electromechanical characteristics of a new wind farm is required by transmission system operators to ensure predictable stable behaviour during system faults. In particular, induction generators cannot support the system voltage during faults, unlike steam or hydro turbine-driven synchronous generators.

Today these generators aren’t used any more in modern turbines. Instead today most turbines use variable speed generators combined with partial- or full-scale power converter between the turbine generator and the collector system, which generally have more desirable properties for grid interconnection and have Low voltage ride throughcapabilities. Modern concepts use either doubly fed machines with partial-scale converters or squirrel-cage induction generators or synchronous generators (both permanently and electrically excited) with full scale converters.

Transmission systems operators will supply a wind farm developer with a grid code to specify the requirements for interconnection to the transmission grid. This will include power factor, constancy of frequency and dynamic behaviour of the wind farm turbines during a system fault.

Offshore wind power Offshore wind power refers to the construction of wind farms in large bodies of water to generate electricity. These installations can utilize the more frequent and powerful winds that are available in these locations and have less aesthetic impact on the landscape than land based projects. However, the construction and the maintenance costs are considerably higher.

Siemens and Vestas are the leading turbine suppliers for offshore wind power. DONG Energy, Vattenfall and E.ON are the leading offshore operators. As of October 2010, 3.16 GW of offshore wind power capacity was operational, mainly in [41]

Northern Europe. According to BTM Consult, more than 16 GW of additional capacity will be installed before the end of 2014 and the UK and Germany will become the two leading markets. Offshore wind power capacity is expected to reach a total of 75 GW worldwide by 2020, with significant contributions from China and the US. At the end of 2012, 1,662 turbines at 55 offshore wind farms in 10 European countries are generating 18 TWh, which can power almost five million households. As of August 2013 the London Array in the United Kingdom is the largest offshore wind farm in the world at 630 MW. This is followed by Gwynt y Môr (576 MW), also in the UK. [41]

Collection and transmission network In a wind farm, individual turbines are interconnected with a medium voltage (usually 34.5 kV) power collection system and communications network. At a substation, this mediumvoltage electric current is increased in voltage with a transformer for connection to the high voltage electric power transmission system.

A transmission line is required to bring the generated power to (often remote) markets. For an off-shore plant this may require a submarine cable. Construction of a new highvoltage line may be too costly for the wind resource alone, but wind sites may take advantage of lines installed for conventionally fueled generation.

One of the biggest current challenges to wind power grid integration in the United States is the necessity of developing new transmission lines to carry power from wind farms, usually in remote lowly populated states in the middle of the country due to availability of wind, to high load locations, usually on the coasts where population density is higher. The current transmission lines in remote locations were not designed for the transport of large amounts of energy. As transmission lines become longer the losses associated with power transmission increase, as modes of losses at lower lengths are exacerbated and new modes of losses are no longer negligible as the length is increased, making it harder transport large loads over large distances. However, resistance from state and local governments makes it difficult to construct new transmission lines. Multi state power transmission projects are discouraged by states with cheap electricity rates for fear that exporting their cheap power will lead to increased rates. A 2005 energy law gave the Energy Department authority to approve transmission projects states refused to act on, but after an attempt to use this

authority, the Senate declared the department was being overly aggressive in doing so. Another problem is that wind companies find out after the fact that the transmission capacity of a new farm is below the generation capacity, largely because federal utility rules to encourage renewable energy installation allow feeder lines to meet only minimum standards. These are important issues that need to be solved, as when the transmission capacity does not meet the generation capacity, wind farms are forced to produce below their full potential or stop running all together, in a process known as curtailment. While this leads to potential renewable generation left untapped, it prevents possible grid overload or risk to reliable service.

Wind power capacity & production Worldwide there are now over two hundred thousand wind turbines operating, with a total nameplate capacity of 282,482 MW as of end 2012. The European Union alone passed some 100,000 MW nameplate capacity in September 2012, while the United CONTINUES ON PAGE 44

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Wind turbine electricity generation

Wind turbines CONTINUED FROM PAGE 43

States surpassed 50,000 MW in August 2012 and China’s grid connected capacity passed 50,000 MW the same month.

World wind generation capacity more than quadrupled between 2000 and 2006, doubling about every three years. The United States pioneered wind farms and led the world in installed capacity in the 1980s and into the 1990s. In 1997 installed capacity in Germany surpassed the U.S. and led until once again overtaken by the U.S. in 2008. China has been rapidly expanding its wind installations in the late 2000s and passed the U.S. in 2010 to become the world leader. As of 2011, 83 countries around the world were using wind power on a commercial basis Wind power capacity has expanded rapidly to 336 GW in June 2014, and wind energy production was around 4% of total worldwide electricity usage, and growing rapidly The actual amount of electricity that wind is able to generate is calculated by multiplying the nameplate capacity by the capacity factor, which varies according to equipment and location. Estimates of the capacity factors for wind installations are in the range of 35% to 44% Europe accounted for 48% of the world total wind power generation capacity in 2009. In 2010, Spain became Europe’s leading producer of wind energy, achieving 42,976 GWh. Germany held the top spot in Europe in terms of installed capacity, with a total of 27,215 MW as of 31 December 2010.

Source:Observ’ER – Electricity Production From Wind Sources[60]

Growth trends

Worldwide installed wind power capacity forecast (Source: Global Wind Energy Council)

In 2010, more than half of all new wind power was added outside of the traditional markets in Europe and North America. This was largely from new construction in China, which accounted for nearly half the new wind installations (16.5 GW) Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) figures show that 2007 recorded an increase of installed capacity of 20 GW, taking the total installed wind energy capacity to 94 GW, up from 74 GW in 2006. Despite constraints facing supply chains for wind turbines, the annual market for wind continued to increase at an estimated rate of 37%, following 32% growth in 2006. In terms of economic value, the wind energy sector has become one of the important players in the energy markets, with the total value of new generating equipment installed in 2007 reaching €25 billion, or US$36 billion Although the wind power industry was affected by the global financial crisis in 2009 and 2010, a BTM Consult five-year forecast up to 2013 projects substantial growth. Over the past five years the average growth in new installations has been 27.6% each year. In the forecast to 2013 the expected average annual growth rate is 15.7%. More than 200 GW of new wind power capacity could come on line before the end of 2014.

Wind power market penetration is expected to reach 3.35% by 2013 and 8% by 2018.

In 2013 wind power constituted 13% of installed power generation capacity in the EU and generated 7.8% of power used.

Capacity factor Since wind speed is not constant, a wind farm’s annual energy production is never as much as the sum of the generator nameplate ratings multiplied by the total hours in a year. The ratio of actual productivity in a year to this

theoretical maximum is called the capacity factor.

Typical capacity factors are 15–50%; values at the upper end of the range are achieved in favourable sites and are due to wind turbine design improvements.

Online data is available for some locations, and the capacity factor can be calculated from the yearly output. For example, the German nationwide average wind power capacity factor over all of 2012 was just under 17.5% (45867 GW·h/yr / (29.9 GW × 24 × 366) = 0.1746), and the capacity factor for Scottish wind farms averaged 24% between 2008 and 2010.

Unlike fueled generating plants, the capacity factor is affected by several parameters, including the variability of the wind at the site and the size of the generator relative to the turbine’s swept area. A small generator would be cheaper and achieve a higher capacity factor but would produce less electricity (and thus less profit) in high winds.

Conversely, a large generator would cost more but generate little extra power and, depending on the type, may stall out at low wind speed. Thus an optimum capacity factor of around 40–50% would be aimed for.

A 2008 study released by the U.S. Department of Energy noted that the capacity factor of new wind installations was increasing as the technology improves, and projected further improvements for future capacity factors. In 2010, the department estimated the capacity factor of new wind turbines in 2010 to be 45%. The annual average capacity factor for wind generation in the US has varied between 28.1% and 32.3% during the period 2008–2013. [

Community

2016 January, SweetcrudeReports

45

Ogoniland oil spills clean-up

Shell dismisses Amnesty report on Ogoni clean up MKPOIKANA UDOMA

T

h e S h e l l Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, has dismissed the report by Amnesty International, AI, which claimed that the Dutch Company in Nigeria deceived the public to have cleaned up some hydrocarbon contaminated communities in Ogoniland.

Recall that Amnesty International in November, marking the 20th anniversary of the execution of the Ogoni environmental activist and writer, Ken Saro-Wiwa, reported that four spill sites, namely Bomu Manifold, Barabeedom Swamp, Okuluebu and Boobanabe all in Ogoniland, were either not cleaned up or not properly cleaned by Shell.

Shell's General Manager, NCD, Mr. Igo Weli, during

an interactive session with journalists in Port Harcourt, affirmed that the said spill sites were thoroughly cleaned up and duly certified by the Federal Government through the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA. Weli, who described the 2nd November report issued by Amnesty International as misleading, said AI did not include the causes of the later spills, which, according to him, was solely caused by third party interference which led to a recontamination of the Ogoni environment.

"There are some spills from third party interference, that is, theft, illegal bunkering.

"Since 2011 till date, we having been publishing details of our spills, JIV reports and what ever we are doing on our website, which I don't think any other multinationals does that religiously as we do," Weli said.

He continued: "Essentially, the recontamination resulting

Since 2011 till date, we having been publishing details of our spills, JIV reports and what ever we are doing on our website, which I don't think any other multinationals does that religiously as we do from subsequent spills in 2013-2014 are what AI saw and thought that they are parts of the spills from 2009 and claimed that they have not been remediated. So how could SPDC therefore claim that the sites have been certified clean.

"This is the confusion that AI was not able to pull together and our investigation prove otherwise that indeed, the sites and the spills that AI referred to have been under control. " T h e r e c e n t recontamination seen in

the area is as a result of new spills which was sabotage spills between 2013-2014.

And we would have started the remediation of that sites, we started cleaning up oil from the sites but then access was denied; it was only about five weeks ago that we were granted access again and we have started remediation work on those sites".

Also speaking, the Manager of Ogoni-Shell project, Mr. Vincent Nwabueze reiterated that Amnesty International failed to associate the spills to the right cause of the recontamination, but rather

made inference to the oil spill from SPDC which has been remediated and certified.

"On the 19th of November, we found good vegetation on the site. We met community people who dug holes on the site to demonstrate that there are still some hydrocarbon smell and which we believe were from illegal sources.

"In Bomu manifold, the presence of third party interference is very clear; there is a creek where you will see hand-dug pits, hoses and theft points meaning that there are illegal bunkering and theft activities in that area. The hand-dug pits stretches by 50metres connecting from the third-party pipeline to the point which was one of the sites that AI visited and tied it to SPDC. "In Bomu well 11, we had spills in 1970s as a result of explosion and we have since done a remediation certified by the federal government through NOSDRA. We also have a recontamination case between 2012 to 2013, but the spill of 2009 which AI referred to have been remediated".

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IYC decries reduced budget allocation for Amnesty Programme MKPOIKANA UDOMA

T

he Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, worldwide has criticised the reduction in the 2016 budgetary allocation for the Niger Delta Amnesty Programme by the Federal Government.

IYC President, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, in a telephone i n t e r v i e w w i t h SweetcrudeReports, said Federal Government's attitude towards the Niger Delta was vindictive.

Eradiri also criticised what he described as plan by the government to use the deducted allocation from the Presidential Amnesty Programme to explore oil at the Chad Basin, an area that is witnessing gruesome activities of insurgents.

In his words, " President Buhari's attitude towards the Niger Delta has been very vindictive. Look at the 2016 budget, the Amnesty budget which was N63 billion last year has been reduced to N20 billion, diverting the funds to go and look for oil in a crisisstricken Chad Basin.

"The point is that nobody is in the Chad Basin because of the war that is going on there, so how come Buhari is budgeting money for oil exploration in a place where there is no life due to insurgence?" Eradiri said.

The president of the Ijaw youth group also pointed out that the reduction in the budget of the Amnesty Programme by the Federal Government was a

Militants

calculated attempt to create conflict in the Niger Delta region.

He noted that the increase in the Federal Government's revenue has been due to peace in the Niger Delta orchestrated by the

If you cut the budget of the Niger Delta and you are not showing that your administration is prepared to engage the Niger Delta in your government, engage the Niger Delta in development or engage the Niger Delta in the economic activities that will go on in the coming years, it shows clearly that you are vindictive towards the people

'Make The Future Programme' brings benefits to local communities —Okunbor

S

hell Nigeria says its recently launched human and solar-powered football pitch in Lagos is part of initiative from the company's 'Make The Future Programme', bringing benefits to local communities around the world.

Managing Director of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, SPDC, and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Osagie Okunbor, said during the launch

of the pitch in Lagos, that the pitch was refurbished by Shell using the more than 90 underground tiles that capture kinetic energy created by the movement of the players.

Okunbor added that the tiles, which are the invention of a young British entrepreneur and founder of Pavegen, Laurence KemballCook – supported through Shell LiveWire – ?stores kinetic energy combined with the power generated by solar panels to operate the new floodlight.

“This bright energy idea allows the students to play at

night and provides a safer and more secure space at the heart of the community,” Okunbor said.

“Shell makes a significant contribution to energy solution for Nigeria, and we are committed to supporting the Nigeria economy and its people. We need bright ideas. Some of these will come from Shell but naturally, others will come from outside our business.

“So it’s crucial that Shell supports energy entrepreneurs, and we hope that this pitch will

inspire more entrepreneurs and young people to help us to make a smarter energy future.”

The launch of the pitch was done alongside African Entertainer and solar entrepreneur, Akon who is committed to teach young Africans the importance of harnessing the power of Africa’s renewable energy.

Presidential Amnesty Programme.

"If you cut the budget of the Niger Delta and you are not showing that your administration is prepared to engage the Niger Delta in your government, engage the Niger Delta in development or engage the Niger Delta in the economic activities that will go on in the coming years, it shows clearly that you are vindictive towards the people," he alleged.

"What is the budget for NDDC and the Niger Delta Ministry? He has already started cutting thereby showing the people that he is not prepared to alleviate the region; forgetting that the cost of running Nigeria is hinged on a peaceful Niger Delta. " T h e a m n e s t y programme is the reason that Nigeria has a lot of prospect in the oil and gas sector.

"What we are seeing is a calculated attempt to create a condition in the region where there will be conflict and which will eventually affects the so called budget of change," he said.

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E-mail: johniyene@yahoo.com

I write for Nigerians

I

Ogoni: demonstrators

UNEP Report: Ogoni poised for 'road demonstrations' MKPOIKANA UDOMA

T

he people of Ogoni would be trooping out for r o a d demonstrations across the country early February if the Federal Government failed to c o m m e n c e t h e implementation of the environmental impact assessment report of the U n i t e d N a t i o n s Environment Programme, UNEP, on Ogoniland.

The Ogoni recently, during the 23rd Ogoni Day Anniversary held at Bori, Rivers State, issued a 30-day ultimatum to the government to commence the implementation of the report, failing which the people would resort to demonstrations.

In an address read by the President of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, MOSOP, Mr. Legborsi Pyagbara decried the continuous ecological degradation, economic and political marginalisation of the Ogonis despite their huge contribution to the nation's revenue through crude oil.

Pyagbara explained that

the patience of the Ogoni people was fast running out and urged the the government to open a dialogue with the people concerning the Ogoni Bill of Rights which, according to him, has been in the National Assembly for over two decades.

He also vowed to resist any attempt to truncate the true essence of the UNEP report on Ogoniland by some unscrupulous Ogoni politicians.

He said: “As part of Ogoni Project 2015, we launched a multifaceted campaign involving protests, letter writing campaigns, media advocacy and international a d v o c a c y o n t h e implementation of the UNEP Report.

“We commend the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government for the renewed interest in the UNEP report and his approval of the fast track actions for the implementation of the report.

This announcement was indeed a welcome relief to the anxiety that Ogoni people had endured since the report was released in August 2011.

“However, we are seizing this opportunity to remind the government that the unusual delay for the take-off of the project is becoming

unbearable and indeed tasking our patience. We urge the Federal Government to, without further delay, bring into being the announced structures and the roadmap for the implementation of the report that respects the sensibilities of the communities. The ongoing delay on the part of the government will continue to be seen as an act of genocide being committed against the Ogoni people.

“It is in this context that we are announcing that our series of non-violent actions will soon commence in the face of government’s continuing failure to announce the structures needed for the take-off of the implementation of the UNEP report.

“Beyond the issue of the clean-up of Ogoniland, the report also recommended the declaration of the Ogoni wetlands by the government of Nigeria as a Ramsaar Site. The government is yet to do so.

The report recommended the reform of the environment regime and policies in the country and to enthrone a new environmental ethic. This is yet to be addressed".

write for you, Sourah the tailor; stitch by stitch you have built a life that is, unfortunately, only an existence.

I write for you, Ebuka the farmer; alas, the soil and your hoe continue to have conflicting aspirations to tour consternation.

I write for you, Boma the boatman; with fuels and lubricants drying up, the future looks bleak indeed.

I write for you, Ambassador Spiff the essayist; notches away from the threshold of a glorious career, beautiful inspirations threaten to be replaced by clouds of chaos; I weep for you Soyinka, the poet, for I fear that Nigeria’s fortunes have assumed the depravity of your Abiku.

I hurt for you, Soala the tax payer, to see you drive your rickety taxity on wheels wobbled by incongruity.

I pine for you, Njoku the comedian, for your audience, pelted by hunger have lost every appreciation for humour.

I write for you Nigerians who have continued to invest hope in the face of hopelessness. Your courage as a people commends itself beyond attributes that are human. You laugh at yourselves when you find you have taken yourselves too seriously.

You laugh and laugh and laugh at pain, treachery, mischief, the plunder of the commonwealth, the mismanagement of the commune, when men scramble at petrol filling stations to procure their fuels and at all the tragic occurrences emanating from the failings of our leaders. At some point the laughter of Nigerians got so indiscriminate that we won the commendable condemnation of a group of satirists as “the happiest people on earth.” And that made us laugh the harder.

Yes, I write for you.

But I write not to enter solidarity with your apathy.

I write not to commend you for your lethargic acceptance of your fates.

I write to share in the blame of our collective silence.

I write to protest our reduction to conditions disavowed by human societies; I write to stir Nigerians into aspiring for living conditions as ratified within the comity of humans; to demand an accounting from our leaders; to sensitise us to the foolishness of envying the lifestyles of those who have taken advantage of and undermined the commonwealth; to remind us that we have a right to act in protest against our representatives even before the next set of elections; that we do not have to accept our fates just like the Tunisian fruit seller, Mohamed Bouazizi refused to accept his; that our silence and tolerance are weaknesses that breed injustice, arbitrariness, the reckless handling of the commonwealth and the betrayal of our collective hope to live in the manner we have a right to expect by virtue of the resources available to us.

Yes, I must remind you that although our living conditions below the Sahara are far worse than in North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, Bouazizi’s self-immolation did not ignite us into action.

I write to notify us that when we neglect to act against a system that seeks to re-define our humanity we fail the children for whom we spend millions educating, years gathering inheritance and for whom like religious pilgrims and committed communicants, we kneel, lie, genuflect, stand, splay our hands, knock our temples and suspend the natural nourishment of our bodies in perpetual prayers demanding action from God against our fellow men while we refuse to act.

How can we not see the contradiction inherent in our years of labour and sacrifice and prayers, simple prayers invoked to validate years of sacrifices, stocking and stacking? Instead of wishful prayers we can demand our own Bill of Rights, our version of the Magna Carter, a constitutional document that prohibits the trustees, that is, the men and women who govern us to tamper or tinker with universal values.

I write for you, my fellow Nigerians.

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