Nigeria to produce additional 255,000 oil bpd
Nigeria is set to produce additional 225,000 barrels of oil per day following the completion of the 2022 Turnaround Maintenance (TAM) of the Bonga floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo). FPSO closed down on October 18, 2022, due to the statutory inspections, recertifications and other critical asset integrity restoration activities. The company in a statement Thursday confirmed that the TAM was completed on November 9, 2022, stating that commissioning and start-up activities are currently in progress. The statement also reads that the maintenance was originally planned for 30 but was completed in 22 days. “Commissioning and start-up activities are in progress and will culminate in a ramp up of oil and gas production in the coming days,” the statement reads.
133 million Nigerians poor in health, education, others
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has said 133 million people in Africa’s biggest economy are poor in health, education and two other dimensions. The NBS said this in the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) report launched on Thursday. The other dimensions are living standards and work and shocks. The report said of the total 133 million, 86 million affected persons live in the North while nearly 47 million live in the southern part of the country. Similarly, NBS stated that the 62.9 percent of people (133 million) who are multidimensional poor means that they experience deprivations in more than one dimension or in at least 26 percent of weighted indicators. It said the average deprivation score among poor people, which shows the intensity of poverty, is 40.9 percent of all possible deprivations. Semiu Adeniran, CEO of NBS said the survey, which was implemented from 2021 to 2022, is one of the largest surveys, with a sample size of over 56,610 households in 109 senatorial districts in the 36 states of Nigeria.
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NCC declines Airtel’s request for 5G licence at $273.6m
The Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) has declined Airtel’s request for 5G licence at $273.6m. Airtel Africa said the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) should set aside a slot of the 3.5GHz Spectrum for it at $273.6 million which was the price the Commission sold the last 2 slots in November 2021. However, NCC declined the request insisting that section 124 of the Nigerian Communications Act has already set out the process to assign licences. Ubale Maska, executive commissioner, Technical Services, NCC said, “Our reserve price was set after necessary benchmarking. We arrived at some idea of what the price should be. The auction determined what the actual price should be. If we have only one party interested that will determine the price. If the reserve price throws up a higher price, that new price becomes the new price. The second largest telecom in Nigeria had participated in the 5G auction of 2021 in which it lost to Mafab Communications and MTN Nigeria both of which bid $273.60 million to defeat Airtel’s final bid at $270.
Nigerian Court suspends FG, Ethiopian Airlines partnership
A federal high court in Lagos Tuesday issued an order of interim injunction restraining the Nigerian government from proceeding with the establishment of its proposed national carrier. Reports from The Cable said that the temporary injunction was given in a suit marked FHC/L/CS/2159/2022 and filed by registered trustees of the Airline Operators in Nigeria (AON), Azman Air Services Limited, Air Peace Limited, Max Air Limited, United Nigeria Airline Company Limited, and Top brass Aviation Limited, the plaintiffs. The report said Justice Lewis Allagoa who granted the order on Friday, November 12, 2022, ruled that an Order of Maintenance of Status Quo by all the parties in the suit restrained them from taking any further step in relation to the subject matter of the suit pending when the determination of the Motion on Notice is granted. However, about eight domestic airlines sued the FG to court, listing Nigerian Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Hadi Sirika, minister of Aviation, and Abubakar Malami, Attorney-General of the Federation, as defendants.
Nigeria approves framework for $3bn hydropower plant
The National Council on Privatisation (NCP) has approved a governance framework for the development of a $3 billion hydropower plant in Makurdi, Benue State, which will provide 1,650 megawatts of power. The approval was given at the NCP meeting chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Laolu Akande, Osinbajo’s spokesman, said it is expected to be the largest hydropower project in West Africa. He said with the NCP’s nod, the development of the project, which emerged by way of an unsolicited proposal, would proceed through the public-private partnership arrangement subject to compliance with all existing laws including the Public Procurement Act. Akande said the project would be the first of its kind in the country and is expected to provide 1,650 megawatts of power. According to him, there is a project steering committee of the NCP to provide leadership and high-level support to ensure the success of the transaction.
