Sweetcrude august edition by Sweetcrude reports

Finance

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

SAM IKEOTUONYE

S oil giants ExxonMobil Corporation and Chevron Corporation have been hard hit by the sharp decline in oil prices during the year. ExxonMobil Corporation has reported second quarter 2015 earnings of $4.2 billion, compared with $8.8 billion a year earlier while at Chevron Corporation, earnings are at $571 million for the same second quarter 2015, much lower than earnings of $5.7 billion in the 2014 second quarter. “Second quarter financial results were weak, reflecting a crude price decline of nearly 50 percent from a year ago. Our Upstream businesses were particularly hard hit, as lower prices reduced revenues and triggered impairments and other charges," Chevron chairman and CEO John Watson said as he reflected on the sharp decline in the company's income. But Watson's counterpart at ExxonMobil appeared upbeat despite the poor earnings, a development analysts trace to the fact that his company did beat top-line revenue expectations. “We are delivering on our investment and operating commitments across ExxonMobil’s integrated portfolio,” Rex W. Tillerson, ExxonMobil chairman and CEO said of the company's performance. “Our quarterly results reflect the disparate impacts of the current c o m m o d i t y p r i c e environment, but also demonstrate the strength of our sound operations, superior project execution capabilities, as well as continued discipline in capital and expense management.” ExxonMobil's downstream and chemical segment earnings increased significantly from the second quarter of 2014, driven, according to the company, by higher margins, continued strong demand, and the quality of the company’s product and asset mix. It produced 4 million oilequivalent barrels per day, an increase of 139,000 barrels per day, or 3.6 percent. Liquids volumes of 2.3 million barrels per day increased 11.9 percent, benefiting from new developments in Angola, Canada, Indonesia and the United States. During the quarter, the

ExxonMobil headquarters in Lagos

Q2: ExxonMobil, Chevron see massive decline in earnings corporation distributed $4.1 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and share purchases to reduce shares outstanding, according to its quarterly report available to SweetcrudeReports. Upstream earnings were $2 billion in the second quarter of 2015, down $5.9 billion from the second quarter of 2014. Lower liquids and gas realisations decreased earnings by $4.5 billion, while volume effects increased earnings by $330 million

d r i v e n b y n e w developments. All other items decreased earnings by $1.7 billion, including the one-time $260 million deferred income tax impact related to the tax rate increase in Alberta, Canada, and the absence of prior year asset management gains. On an oil-equivalent basis, production increased 3.6 percent from the second quarter of 2014. Liquids production totalled 2.3

million barrels per day, up 243,000 barrels per day, with project ramp-up and entitlement effects partly offset by field decline. Natural gas production was 10.1 billion cubic feet per day, down 622 million cubic feet per day from 2014 due to regulatory restrictions in the Netherlands. Project volumes and entitlement effects offset field decline Downstream earnings were $1.5 billion, up $795 million from the second

CBN to discipline forex traffickers

he Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, will collaborate with relevant agencies to discipline anybody who is involved in foreign currency trafficking across Nigerian borders. In a statement issued in Abuja, signed by Mr Ibrahim Mu’azu, the Director of Corporate

Communications, the CBN noted with concern the increasing trafficking of huge sums of foreign currency across our borders. "This practice is in defiance of the extant dictates of Section 2, Subsection 3 to Sub-section 5 of the amended Money Laundering Prohibition Act

of 2011," the statement said, as it insisted that transportation of cash or negotiable instruments in excess of 10,000 dollars or its equivalent by individuals in or out of the country should be declared to the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS. It added that the NCS should report any declaration made pursuant

quarter of 2014. Stronger margins increased earnings by $1.1 billion. Volume and mix effects decreased earnings by $80 million. All other items, including higher maintenance expenses, decreased earnings by $230 million. Petroleum product sales of 5.7 million barrels per day were 104,000 barrels per day lower than the prior year's second quarter.

to Sub-section 3 to CBN. It also said anybody that failed to make appropriate declaration might forfeit the undeclared funds or negotiable instruments or risk imprisonment of not less than two years or to both. "The CBN will investigate the source of fund and seek justification for the possession of such volume of cash to ensure that no money laundering activity was involved.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Finance

Nigeria’s oil revenue to drop by $36bn this year —IMF OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI with agency reports

igeria’s oil earnings will drop to $52 billion this year, from $88 billion it was the previous year, the International Monetary Fund, IMF, has said. According to the Fund's Article IV Consultation Staff Report released recently, this represents a reduction of six percentage points in the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP, and would reduce its external current account balance as well as international reserves. The report added that Nigeria’s outlook for growth is expected to moderate as the economy adjusts to permanently lower oil prices. The international lender however said the government has expressed its determination to implement appropriate measures to manage risks. “They agreed that the oil price shock is significant and, at least in part, permanent, but saw a smaller effect on economic activity, owing to measures targeted at sectors critical for growth (agriculture, power, small enterprises) and the impact of remittances. They noted that rising food selfsufficiency would limit the pass-through to inflation and activity in housing construction would continue,” it said. According to the IMF, fiscal oil revenues are projected at 3.4 per cent of GDP, down from 5.8 per cent last year, limiting fiscal spending. It said aggregate demand shocks could lower growth by about 1.5 percentage point from last year to 4.3 per cent this year. IMF added that the overall impact on non-oil sector GDP will come from cuts in public investment and a reduction in real purchasing power of oil receipts. It noted that, "The depreciation of the local currency will add to inflation, reflecting the pass-through of higher domestic prices for imports. However, the effect is likely to be contained, in part due to lower food prices from increased local production of staple food crops." The IMF said the outlook is compromised by low fiscal

and external buffers, which have reduced the capacity to absorb shocks relative to the experience of the 2008-09 financial crisis. IMF said although small, Nigeria’s exports to Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, countries have been increasing, from $1 billion in 1990 to about $6 billion in 2013. It said the implementation in January of the Common External Tariffs, CET, for ECOWAS member countries is expected to reduce incentives for informal trade and simplify customs

The international lender however said the government has expressed its determination to implement appropriate measures to manage risks procedures, potentially increasing recorded trade volumes. “Moreover, the slowdown in Nigeria will adversely

affect informal exports to Nigeria. Anecdotal evidence indicates that goods that are subject to import restrictions in Nigeria have become key

export goods for neighboring countries. “Those informal exports to Nigeria are important sources of income for some neighboring countries and outward spillovers may be non trivial,” it said. It noted that growing crossborder activity of Nigerianbased banks has increased the scope for spill-overs through financial channels, along with regulatory and supervisory challenges.

Oil refinery

he sharp decline in crude oil prices this year forced the National Petroleum Investment Management Services, NAPIMS, the investment arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, to slash Joint Venture, JV, projects funding by 40 percent in the first quarter of this year,

Nigeria's JV funding down by 40% SweetcrudeReports investigations have shown. ?The 40 percent slash in budget has led to the stalling and suspension of several ongoing projects while new opportunities have been deferred or outrightly cancelled.

The budget slash has also led to a significant drop in the Nigerian rig count, from 51 in September 2013 to 27 in June 2015 - a 47 percent reduction. The drop in rig count has had a negative effect on the manufacturing and services

businesses, affecting such equipment, items and services as drilling fluids and chemicals, drill bits, casing services, and marine vessels to name a few.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Finance

Govt's debt to power companies reaches N31bn ...Military owes 50% of all debts

Oando fuel station

OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI Electric bulb

ebts owed to six electricity Distribution Companies, Discos, in unpaid electricity bills by Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, of the Federal Government and some state governments since November 2013 may have hit N31 billion, investigation has revealed. The Nigerian Electricity Bulk Trading Company, NBET, had given the 11 Discos deadline to pay their balance for power supply by the generation and transmission companies in the last three months. But the Discos had said they are also owed huge sums by customers. It was gathered that the Discos have been under intense pressure following the crippling debt owed by consumers, especially government agencies, since the core investors took charge of the assets in November 2013. Some of the Discos decried the rising debt, lamenting that their resolve to inject funds into and improve the network is being threatened by the debts.? Checks on the debt profiles of electricity customers across six Discos, however, revealed that the Ministry of

Defence, including military formations and the paramilitary alone owe over N15.5 billion to some of the power companies. Some of the Discos affected include Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, AEDC, Kaduna Electric, KE, Kano Electricity Distribution Company, KEDC, and Eko Electricity Distribution Company, EKEDC. Others are Benin Electricity Distribution Company, BEDC, and Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, IBEDC. An advocacy and Research

expert, Sunday Oduntan, who decried the huge debt profile of growing firms said: “What President Muhammadu Buhari promised voters is that there will be a change. He needs to talk to his people from the State House to the state governments to pay their bills. There are provisions for utilities in the budget of agencies, since they are not paying the bills, what then happens to the money?” A breakdown of the debts showed that Abuja Disco is

owed N7.1bn with the Ministry of Defence owing a larger chunk of N3.6bn. The military again is the highest debtor as shown in Kaduna Electric’s debt books with over N5.7bn, while the Police, other paramilitary outfits and state MDAs owe over N980m. Its entire debt from public institutions stands at N6.7bn. Ibadan Disco is owed N5.2bn by the federal and state MDAs. While the military owes N3.9bn, others owe the balance of N1.2bn. Meanwhile, Kano Disco is

owed over N860m with the state and other MDAs owing N560m and military formations N260m. Eko Disco is owed N2.3bn with the Police, federal and the state government owing over N400m, while military formations owe N1.9bn. Details of debts being owed the other five Discos comprising Port Harcourt, Ikeja, Enugu, Yola and Jos are yet to be accessed. However, it could see the debt toll rise significantly.

48% decline in oil prices not transitory —CBN

he Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has defended its decision to stop the use of foreign exchange for the importation of certain goods as it maintained that the exchange rate is simply a price that is essentially determined by the forces of supply and demand. "The CBN believes that the 48 per cent decline in oil prices may not be transitory and made bold policy changes including

closure of the subsidised Official FX Window. "This resulted in 22 per cent depreciation in the currency, the Naira. "This is because the Nigerian economy is heavily dependent on imports and the exchange rate pass-through to inflation is high, we believe that this adjustment is optimal at this time," the Bank said in a statement issued in Abuja. It stated that many other

issues had to be considered. "Adjustments to a sharp decline in supply of US Dollars cannot all be borne by an indeterminate depreciation, without considering the full impact on the Nigerian economy. "The demand side also has to be considered, not just in response to the pressure on the Naira, but as an opportunity to change the economy’s structure, resuscitate local manufacturing, and expand

job creation for citizens", it added. According to the statement, CBN believes that Nigeria cannot attain its full potential by importing anything and everything, saying the trend has weakened the operating capacities of Nigeria’s industries. It said that now was a good opportunity to begin to reverse the trend of importation.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Finance

It’s not our duty to remit cash into Federation Account —NLNG OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI

…Pays $1.6bn to govt as income tax

he Nigeria L i q u e f i e d Natural Gas Limited, NLNG, has faulted the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative’s claim that it has not remitted about $11.6 billion (N2.32 trillion) to the Federation Account. The company, in a statement obtained by our correspondent in Abuja, said its dividends were paid to its shareholders, which include the Federal Government, represented in the shareholders’ structure by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, with 49 per cent share; Shell Gas BV, SGBV, with 25.6 per cent; Total LNG Nigeria Limited, with 15 per cent; and Eni International (10.4 per cent). NLNG said the NNPC received the dividends on the Federal Government’s behalf and should remit to the Federation Account. A statement signed by General Manager, External Relations, Kudo Eresia-Eke, on the issue said: “NLNG remains responsible to its shareholders and pays dividends to them according to the shareholding structure. “NLNG also wishes to emphasise that it continues to conduct all its businesses in full compliance with the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and existing tax regulations, championing compliance and meeting all its applicable tax obligations to federal, state and local government". A case in point, the statement noted, is NLNG’s payment of $1.6 billion to the Federal Government recently as Company Income Tax and Education Tax for 2014 financial year.

CBN headoffice, A buja

It added that, “In line with our vision to help build a better Nigeria, NLNG supports the principles and objectives of NEITI, including the promotion of transparency in payments by extractive industry companies to g o v e r n m e n t s a n d government-linked entities. “Nigeria LNG remains the most significant arrow-head of the Federal Government’s

continuing efforts to eliminate gas flaring and derive value from the country’s 187 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves.” NLNG recently revealed that it generated some $85 billion from exports of liquefied natural gas, LNG, since its inception 15 years ago. It has also paid billions of dollars to the state in tax,

according to the managing director of the company, Mr. Babs Omotowa. "For us, it has been a success story. Between 1999 when we came on stream and now, we have realised some 85 billion dollars from exports of liquefied natural gas to buyers in Europe, America and Asia," chief executive officer of the company, Omotowa told

reporters. He said the company, which was set up to harness Nigeria's vast natural gas resources and produce liquefied natural gas for export, has also paid billions of dollars to the state in tax. "Just a few days ago, we paid 1.6 billion dollars to the government as tax and this will go a long way to assist the new government in solving some of its problems," he added.

ConocoPhillips to cut deepwater exploration spend

S company ConocoPhil lips plans to reduce deepwater e x p l o r a t i o n spending with most of the cuts coming in Gulf of Mexico operations. “We have achieved some notable

ConocoPhillips facility

success in our deepwater program, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico Lower Tertiary play and offshore Senegal,” said Ryan Lance, chairman and chief executive officer. “We are committed to delivering the value we have created from these discoveries, while reducing the number of

deepwater exploratory prospects we drill in the future.” “Since the start of the oil and gas price downturn last year, we have moved decisively to position ConocoPhillips for lower, more volatile prices by exercising capital flexibility and reducing operating costs

across our business,” Lance said. The plan to terminate ConocoPhillips’ contract for the drillship Ensco DS9 is part of this overall spending cut. The discussion came during ConocoPhillips' quarterly dividend announcement.

Labour

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

NNPC Towers, Abuja

he Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of N i g e r i a , PENGASSAN, has urged the Federal Government to deal with the corruption in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, system, rather than scrap it as recently suggested by Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai. The Acting General Secretary of the association, Lumumba Okugbawa, who made the assertion, said instead of calling for NNPC to be killed, El-Rufai should have called for the insulation of the corporation from undue political interference. He said, “Let the government deal with the corruption in the system, but not to ‘throw away the baby with the bath water. ”If you look at the NNPC as it is today, it has been politicised, with most of its decisions and operations being influenced by political motives and at times, executive fiat. The corporation is so much tied to the apron of the political office holders, but not the technocrats that are at the helm of the corporation’s affairs.” Okugbawa noted that corruption was not peculiar to the NNPC as mentioned by the governor, but a problem hindering the country’s growth as well as the oil and gas sector

Kill corruption in NNPC, not scrap the company —Labour According to him, the NNPC, which was created by an Act of Parliament in 1977, is made up of the holding office, subsidiaries and service units. He lamented that the corporation had been subjected to undue political

interference, which, he said, hindered its autonomy for effective running and competitiveness in the last six years. Some of the areas of interference listed by Okugbawa include

NNPC should be a national oil corporation that can compete favourably globally as Saudi Aramco of Saudi Arabia, Petronas of Malaysia, Petrobras of Brazil and Statoil of Norway etc., given the opportunities and market potential

appointment and removal of the group managing director (GMD), group executive directors, GED, and managing directors of NNPC subsidiaries by the President; and limited financial autonomy for its operations. He noted that, “NNPC should be a national oil corporation that can compete favourably globally as Saudi Aramco of Saudi Arabia, Petronas of Malaysia, Petrobras of Brazil and Statoil of Norway etc., given the opportunities and market potential. “If we take a look at NNPC contemporaries in the world, such as Saudi Aramco, Petrobras, Petronas and Statoil, we will notice that

their holding governments give those companies freedom to growth and expansion of the companies to the great benefits of the citizenry and their respective governments." He added that, “Operations and administration of NNPC come under several masters and conflicting instructions, some of which defy the national objectives and aspirations for setting up the corporation and its subsidiaries. “Appointment, removal and/or transfer of the heads and staff of the corporation and its subsidiaries are often executed by fiat in the manner that undermines the extant national laws, and the NNPC Act.”

PTDF laments lack of jobs for oil professionals

he Petroleum T e c h n o l o g y Development Fund, PTDF, has lamented the absence of jobs for oil and gas industry professionals trained at home and abroad for the purpose of bringing needed capacity to the nation's oil and gas sector. Executive Secretary of the

Fund, Mr. Femi Ajayi, noted in Abuja that after excelling in their respective areas of studies, coming from rigorous and world class training in both local and international institutions, majority of the professionals, especially scholars of the PTDF scholarship scheme, have

ended up without jobs. Ajayi, who spoke at the 2012/2013 annual oil and gas research grant competition in Abuja, therefore called on the Federal Government to direct local and international oil companies in the country to employ the professionals. “The issue is not just

competence and capability, there is also the need for political will among the IOCs and the government. We cannot rely on the goodwill of the IOCs when it comes to the issue of employing of our people; they have to be compelled to do it," the PTDF executive secretary stated.

Labour

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

NUPENG, PENGASSAN threaten strike over Agip, Arco face-off

Agip fuel station MKPOIKANA UDOMA

he Port Harcourt Zone of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, are threatening to embark on industrial action as a result of the prolonged face-off between the Nigerian Agip Oil Company, NAOC, and its contractor, Arco Petroleum Nigeria Plc. Arco had filed a suit at the Federal High Court against Agip, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, ConocoPhillips Petroleum Nigeria Limited and the National Petroleum

Investment Management Services, NAPIMS - a subsidiary of NNPC - asking the court to determine whether it is not entitled, being a Nigerian company, to the exclusive right to be considered and granted contract, including any extension of the duration of such contract. The firm is asking the court to determine in view of the provision of section 3 subsections (2) and (3) of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, if, having demonstrated ownership of equipment, Nigerian personnel and capacity to execute the task of performing the contract for

the maintenance service of rotating equipment at the Nigerian Agip Oil Company gas plants at OB/OB, Ebocha and Kwale, it is not entitled to the exclusive right to be considered and granted such contract and an extention in its

The Unions hereby draw the attention of both the Federal and Rivers State governments to the plight of the Arco workers, whose entitlements of over nine years are at stake, if NAOC management carries out this inhuman order

Shell to cut 6,500 jobs

il giant Royal Dutch Shell has announced it is to shed 6,500 jobs as part of cost-cutting plans as it seeks to counter falling oil prices. The job cuts – to its employee base of around 94,000 people – comprise part of its $4 billion reduction in operating costs. Shell also said it was cutting investment by $7 billion to about $30 billion this year, down

20% from 2014. The firm announced profits of $3.4 billion in the three months to 30 June, a 35% decrease compared with last year. Shell said that it was “planning for a prolonged downturn” in oil prices. The price of oil is currently about $53 a barrel, sharply down from about $110 a barrel a year ago. Chief executive Ben van Beurden said: “We have to be resilient in a world where oil prices remain low for some

duration. The two unions, in a joint press statement issued in Port Harcourt, alleged that NAOC has ordered employs of Arco to vacate its facilities at OB/OB, Ebocha and Kwale to pave way for a new contractor (Plantgeria Limited) to take over the

time, whilst keeping an eye on recovery. “We’re taking a prudent approach, pulling on powerful financial levers to manage through this downturn, always making sure we have the capacity to pay attractive dividends for shareholders.” It also announced that it was selling a 33% stake in its Japanese business, Showa, to petrochemical group Idemitsu for about $1.4 billion. Shell said it had seen $20

billion of asset sales in 2014 and 2015, and it expected to see $30 billion in sales between 2016 and 2018. “Today’s oil price downturn could last for several years, and Shell’s planning assumptions reflect today’s market realities,” the company said. “The company has to be resilient in today’s oil price environment, even though we see the potential for a return to a $70-$90 oil price band in the medium term.”

maintenance of the facilities, thereby violating an order of the Federal High Court, which barred NAOC from taking any action till October 26, 2015, when the case will come up for hearing. The statement, jointly signed by the Zonal Chairman of NUPENG, Comrade Godwin Eruba, and h i s P E N G A S S A N counterpart, Comrade Azubuike M. Azubuike, called for the immediate payment of the overhaul allowance of Arco workers, which accumulated between 2007 and 2012 at OB/OB, Ebeocha and Kwale gas plants. According to the statement, “ N U P E N G a n d PENGASSAN strongly condemn the quit order given to Arco Petroleum Nigeria Plc by NAOC to vacate their plants at OB/OB, Ebocha and Kwale with immediate effect to pave the way for Plantgeria Nigeria Limited, to take over the plant. The Unions hereby make reference to a subsisting Federal High Court injunction barring NAOC from taking any action till October 26, 2015 when the case is to come up for hearing." “The Unions hereby draw the attention of both the Federal and Rivers State governments to the plight of the Arco workers, whose entitlements of over nine years are at stake, if NAOC management carries out this inhuman order.”

Solid Mineral

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Local miners

he Federal Government will no longer t o l e r a t e activities of illegal miners in the county, President Muhammadu Buhari has said. The president warned that the Federal Government will come down hard on illegal mining and other improper activities inhibiting the growth of Nigeria’s solid minerals sector. Buhari, who issued the warning after receiving a briefing from top officials of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development led by Permanent Secretary, Baba Umar Farouk, noted his dismay at the irresponsible attitude to issues related to mining regulation in the country. Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and

Govt won't tolerate illegal mining —Buhari Publicity, Garba Shehu, confirmed the development in a statement released after the briefing by ministry officials. According to the President, the mines and steel sector was very important for diversification of the economy, and expressed displeasure at Farouk’s report that the sector had been overrun by illegal miners. “This is one of the most demoralising briefs I have received. The biggest threat to this country besides the Boko Haram is unemployment and the mining sector is key to employment creation.

This is one of the most demoralising briefs I have received. The biggest threat to this country besides the Boko Haram is unemployment and the mining sector is key to employment creation “We cannot be held back on such a strategic industry that can give us much needed jobs and

promote economic growth," he said. The President decried the wayward manner with which

BoI boosts solid minerals sector with N24.6bn loan OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI with agency reports

he Bank of Industry, BoI, has put its total loan portfolio in the solid minerals sector of the economy at N24.6 billion. Its Managing Director, Mr. Rasheed Olaoluwa, said this in Abuja at the opening session of the bank’s one-day solid minerals sensitisation forum tagged: Investment Opportunities in the Solid Minerals Sector.

He said the bank decided to improve funding to the sector due to the challenges facing the economy following the decline in revenue from the oil glut in the international market. He said the sensitisation was part of measures by the bank to stimulate private sector investment into the solid minerals sector. According to Olaoluwa, while other African countries took advantage of the huge potentials in the solid minerals sector which accounted for over 70 per cent

of their revenues, Nigeria had yet to benefit from the sector. He said there were about 44 solid minerals in the country that were identified by the Federal Government that would generate investments, create jobs and reduce the level of poverty in the country. “Before independence, Nigeria had a solid mining industry. Later wards, the economy started relying extensively on petroleum from the 1970s.

“The dwindling oil revenue in recent times has made solid minerals a tool for diversification and this can be leveraged for economic growth as recommended by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in its 2013 report. “The mining sector is the gold mine for many African countries. Zambia derives more than 70 per cent of its revenue from copper, Ghana from gold, and Namibia from uranium.”

affairs of government have been conducted, especially in ministries and parastatals, noting that public servants have not been interested in providing solutions to the myriads of problems facing the government. “There must be more seriousness in running this country and we are determined to instill that seriousness,” the president said. The Permanent Secretary had told the President that Nigeria’s mining sector has been infiltrated by "illegal aliens" who carry out unlawful mining activities in the country. The solid mines and steel sectors have remained some of the least developed sectors despite the country being endowed with numerous mineral resources at a commercial level and despite millions of dollars in support from organisations like the World Bank. There is virtually little organized or mid-level professional mining taking place anywhere in the country, giving room for illegal and small-scale or artisanal mining, with several 'briefcase' merchants, mostly Asians, invading the land to cart away tons of mineral resources including precious stones.

Freight

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Nigeria's tanker ban could hurt near-term oil revenue â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Report

Crude oil tanker OSCARLINE ONWUEMENYI

i g e r i a n government's recent ban of nearly 100 oil tankers from the country's waters has sown confusion in the operations of Africa's largest crude exporter. There are also fears that the decision could backfire leading to sharp reduction in near-term oil revenue for the cash-strapped new government. The ban which reportedly came directly from President Muhammadu Buhari's office appeared to be part of a campaign pledge to crack down on oil industry corruption and theft. But the disarray it has caused, according to observers, even three weeks on, underscores the problems Buhari faces in trying, as an oil industry outsider, to tackle problems in the sector head on. "It's a mess," one trader said of the ban. "Nobody knows anything concrete." Buhari has kept the oil portfolio for himself for now, and said that he would not

appoint m inisters until September. Last month, he announced plans to cleave state oil firm Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, in two, though details are vague, and sacked the chiefs of the Navy

oil revenue more than the thieves it aims to stop. "In the end, it's going to make a much bigger problem for Nigeria than tanker owners," said Ehsan Ul-Haq, senior market consultant with KBC

The theft comes at various points - siphoned from pipelines, diverted from loaded vessels and via paper accounting fraud and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA - agencies that would help enforce the ban. He has also appointed a new head for the NNPC as he sacked former group managing director of the NNPC, Joseph Dawha, and his entire eight executive directors. As part of the planned restructuring of the corporation, he has also pruned its directorates from eight to four. Some warn the ban could hurt the country's near-term

Energy. Traders are still struggling to get to grips with the list of tankers, which sources said is haphazard and confusing; while the headline number is 113 vessels, at least nine are listed twice, and shipping sources said one was scrapped in 2012. Of the others, many have not called at Nigerian ports in years, if at all. "The whole list stinks if a lot haven't been to Nigeria for a long time," one

Nigeria-based oil industry executive said. An NNPC spokesman and the head of crude marketing did not respond to several requests for comment. The presidency confirmed it had sent the list to NNPC but declined to elaborate on the rationale for vessels included. Inside and outside Nigeria the origin of the list seemed to be in a locked box inside the president's inner circle, and NNPC itself appeared only to have limited information. Oil traders who asked NNPC officials directly for answers said their attempts had borne little fruit. Oil theft is rampant in Nigeria; the country has estimated losses at as much as $35 million per day roughly a quarter of its gross domestic product. Buhari has vowed to recover the "mind-boggling" amounts of stolen oil money, enlisting help from the United States. The theft comes at various points - siphoned from pipelines, diverted from loaded vessels and via paper accounting fraud.

Much of the stolen physical oil, country observers say, ends up on very large crude carriers (VLCCs) like those now banned. Some said the ban could be a shot across the bow at those engaged in illegal activities or who look the other way when it happens involving their ships. "What NNPC appears to be doing is attempting to get vessel owners to be more proactive in ensuring their vessels are used only for legal business," one trader said, noting this is an important goal for the country. The source added, however: "It's a fairly blunt instrument.â&#x20AC;? The confusion has sparked concerns that more tankers could be added to the list. As a result, some could avoid Nigerian ports altogether, while others could demand higher rates to call there. Some traders are also pressing for lower official selling prices from NNPC to compensate for any difficulty the ban creates; if successful, this would hit Nigeria's already battered revenue even harder.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Freight

MKPOIKANA UDOMA

r. Joshua Okpo, the rector of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, MAN, Oron, Akwa Ibom State has come under the attack of a youth group known as the Amalgamated Oro Youth Force in Oron, which has levelled allegations bordering on immoral conduct, incompetence and financial misappropriation against him. In a letter dated August 3, 2015 to the rector, the group accused him of spending over N8 billion in the past four years with nothing to show for such huge amount of money in the school. The groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s petition was signed by its President, Comrade Francis Otioro and Secretary, Comrade Victor Eyo. The Amalgamated Oro Youth Force, which kicked against Okpoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tenure renewal gave him one week to resign from the academy. The group alleged in the letter that last year, the rector in the company of five directors of the Academy namely Mr. Mkpandiok, Mr. Okona, Mr. Okorie, Mrs. Ikara and Capt. Balogun travelled to Sweden under the pretence of affiliating Maritime Academy of Nigeria Oron with the world Maritime University, Malmo, Sweden. The letter continued: "In Malmo, Sweden, you, Mr Joshua Okpo was asked whether there was basic safety training courses such as Standard of Training, Certification & Watch keeping (STCW) and Quality Control Unit (QCU) facilities in place in Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron. And you deliberately denied that there were no such facilities in the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron, whereas those facilities had been in the academy since in the days of Engr. Olu Akinsoji and Mr. Nse Ebong both former rectors of the institution. None of your Directors debunk your lies, except Capt. Balogun". The group accused Mr. Okpo of expending N9 million in 2014 in organising a christmas festival, whereas staff claims were yet to be paid for nearly three months. It also alleged that the rector "invited nearly 9,500 intending students for examination and collected N10,000 each as exams fee that amounted to nearly N95,000,000 and later shortlisted 6,000 and collected N20,000 each for medical fees that amounted to about N120,000,000,"

Maritime cadets

Maritime Academy of Nigeria Rector under fire Group accuses him of ineptitude, financial recklessness In a letter dated August 3, 2015 to the rector, the group accused him of spending over N8 billion in the past four years with nothing to show for such huge amount of money in the school

urging that he be asked to account for the monies. Mr. Okpo, according to the group, "also withdrew another N16,000,000 for an award ceremony of Ambassador of Peace at Calabar" as has 'collected more that eight chieftaincy titles with each of them causing the Academy more than five million naira". It alleged that Mr. Okpo was making life "unbearable for both students and parents of the Maritime Academy by introducing non-accredited courses like Hydrology, M e t e o r o l o g y a n d Electrical/Electronic into the Maritime School System in which students graduate without results".

It accused the rector of appointing his wife, Mrs. Ado Ansa, as his special assistant and assigning to her duties of awarding minor contracts, which was previously handled by the office of the registrar. Besides, the letter further alleged Mrs Ado Ansa also acts as the rector's exam officer and faculty officer who encourages extortion of money from students. Reacting to the letter, the management of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria said it was a campaign of calumny aimed at soiling the good image of the school and that of the rector, Mr. Okpo.

Wike flags off rehabilitation of Rivers Port access road

h e management of Rivers Port Complex of the Nigerian Port Authority, NPA, has commended the flag off of rehabilitation of the access road leading to the port complex by the Rivers State government,

describing the development as "a right step in the right direction". Acting Port Manager of Rivers Port, Mrs. Eunice Ezeoke, made the commendation at the port shortly after Rivers State governor, Chief Nyesom Wike and the NPA management signed a M e m o r a n d u m o f

Understanding, MoU, to partner on the rehabilitation of the long- abandoned Port access road. Mrs. Ezeoke, who doubles as the Traffic Manager of the Rivers Port, while addressing journalists after the flag-off of by Governor Wike and the Managing Director of NPA, Alhaji Sanusi Ado Bayero, noted

that the reconstruction of the road would help boost business activities within the port area. While describing the flag-off as a milestone, she said the dilapidated state of the road has constituted serious setback for effective activities at the port.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Freight

Ghana taps NPA on handling of oil and gas cargo MKPOIKANA UDOMA

s p e c i a l delegation from the Ghana Ports and Harbours has visited Nigeria with the aim of understanding the inner workings of the Nigerian Ports Authority system especially as it concerns tariff collection for oil and gas cargoes. The Rivers Port management recently played host to the visitors who were interested in learning from the Nigerian authorities tariff collection procedure for oil and gas related cargo under the Commercial Department of the Rivers Port. The three-man team from Ghana comprised team leader Mr. Samuel NtowKummi, Mr. Roderick Odoo and Mr. Nuhu Khalid. Receiving the delegation shortly before her transfer, the immediate past Rivers Port Manager, Mrs. Carolyn Akum Ufere, who is the General Manager, Special Duties, at the Marina, Lagos office of the NPA, described the visit to the Rivers Port as a bold step, aimed at learning the rudiments of Nigerian Ports Authority system, with the aim to achieving synergy. “There are certainly things you can learn from us and vice versa,” Mrs. Carolyn Ufere stated as she expressed NPA's readiness to offer positive ideas to helped develop Ghana's maritime sector, when called upon. Earlier, the leader of

Nigerian port

Ghanaian team, NtowKummi, who commended the NPA, said they were particularly concerned on how they could develop Ghana Port Authority in line with oil and gas sector, as done by NPA. “We have heard a lot about Rivers Port and Onne Port even in Ghana, and our coming here have made us to see things for ourselves.

We have heard a lot about Rivers Port and Onne Port even in Ghana, and our coming here have made us to see things for ourselves

Eastern Port gets new CP

n e w commissioner of Police, Mr. Ebojune Joshua Ibine, has taken over at the Eastern Ports Command in Port Harcourt. M r . I b i n e , a Commissioner of Police Provost at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, took over from James Olatunji Caulkrick, who has been redeployed as the Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, Maritime, Lagos. T h e n e w commissioner of Police

while taking over, assured stakeholders of the need to cooperate with his administration which, according to him, will focus on improving the structures put in place by his predecessor. He also reassured maritime stakeholders in the Eastern ports command of their safety in carrying out their legitimate business. He said: "Let me use this medium to also warn those who do not have business at the ports to stay off so as not to be cog in the smooth operations at the Eastern ports command."

"Let me also warn officers, both rank and file, to carry out their duties without fear or favour because any officer found wanting will be dealt with according to police laid down procedures."

Port

The police boss also promised to ensure there is peace at the port during his tenure. SweetcrudeReports learnt that Mr. Ibine has served in most of the geopolitical zones in the country and was recently redeployed on special duty assignment to Ekiti State during the last general elections.

"Our visit to Rivers Port is mainly focused on how we can handle tariff procedures for oil and gas related cargo," he said. He also revealed that what they have in Ghana cannot be compared with the existing facilities at Nigerian ports. “We are particularly impressed after the guided tour of Port Harcourt and Onne Ports,” Mr. NtwoKummi said. Also speaking, another member of the Ghanaian delegation, Mr. Odoo, commended the NPA, saying they would take back home new ideas they have learnt from the port tour in Port Harcourt. Highlights of the visit w a s a s c r e e n presentation by the Chief ICT Officer of the Port Port, Mr. Tokumbo Bamgbala, who took the visitors through the past and present of Rivers Port Complex especially on the concession region.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Freight KUNLE KALEJAYE

fter the drama which saw Barrister Calistus Obi briefly acting as Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Mr. Haruna Baba Jauro eventually took over as the substantive head of the maritime industry watchdog in acting capacity following his appointment to that effect by the Federal Government. Jauro's appointment came ?three days after former NIMASA boss, Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi, officially handed over his position to Barrister Obi. Earlier, the Federal Government had instructed Akpobolokemi to hand over to the most senior officer in NIMASA. It however turned out that Mr. Jauro was the most senior officer rather than Barrister Obi. Sources within NIMASA revealed that Jauro had protested the handover to Barrister Obi, lodging his complaint with the Federal Ministry of Transport and the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation. Announcing Jauro's appointment, a statement from NIMASA said Jauro's appointment was communicated through a letter issued by the Federal Ministry of Transport. The new NIMASA acting DG was until his appointment the Executive Director, Finance and Administration in the agency and brings over two decades experience in the public sector and the maritime industry to his new responsibility. "An accountant by profession, Mr. Jauro, who hails from Yobe State, holds Higher National Diploma in Accounting from the Kaduna Polytechnic as well as a Post Graduate Diploma and an MBA both from the University of Maiduguri. "The Acting DG, a fellow of the Nigerian Institute of

Jauro

Jauro takes over at NIMASA …Redeploys eleven directors An accountant by profession, Mr. Jauro, who hails from Yobe State, holds Higher National Diploma in Accounting from the Kaduna Polytechnic as well as a Post Graduate Diploma and an MBA both from the University of Maiduguri

Management, fellow of the Institute of Credit Administrators, is also a Certified National Accountant. He is married with children," the statement said. A week after assuming office, Jauro approved the redeployment of 11 senior management staff of the

agency. According to the Acting DG, the new postings are expected to reposition the agency towards meeting its statutory mandate as enshrined in the NIMASA Act and other enabling instruments. U n d e r t h e n e w arrangement, Mr. Ibrahim Jibril was appointed Director of Administration and Personnel Services department. " Mr. Felix Bob Nabena is Director of SERVICOM, Mr Olayemi Abass takes over as the Head of Financial Services department, Mr. Suleman Abdulsalam is the Acting Legal Adviser, Mr. Mohammed Sani is the Head of Procurement department while Hassan el-Yakub is Head of Cabotage Department. "Similarly, Hajia Lami Tumaka is now the Deputy Director/Head of Public Relations, Aisha Musa has been redeployed to Head the Western Zone, Mr. Isichei Osamgbi is Deputy Director, Maritime Guard Command, Mr. Dele Ejekuko is in charge of Zones in the DG’s Office and Mr. Eric Orji is the Acting Registrar of Ships," a statement signed by Tumaka said. The statement further explained that Mr. Jibril who until this posting was the Director of Planning Research and Data Management Services department is an astute administrator of over 30 years cognate experience in the Transport and Logistics sector. "He was at various times head of Human Resources, Public Relations and Maritime Capacity Building Units of the Agency. Mr Jibril holds a diploma in Aircraft Engineering in 1982, a degree in Public Administration and a masters degree in International Law and Diplomacy. He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (FCILT) and the Nigerian Institute of Management.

NPA has no excuse for not paying dockworkers - MWUN

abour has asked the Federal Government to hold the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, responsible for any action dockworkers decided to take over failure of the authority to pay them their wages. Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria,

MWUN, are threatening to shut the nation’s ports over months of unpaid wages to dockworkers especially tally clerks and on board security gangway men despite several agreements. According to Mr. Tony Emmanuel Nted, PresidentGeneral of MWUN, the latest agreement reached with stakeholders including the

NPA and Association of Stevedoring Companies, ASC, on July 9, 2015, at a meeting called by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, expired since July 30, without payment to the affected workers. Nted maintained that the management of NPA was responsible for the delay

and refusal to pay the affected workers and asked the government, shipping companies, terminal operators and others to hold NPA responsible for the planned shut down of the ports. Lamenting that the union had no other explanation to give the aggrieved workers, he said the leadership of the

union had placed all its leaders across the ports formations on the alert for a declaration of an indefinite industrial unrest since it appeared that the only language NPA management understood, was industrial action.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Freight

Apapa port terminal

NIMASA vows to address challenges of stevedores KUNLE KALEJAYE

he Nigerian M a r i t i m e Administration and Safety A g e n c y , NIMASA, has vowed to quickly resolve challenges stevedoring companies are facing in the nation's ports. A stevedore or dockworker, is a waterfront manual laborer who is involved in loading and unloading ships. The Acting Director General of NIMASA, Mr. Haruna Baba Jauro, gave the assurance when he played host to the Executive Committee members of the National Association of Stevedoring Companies led by its National President, Mr. Bolaji Sunmola, at the headquarters of the agency in Lagos. Mr. Jauro, who observed that the Federal Government had gazetted a new set of guidelines for stevedoring operations in the country, noted that its enforcement would commence in earnest after due sensitisation of relevant stakeholders with

the provisions. “I can assure you that the guidelines we have put in place, which also have applicable sanctions will address all the issues you have raised and we are committed to enforcing all its provisions once we have sensitised all relevant stakeholders,” the DG said. He also said that the agency will continue to engage its sister agencies with a view to resolving all outstanding issues for the benefit of the

maritime sector and the country at large. Earlier in his address, Mr. Sunmola noted that the association, in line with its 2014 regulation, is prepared to collaborate with NIMASA in the areas of human capacity development which is intended to help in job creation in the maritime sector. He expressed the displeasure of the association on how its

rights and privileges were being trampled upon by some government agencies and called on NIMASA to step into the situation to forestall a breakdown of law and order in the nation’s ports. It will be recalled that a new set of ministerial guidelines for the appointment and operations of stevedoring services at the jetties and terminals was formally presented to stakeholders in Uyo, the

Akwa Ibom State capital, during this year’s celebration of the Day of the Seafarer. The guidelines, which were developed pursuant to relevant Sections of the NIMASA Act and the Nigerian Ports Authority Act, are aimed at addressing the appointment of stevedoring companies, inspection and enforcement, application fees, charges and dues as they apply to stevedoring operations.

...Postpones entrance into Technical College

he entrance examination into the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Science and Technical College, NSTC, Okoloba, Delta State for the 2015/2016 academic session earlier scheduled for Saturday August 8, 2015

has been postponed indefinitely. A statement by NIMASA’s Head of Public Relations, Hajia Lami Tumaka, said the examination which was to be hold in five centres across the country has been postponed due to administrative reasons.

“Applicants and interested members of the public are advised to monitor the NIMASA website @www.nimasa.gov.ng for a new date, which will also be advertised in national dailies in due course. “The Agency regrets any inconvenience that may have been caused by the

postponement and hereby restates its commitment to human capacity development in the maritime sector.” The NSTC, Okoloba was established in 2013 with the aim of providing middle-level technical manpower for the growth of the maritime sector.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Motoring

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Range Rover

2016 Land Rover Range Rover Sport SVR: First Drive

ant to traverse t h e Sahara? Compete in Pikes Peak? Ford a river? Oh, and you want to do that all on the way to drop the kids at school? There’s only one vehicle on the market that can probably handle all of that and not end up in a heap and it’s the new 2015 Range Rover Sport SVR . The Range Rover Sport SVR gets 550 horsepower and 502 ft lb out of its supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 engine, and its mated to the same eight-speed transmission used in the standard Range Rover Sport. Before you even ask—it really did do a lap of the famous Green Hell in 8

minutes and 14 seconds. It also does 0-60 in 4.5 seconds and has a top sWe did something no one who buys this car will ever do at the track at Monticello in New York: We took it through a muddy, rocky, slippery off road trail, hosed off its underbelly, and then took it on the track ten minutes later. While you are busy picking your jaw up off the floor, let’s start with the basics. The Range Rover Sport is a midsized SUV that Land Rover launched back in 2013. This is the second iteration of the fiveseater that debuted in 2014. The base Sport starts out at around $63,000. In typical Range Rover fashion, the baseline sport is monstrously capable off-road with a ground clearance of 9.3 inches and

33.5 inches of wading capacity. It can still rock crawl with the best of them and has individual Terrain Response settings that include grass/gravel/snow, mud/ruts, and sand. speed of 162 mph—and it still handles off-road work like a boss. The Range Rover Sport

SVR gets all of the off-road gadgets and more. You still get the true four-wheel drive with the two-speed transfer case and the 50/50 torque split between front and rear. The suspension is fully independent and doubleisolated, complete with airsuspension that helps raise and lower the car based on

In Dynamic mode the SVR hunkers down and gets rowdy. The already raucous exhaust burbles a bit louder, and when you decide it’s time to hit the track, the SVR responds with surprising acceleration

the drive mode selected. The Range Rover Sport SVR has adaptive dampers which work in conjunction with the Adaptive Dynamics system to monitor the surface ahead 500 times per second. Then there’s Dynamic mode. In Dynamic mode the SVR hunkers down and gets rowdy. The already raucous exhaust burbles a bit louder, and when you decide it’s time to hit the track, the SVR responds with surprising acceleration. This is fun dipped in a good-looking Range Rover candy shell. Hauling just over 5,000 lbs of vehicle around a track at 60 to 100 mph is no easy feat, but the SVR doesn’t seem to mind. While still a bit wallowy in corners (as expected—it is a tall SUV CONTINUES ON PAGE 40

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Motoring

Range Rover interior

2016 Range Rover Sport SVR: First Drive CONTINUED FROM PAGE 39 after all), it feels planted and secure, particularly because of an updated cornering system that helps keep the SUV flatter in turns. The Active-Roll Control or ARC system uses two actuators controlled by hydraulic pumps to keep the body roll down, allowing the driver to take track turns at much higher than expected speeds. The ARC system is also used in the standard Range Rover Sport and in off-road situations, but tuned more aggressively for the SVR version. Paired with ARC is a sophisticated torque vectoring system that helps push the five-passenger vehicle around tight corners. On the track you feel the system working through the turn, though if you lift off the gas, the system switches off. The eight-speed ZF transmission is tuned slightly more aggressively

The ARC system is also used in the standard Range Rover Sport and in off-road situations, but tuned more aggressively for the SVR version than it is in the standard Range Rover Sport as well, though shifts both up and down are smooth and almost undetectable except for that boisterous exhaust note and the blip on downshift. Stomp on the gas to accelerate and you are going to hear it in the next county. Despite being a hardy offroad vehicle and a capable track beast, the SVR’s ride is surprisingly comfortable, even sedate. The interior is customized with carbon fiber, but otherwise you don’t know you are riding in anything

other than a Range Rover. One niggling thing that we came across (outside of the slow and cumbersome infotainment system) while cruising at highway speeds was the noise cancellation system. Pushing a big boxy vehicle through the air at high speeds is noisy, so to reduce cabin noise Range Rover has used a highfrequency cancellation tone that fluctuates with speed. In our test SUV it was audible at higher speeds and just annoying enough to send us searching

through menus to find how to turn it off. Side note—you can’t. The Range Rover Sport SVR isn’t your suburban mommy’s vehicle. In fact, we imagine that the exhaust note (even in normal mode) would probably piss off every neighbor within five blocks every time you start it up for y o u r m o r n i n g commute—something we imagine the typical buyer would be absolutely giddy about. The engine is essentially the same as the engine in the Jaguar F-Type R, and the Range Rover Sport SVR gets the same exhaust, so you can imagine the looks you get as you toodle off to your PTA meeting to 95 decibels of poppop-pop. With all this capability you wouldn’t expect the Range Rover Sport SVR to be terribly fuelefficient; the EPA estimates it at 14 mpg city, 19 mpg highway, and 16 mpg combined. This is Jaguar-Land

Rover’s first Special Vehicle Operations Unit project that will be available to the “general public.” We put quotes around “general” because we are talking about a five-passenger SUV that starts at a base price of $111,400. The Range Rover Sport SVR is the first Land Rover to get the SVR badge—hinting that there may be others in the Land Rover line who will do the same. Last summer the SVO group unveiled the Jaguar F-Type Project 7 and made and sold out of all 250 of them. The SVO unit is based in Warwickshire, England and consists of about 70 employees who are working to take Jaguar and Land Rover products and up the ante. Much like Mercedes’ AMG and BMW’s M lines, JLR sees an opportunity to go after the well-heeled, give-me-performance-orgive-me-death buyers who love their products and want a more specialized package. It might not keep up with everything on the track, but there’s not much that could follow the Range Rover Sport SVR off one.

Technology

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Pipeline pigging instrument

Pipeline pigging

ipeline pigs are devices that are placed inside the pipe and traverse the pipeline.Pigs may be used in hydrostatic testing and pipeline drying, internal cleaning, internal coating, liquid management, batching, and inspection.

Hydrostatic testing Pigs are used during hydrostatic testing operations to allow the pipeline to be filled with water, or other test medium, without entrapping air. The pig is inserted ahead of the fill point, and water is pumped behind the pig to keep the pipe full of water and force air out ahead of the pig. Pigs are then used to remove the test waters and to dry the pipeline. Pipeline cleanup Operations may conduct pigging on a regular basis to clean solids, scale, wax buildup (paraffin), and other debris from the pipe wall to keep the pipeline flow efficiency high. In addition to general cleaning, natural-gas pipelines use pigs to manage liquid accumulation and keep the pipe free of liquids. Water and natural-gas liquids can condense out of the gas stream as it cools and contacts the pipe wall and pocket in low places, which affects flow efficiency and can lead to enhanced corrosion. Batch transportation Pigs are used in product pipelines to physically separate, or “batch,” the variety of hydrocarbons that are transported through the line. Product pipelines may simultaneously transport gasoline, diesel fuel, fuel oils, and other products, which are kept separated by batching pigs. Prevention of solid accumulation and corrosion Crude-oil pipelines are sometimes pigged to keep water and solids from accumulating in low spots and creating corrosion cells. This can be especially necessary when flow velocities are less than 3 ft/sec. Multiphase pipelines may have to be pigged frequently to limit liquid holdup and minimize the slug volumes of liquid which can be generated by the system.

Fig. 1 shows several types of pipeline pigs.

Coating Pigs may be used to apply internal pipe coatings, such as epoxy coating materials, in operating pipelines. Pigs may

also be used with corrosion inhibitors to distribute and coat the entire internal wetted perimeter. Inspection Pigs are being used more frequently as inspection tools. Gauging or sizing pigs are typically run following the completion of new construction or line repair to determine if there are any internal obstructions, bends, or buckles in the pipe. Pigs can also be equipped with cameras to allow viewing of the pipe internals. Electronic intelligent, or smart, “pigs” that use magnetic and ultrasonic systems have been developed and refined that locate and measure internal and external corrosion pitting, dents, buckles, and any other anomalies in the pipe wall. Intelligent pigs The accuracy of location and measurement of anomalies by the intelligent pigs has continued to improve. Initially, the electronics and power systems were so large that intelligent pigs could be used only in lines 30 in. and greater in size. The continued sophistication and miniaturization of the electronic systems used in the intelligent pigs has CONTINUES ON PAGE 42

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Technology

Pigging instrument

Pipeline pigging CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41

allowed the development of smaller pigs that can be used in small-diameter pipelines. Newly enacted DOT pipelineintegrity regulations and rules acknowledge the effectiveness of the intelligent pigs and incorporate their use in the pipelineintegrity testing process. Pig launchers and receivers Pigging facilities and considerations should be incorporated into the pipeline system design. Basic pigging facilities require a device to launch the pig into the pipeline and a receiver system to retrieve the pig as shown in Fig. 2. The launcher barrel is typically made from a short segment of pipe that is one to two sizes larger than the main pipeline and is fitted with a transition fitting (eccentric reducer) and a special closure fitting on the end. The barrel is isolated from the pipeline with full-port gate or ball valves. A “kicker” line, a minimum of 25% capacity of the main line, is tied from the main pipeline to the barrel, approximately 1 1/2 to 2 pig lengths upstream of the transition reducer, to provide the fluid flow to “launch” the pig into the pipeline. The barrel is fitted with blowdown valves, vent valves, and pressure gauges on the top and drain valves on the bottom. The length of the barrel is determined by the length and number of pigs to be launched at any one time. Receivers have many of the same features. Hinge type closure A typical hinge-type closure for pig launching and receiving traps consists of a forged hub, a hinged blanking head, splityoke clamps, operating bolts, and a self-energizing O-ring gasket. Materials of construction are in accordance with American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) specifications and manufacture complies with applicable rules of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) code for pressure piping and with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) boiler and pressure vessel code. Most important is the pressure warning safety device with yoke positioning plate. This safety device provides visual and mechanical assurance that the yokes are in the correct position

over the head for commencement of operations. Additionally, the devices serve the purpose of alerting the operator to any residual pressure in the pig launcher or receiver trap should he inadvertently attempt to open the closure before all pressure has been relieved. A pressure warning device is located at each of the yoke splits with one of the positioning lugs attached to each yoke half. Tightening the holding screw on the nipple provides a seal and locks the hinged positioning plate on the positioning lugs. Loosening the holding screw breaks the seal and provides a means by which the operator can determine whether the pig launcher or receiver trap has been completely relieved of internal pressure. Continued loosening of the hold screw will allow disengagement of the positioning plate from the positioning lugs, permitting the yoke halves to be spread and the closure to be opened. There are several manufacturers of end closures, but most often Tube Turns or Modco closures are used worldwide. Elbows and bends Elbows and pipe bends installed in the pipeline should have a minimum radius of three times the main-line pipe diameter—3D bends. Intelligent pigs may require greater radius to diameter elbows and bends because of the longer length of the pigs. Tees installed in the pipeline with an outlet size 75% of the main-line inner diameter (ID) should be equipped with bars across the tee outlet to prevent the pigs from attempting to turn into the tee and lodging in the line. Hot taps greater than 6-in. diameter added to the pipeline should be barred. If possible, tees should not be installed adjacent to one another. Check valves should be full open, and the pigs or spheres should be sized such that the pig or sphere is larger than the “bowl” cavity of the check valve. Pig selection Pig runs of between 50 to 100 miles are normal, but pig runs exceeding 200 miles should be avoided as the pig may

wear and get stuck in the line. Cleaning pigs may be constructed of steel body with polyurethane cups or discs and foam pigs with polyurethane wrapping, solid urethane disc, and steel body with metallic brushes. Drying pigs are usually lowdensity foam or multicup urethane. The intelligent pigs may be: —Magnetic flux leakage —Ultrasonic —Elastic/shear wave —Transponder/transducer —Or combinations thereof Internal-coating pigs are generally multicup urethane type. Batching pigs are typically bidirectional, multidisk rubber, which maintain efficiency up to 50 miles. Pigs used for obstruction inspection are typically urethane, multicup type fitted with an aluminum gauge plate or a gel type. Spheres are generally sized to be approximately 2% greater diameter than the pipe internal diameter. Cups and discs are typically sized to be 1/16 to 1/8 in. larger in diameter than the pipe ID. Foam pigs have to be significantly oversized. Foam pigs 1 to 6 in. in diameter should be oversized by 1/4 in.; foam pigs 8 to 16 in. in diameter should be oversized 3/8 to 1/2 in.; foam pigs 18 to 24 in. in diameter should be oversized 1/2 to 1 in.; and CONTINUES ON PAGE 43

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Technology

Another pipeline pigging instrument

Pipeline pigging CONTINUED FROM PAGE 42

foam pigs 28 to 48 in. in diameter should be oversized 1 to 2 in. Slug catchers The receiving end of the pipeline should have surge containment to accommodate the slugs of liquid carried by the pigs. For liquid lines, additional storage capacity (tankage) will provide surge containment. Gas and multiphase lines need specially designed “slug” catcher systems to handle the intermittent liquid slugs generated by the pigging activities. When a normal gas flow is pushing the pig through a gas pipeline, the velocity can be quite large and the flow rate of liquids being pushed ahead is given by (Eq. 1) Where

exits at the vapor-outlet collection header. The slug catcher may incorporate vortex breakers or other impingement devices to slow the liquid and mist extractors at the vapor outlet to capture entrained liquids. The liquid is transferred from the accumulators to the facility processing or storage. Fig. 3 shows an example slug-catcher design.

The volume of the slug catcher is expressed as (Eq. 2) where (Vol) Vol

= =

volume of slug catcher, bbl, volume of liquid holdup, bbl, and

design liquid dump rate from the slug catcher, B/D.

Q Q T P Z

= = = = =

liquid-flow rate in front of the pig, B/D, gas-flow rate behind the pig, MMscf/D, temperature, °R, line pressure, psia, and compressibility factor, dimensionless.

Fig. 3—Typical slug catcher for two-phase flow-front elevation (courtesy of AMEC Paragon).

(Eq. 3) In most systems, the instantaneous liquid-flow rate and “energy” surge ahead of the pig will exceed the processing design capacity and capability of the receiving facility. The slug catcher provides excess storage capacity within the receiving facility and helps dissipate the excess energy generated by the high-velocity liquid slug. The basic slug catcher is essentially a liquid-separation system where the incoming liquid enters a larger-diameter pipe or a vessel, which provides additional volume for the liquid surge and provides for separation of the vapor from the liquid stream. The additional volume provided by the slug catcher reduces the stream velocity and dissipates the excess energy produced by the liquid slug. Another typical slug-catcher design employs an inline liquid header system attached to a series of horizontal liquid accumulators which may be several hundred feet in length. The liquid-slug stream enters the header and disperses into the accumulators, while the gas continues through the system and

Where T = time during which slug is processed, in days. The volume of the slug catcher should be designed with a minimum 25% safety factor. R

Nomenclature Q Q T P Z (Vol) Vol Q d

= = = = = = = =

liquid-flow rate in front of the pig, B/D, gas-flow rate behind the pig, MMscf/D, temperature, °R, line pressure, psia, compressibility factor, dimensionless. volume of slug catcher, bbl volume of liquid holdup, bbl design liquid dump rate from the slug catcher, B/D. time during which slug is processed, in days

Community

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Ogoniland, and the UnitedNations System. Following a meeting held on the directive of the president, it was also agreed that a contribution deposit of 10 million United States dollars will b e m a d e b y stakeholders within 30 days of the appointment of members of the Board of Trustees for the Trust Fund who will be responsible for collecting and managing funds from contributors and donors. .A new implementation template has also been evolved at the i n s t a n c e o f President Buhari, a n d t h e environmental c l e a n - u p o f Ogoniland will commence in earnest with the P r e s i d e n t ' s inauguration of the HYPREP Governing Council and the Board of Trustees for the Trust Fund.

Oil spill

SAM IKEOTUONYE

n keeping with his avowed commitment to working for the development and well-being of all Nigerians, President Muhammadu Buhari has approved several actions to fast-track the long-delayed implementation of the U n i t e d N a t i o n s Environmental Programme, UNEP, Report on the environmental restoration of Ogoniland. The actions, based on recommendations to the President by the Executive Director of UNEP, the UNEP Special Representative for Ogoniland, Permanent Secretaries of the Federal Ministries of Environment and Petroleum Resources, and other stakeholders, include the amendment of the official gazette establishing the Hydrocarbon Pollution Restoration Project, HYPREP, to reflect a new governance framework comprising a governing council, a board of trustees and project management. Reacting to the development, the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, MOSOP, welcomed it and congratulated the Buhari government for finally moving to facilitate

Hope rises for Ogoni clean-up MOSOP commends govt for fresh initiatives on UNEP Report the implementation of recommendations of the UNEP report. As part of the actions to fasttrack the implementation of the report, the President also approved that the HYPREP Governing Council should be composed as follows: Ministry of Petroleum Resources,

Federal Ministry of Environment and impacted states (Rivers) -one representative each, oil companies and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (4 representatives), O g o n i l a n d ( 2 representatives), United Nations System (one

representative) and the secretariat, headed by Project Manager President Buhari also approved the composition of a Board of Trustees for the HYPREP Trust Fund with one representatives each from the Federal Government, NNPC, international oil companies,

In commending President Buhari and his government, MOSOP said the latest move, coming at a time there had been growing skepticism about the implementation of the report, demonstrated a comforting shift from rhetoric to matching words with action and has strengthened the confidence of the Ogoni people in the government. President of MOSOP, Mr. Legborsi Pyagbara in a statement pledged that in reciprocation of the government’s response to the Ogoni outcries, MOSOP would cooperate with the administration and other stakeholders to ensure a successful implementation of recommendations of the report.

Shell facilitates 27 partnerships between Nigerian, British firms YEMIE ADEOYE

igerian and B r i t i s h companies, under the auspices of the annual Nigeria-UK engagement programme sponsored by the Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited, SNEPCo, have agreed on a total of 27 partnerships. The partnerships cover a

wide range of oil and gas activities, including engineering, maintenance, fabrication and support services, and were the outcome of several business summits held in Lagos, Abuja, London and Aberdeen. Working closely with the United Kingdom Trade and Investment, UKTI, SNEPCo initiated the business summits in 2009, creating valuable

opportunities for Nigerian and British companies to collaborate to close the technical gaps that exist in the oil and gas industry as a result of the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010. The collaboration has helped to improve local capacity in innovation and technology. This model has now been replicated in Kazakhstan and Iraq.

“We are pleased with the progress that has been m a d e w i t h t h e collaboration of UKTI and Shell,” said Osagie Okunbor, Chairman, Shell Companies in Nigeria and Managing Director of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) when the UKTI led by the Director of Trade in Nigeria, Chris Maskell, paid him a courtesy call.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Community

IPMAN orders fuel tankers off East-West road MKPOIKANA UDOMA

he Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigerian, IPMAN, has ordered all petroleum tanker and truck owners and drivers to remove their vehicles parked at the Eleme axis of the EastWest road. IPMAN Chairman in Rivers State, Comrade Sunny Nkpe, who gave the directive while speaking with SweetCrudeReports in Port Harcourt, explained that the directive became necessary owing to the ongoing construction work in the Eleme section of the East-West Road. Comrade Nkpe said the directive was necessary in order not to obstruct the construction work on the road, to ensure quick completion of the project by the construction company handling it. According to him, “I want to call on all IPMAN members, Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD branch of NUPENG and all other road users to, with immediate effects, withdraw trucks from the East-West road along Eleme junction to Onne axis. This is to enable RCC expedite action on its work and to complete it on time, because they have equally complained that the major setback is that trucks are parked on that road. “I have had a meeting with Rivers State stakeholders and we have directed that trucks should not be parked on that road for now, so that the company can facilitate repairs and achieve job

Traffic gridlock

I want to call on all IPMAN members, Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD branch of NUPENG and all other road users to, with immediate effects, withdraw trucks from the East-West road along Eleme junction to Onne axis

completion at the expected time frame.” The Rivers State IPMAN boss also commended Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike for initiating a M e m o r a n d u m o f Understanding, MoU, with investors operating in Eleme Local Government Area of the state, for the purpose of repairing the Eleme section of the EastWest road, which is a federal road. In his words, “IPMAN uses this medium to commend the state governor, His Excellency (Barr.) Nyesom Wike for that very bold

initiative to bringing an end to the nightmare that businessmen, tanker drivers and commuters have been experiencing on the EastWest road. “We want to commend him and congratulate him for flagging off such synergy that has brought the MoU where all the companies in the Free Trade Zone, Onne and Eleme have all come together to ensure that this damaged section of the road is rehabilitated. We commend the governor very tremendously for such wonderful steps.”

Bayelsa monarch laments impact of gas flaring on community …Demands power supply from Shell MKPOIKANA UDOMA

he paramount ruler of Koroama community, Chief Sabu Martins, has lamented the impact of gas flaring on the community as he demanded for power supply from the "electricity generated

with gas from the area". He made the call following a protest by the community, in Yenegoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, during which they shut down operations at the GbarainUbie Integrated Gas Plant belonging to the Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC. “Today, my people and I are protesting to SPDC and to the

Federal Government. Koroama is a host community and has the largest proved gas and oil reserve in the entire Shell operations in this area. “We have agreed that we could die here if light, the only demand we make is not given to us. Then Shell will never operate on our land, we have given them time to remove their things,

we want the government to intervene.” In a swift reaction, the spokesman for SPDC, Mr. Joseph Obari, said the oil firm had difficulties meeting the demands of electricity supply to its gas plant host communities due to limited capacity. He said, “The Gbaran-Ubie Integrated Oil and Gas Plant supplies back-up power to

two neighbouring communities under an agreement entered into with host communities in 2006, during the project conception stage. “Due to limitation imposed by the power capacity of the plant, it has b e e n u n a b l e t o accommodate other communities’ requests to tie into the power system.”

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

Community

President Buhari

Amnesty: IYC commends Buhari on Boroh's appointment MKPOIKANA UDOMA

he Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, Worldwide has commended President Muhammadu Buhari "for responding to the agitation of the Niger Delta people by appointing General Paul Boroh (Rtd), as Coordinator for the Presidential Amnesty Programme and also to double as the Special Adviser on Niger Delta Affairs to the President". The IYC, in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Eric Omare, described the appointment of Gen. Boroh as the first step towards resolving pressing and pending issues relating to the Niger Delta Amnesty Programme. Omare also advised the new Presidential Amnesty Coordinator to "hit the ground running and urgently begin to address pending issues in the amnesty programme". According to the statement, "While congratulating General Boroh on his welldeserved appointment, the IYC calls on General Boroh to take urgent steps to pay outstanding tuition fees and

…Urges urgent attention to 'pending issues’ allowances of beneficiaries of the amnesty, especially those undergoing programmes of studies in abroad that are already losing their studentship". "We also call on him to consult with critical stakeholders in the Niger Delta region on the future of the Amnesty Programme and in taking decisions that affect the future and the overall

development of the Niger Delta region," the statement stated. Prior to Boroh's appointment, IYC had in a statement sent out a warning to the government on the rising tension in the Niger Delta over the nonpayment of the tuition fees of those undergoing undergraduate and postgraduate degree

programmes within and outside Nigeria as well as allowances of former militants. A statement had read: “The IYC wishes to alert Nigerians and the international community that there is a rising tension in the Niger Delta region as a result of the non-payment of allowances to beneficiaries of the PAP (Presidential

Amnesty Programme), which would soon result in security breach in the region. “We strongly believe that this is a deliberate ploy by some interest groups in the Presidency to frustrate the amnesty programme, create crisis in the Niger Delta region and use it as a justification to attack the region.”

PHRC donates 13 classroom blocks to Okrika community

he Managing Director of Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC, Mr. Bafred Audu Enjugu, has commissioned thirteen classroom blocks and other sustainable development projects built by the company for its Okrika host community as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility. The projects donated to the Okrika by the PHRC are six classroom blocks at Okrika National Secondary School, perimeter fencing of Girls Secondary School in

Ogoloma community, an access road to Okochiri, seven class room blocks at Ibuluya-ama, three 500KVA transformers and three potable water boreholes. The Managing Director, represented at the event by the PHRC Manager, Health, Safety and Environment, Mr. Innocent Nwabeze, said the gesture was in appreciation of the peaceful disposition of Okrika community towards the company. “PHRC, as a social corporate and responsible

citizen recognises the need for economic empowerment and human capital development for its host communities, has embarked on skills acquisition and poverty alleviation programmes as well as micro credit schemes. “I therefore want to use this medium to thank all the community stakeholders, the Okrika Divisional Council of Chiefs, the Okrika Local Government for their individual and collective roles in ensuring a peaceful atmosphere for our operation,” he said.

The Port Harcourt Refining Company also said a market situated at Ekerekana-ama community was at an advanced stage of completion. In his remarks, the Chairman of Okrika Council of Chiefs, Chief Nemi Adoki, who commended the management of the Port Harcourt refinery, said the projects would go a long way in addressing the infrastructural gap in the community.

Community

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports

THE PETROLEUM ACT:

Immorality Validated by Law

igeria is a federation comprising 36 s t a t e s reproduced out of the three original regions created by the Richards Constitution of 1946. Although the regional system worked for the country, the politicians who took over from the colonial government contrived the political stratagem of creating more political entities, more to reduce the influence of their political foes and less to satisfy the yearnings of certain populations for political autonomy. From granting political autonomy to restive populations and whittling the political influence of political rivals, the trend naturally moved into a new yearning and a new sphere: the race to file a stake for the “federal allocation,” assured every state and local government recognised by the Constitution. While the regional system subsisted, affairs of the federal or national or central government were run with taxes collected by its agents, incomes received from government services, earnings from government instruments and grants received from foreign governments or entities. The regions had 100% control over the resources in their domains but in 1969, precisely 10 years after the discovery of crude oil in the Ijaw hinterland, Yakubu Gowon’s Supreme Military Council, the bogey successor to another pretentious national legation that was neither voted nor invited to form a central government, enacted the Petroleum Act, 1969. The effect of the Act was to divest communities in the Eastern Region of their rights over crude oil deposits found in their soil and invest same on the national government, the group of men and women delegated by the regions to manage the affairs, such as diplomacy,

currency, the armed forces, the police, et al, common to all of them. The enactment of the Petroleum Act was done in a time of war, a war that was being waged against the people of the very region that was the objects and victims of the enactment. It was clearly a seizure of the proprietary interests of a few people in the Nation for the benefit of the whole nation. The people were not consulted, their needs were discountenanced, their protests were ignored and their sufferings were neglected. A law enacted by any legislature can only become legitimate where it is fair, equitable, applied universally, that is, to all equally and commands the obedience of the populace,

governments created by the Constitution. In 1989, 20 years after the grand theft of the resources of the Niger Delta, the federal government rolled out the Mineral Resources Act in an attempt at balancing the equation. The joint effects of these enactments is that the delegates contributed by all the states in the federation to manage their common affairs now pretend to own and control oil, gas and mineral deposits found within Nigerian territory and fortified by the provisions of S. 162 of the 1999 Constitution, purports to share the proceeds from those resources on the bogus bases of size, need and national interest,

The regions had 100% control over the resources in their domains but in 1969, precisely 10 years after the discovery of crude oil in the Ijaw hinterland, Yakubu Gowon’s Supreme Military Council, the bogey successor to another pretentious national legation that was neither voted nor invited to form a central government, enacted the Petroleum Act, 1969 especially, the folk immediately affected by its effects. The people of the Niger Delta affected by the Petroleum Act, excluding few communities in Imo and Abia states are ethnic minorities in Nigeria; compelled to make the sacrifice for the even and uniform development of territories in the Nigerian state, their deaths, sufferings, i m p o v e r i s h m e n t , d e h u m a n i s a t i o n , environmental challenges and the collapse of their societies have actually funded corruption, greedy officials of the federal government, the federal government itself, states and all the 774 local

subject only to a guaranty by S. 162 (2), to reserve at least 13% of the revenue for states from which the revenue was derived. The Petroleum Act grants the federal legation the power to grant concession and operational licenses; it also empowers the federal government to tax oil and gas operations and then by virtue of receiving income from those activities into its “federation account” as provided by S. 162(1), it plays the role of a monthly benefactor, distributing the income from 8 states in the federation to itself, 36 states, 774 local

E-mail: johniyene@yahoo.com

governments and one federal capital territory. Where is the morality in calling upon the sacrifice in death, loss of homes, peace and occupations from a few people in 8 states, to fund folks who applied for statehood under the pretext that they had sufficient means to manage their affairs? What is the justification for such a law that is applied arbitrarily, operates arbitrarily and promotes a culture of arbitrariness? Where is the morality in a law that constitutes a theft to an impoverished Niger Delta and that has become the foundation and motivation for the agitation of the creation of states that are not viable? How evenly and uniformly have the states in Nigeria developed by virtue of the compulsory acquisition engendered by the Petroleum Act? Whereas the cold statistics show that less than ten of the existing states, funded largely by “federal allocation” are viable, the National Assembly has received more than twenty more applications for the creation of more states! What is the sense in enacting a law that overheats the polity to achieve what could have easily been actualised through the supervision of the exploration and exploitation processes, enforcement of international industry standards to oil and gas operations and taxation (up to 50% of oil gas operations, as in some countries). These are the roles the DPR, the Local Content Monitoring Board and the Federal Inland Revenue service could have played profitably for the federal government without the budgets of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the NNPC and all the uncountable inane business concerns that are funded with more than a half of the income that accrues to Nigeria through oil and gas operations.

NDDC donates drugs to Bayelsa hospitals MKPOIKANA UDOMA

he Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has donated drugs and medical supplies to hospitals in Bayelsa State as part of its contributions to the provision of quality

healthcare in the nine states covered by the Commission. Officials of the Bayelsa State Ministry of Health received the essential medicines and medical items at a brief ceremony at the Diete-Koki Memorial Hospital, Opolo in Yenagoa. A similar donation was also

made at the Alaere Alaibe Memorial Health Centre, O p o k u m a , i n Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area. The NDDC Director of Education, Health and Social Services, Dr. Solomon Ita, who handed over the medical supplies

on behalf of the NDDC Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sir Bassey Dan-Abia, said that six mobile vaccine cold chains and one fixed walk-in vaccine cold chain would also be delivered to the State ministry of health for vaccine storage.

Federalism as it is practiced in civilised democracies grants the federal government the power to supervise and tax the industry and its operations, the states the power to license companies or businesses that operate within their domain and communities the authority to grant concessions for assets within their territories. This system is just and fair as it is symmetrical to the operations of other industries operated in other states. The federal government does not own or run breweries or cigarettes manufacturing plants but sets limits for nicotine and alcohol applied to the products, restricts consumption and imposes taxes. The same applies to farms and agricultural produce. Would it not be absurd for the federal government to seize all the cattle, horses and goats originally belonging to the Fulani for the benefit of the Ijaw, Efik, Ibibio, Yoruba and Igbo, leaving the Fulani without occupation? The Petroleum Act is an anomaly, an anachronism and an injustice of epic proportions. It has denied Nigerian states the sense of healthy competition which drives development, produced more states and local governments than we can manage, has nearly killed taxation and portends to redefine our loyalties needlessly along the lines of excluding from or including to its enjoyment. The peoples of the Niger Delta are no less protective of their proprietary interests over their oil wells than the Fulani are over their cattle; their isn’t the slightest difference between the two assets, both occurring naturally, roaming wild on the Sahel plains or gurgling free in the bowels of the Earth beneath the Niger Delta. That Abuja sharing jamboree must stop.

He explained that it was part of the efforts of the NDDC to improve health services in the Niger Delta, adding that the Commission had also donated hospital equipment to teaching hospitals in Akwa Ibom, Cross Rivers and Delta States.

2015 August, SweetcrudeReports