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Showing posts from March, 2024

MPC's Recent Policy Affects Manufacturers

MAN's Chairman, Otunba Francis Meshioye By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) says the recent decisions made by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will negatively impact its activities in the country. In a statement issued by MAN’s Director General, Segun Ajayi-Kadir and made available to News Mirror, the association urged the MPC to carefully consider the consequences of its actions on the manufacturing sector. MAN emphasized the importance of collaboration between the MPC and fiscal authorities to support the industry, which plays a crucial role in creating jobs, boosting productivity, generating foreign exchange earnings, and driving economic growth. While acknowledging the MPC’s efforts to address economic challenges such as inflation and exchange rate instability, MAN pointed out that the continuous increase in the prime lending rate over the past two years has not yielded the desired results for the manufacturin

Fed Govt Will Offset Egbin's Debts This April

L-R:CEO, Egbin Power, Mokhtar Bounour; Hon. Minister of Power, Adelabu Adebayo and Group Managing Director, Sahara Power Group, Mr. Kola Adesina during the visit of the Minister of Power to the Plant in Lagos. By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Federal Government will as from this April, start off setting debts owed the Nigeria’s largest power generation company, Egbin Power and also tackle the problems posed shortage of gas and foreign exchange in the nation's power sector, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu has said. He spoke during his visit to the power Plant as part of his strategic measures to strengthen understanding among stakeholders, offer robust support to players, and address the challenges in the sector, with the overall aim of boosting power supply in Nigeria. While affirming the government's commitment on the issue, the Minister said: “The Federal Government is prioritising paying down on the outstanding debt and I have assured th

'No Price Adjustment On PMS & Diesel, Says NNPC Limited

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC Limited has debunked the claims that it has adjusted the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and Automotive Gas Oil( Diesel) at its retail stations nationwide. NNPC in a statement issued to clarify rumours, said that the reports are false and urges Nigerians to disregard them entirely. " NNPC Ltd reaffirms its commitment to sustaining the current sufficiency in petroleum products supply across all its retail stations in the country.

UCH-IBEDC's Management: We Are In Darkness

Staff of the Hospital By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade Workers of the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, in Oyo state have protested over epileptic power supply in the institution,saying they cannot continue to work in darkness. They spoke yesterday ( Wednesday) during a congress organised by Joint Action Committee (JAC),which is the umbrella body of all the unions in the hospital. According to JAC Chairman, Comrade Oludayo Olabampe, the power supply to the hospital has been cut off by Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) since Tuesday, 19th March, 2024 due to N495m debt. Olabampe,who spoke on behalf of other staff of the hospital appealed to the Federal Government, the St ate Governor, Seyi Makinde and other stakeholders to come to the aid of the hospital. He added that staff of the hospital have been working in a terrible conditions since the power supply was cut off. He said that the workers will not be able to perform their duties as expected

Insurance Industry Records Gross Premium 0f N1.003 Trillion

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Insurance industry of Nigeria had at the close of fourth quarter of 2023 recorded growth in Gross Premium of N1.003 trillion, representing about 27 per cent growth compared to the N790 billion recorded in 2022. The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) disclosed this recently in a document entitled: Market Performance at a Glance -Q4, 2023. According to the commission, Non-Life business accounted for 61.3 per cent of all premiums written during the year, while the Life segment contributed 38.7 per cent, valued at N388.1billion. A review report showed that the market also recorded a retention of about 87.7 per cent for the Life business, just about 54 per cent for Non-Life, while the aggregate market average retention stood at 66.7 per cent during the same period. The Commission said that the growth recorded was driven the non-life segment of the market were Oil & Gas and Fire Insurances, contributing 27.3 per cent and 24

NUPRC -Crude Oil Producers: Prioritise Supply to Local Refineries

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade Nigeria can only become a net exporter of refined petroleum products, once it gives priority to domestic supply of crude, the Chief Executive Officer, ths Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr Gbenga Komolafe has said. He said this on Tuesday in Abuja during a review of Domestic Crude Oil Supply Obligation as contained in Section 109 (2) of the Petroleum Industry Act. According to him, the overall objective of the Federal Government was to ensure that Nigeria becomes a net exporter of refined petroleum products. “Producers should satisfy their domestic crude oil supply to the domestic refineries so that as a nation we seize the opportunity to reverse the ugly trend by ensuring that we develop our midstream and end being a net exporter of petroleum products, especially now that we are trying to exit the subsidy regime. The only way to sustain that is to become robust in our domestic refining capacity. He exp

2024 Executive Order Will Stimulate Oil&Gas Growth

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Oil and Gas Companies Executive Order just released by President Bola Ahmed Tiinubu, will spur the industry growth greatly, the Women in Energy Network ( NIEN), an energy equity advocacy group has said. The Executive Order relates to tax incentives exemption, remission and other incentives for development, production, processing and consumption of non-associated gas (NAG) in the country. Speaking on the issue, the group's President, Mrs. Eyono Fatayi-Williams, said the new presidential executive order comes with the long required incentives for unlocking oilfield development investments in the nation’s petroleum sector. The order which also provides fiscal and commercial incentives for investments in midstream petroleum industry would be the first set of spurs on commercial players in the industry in the past 20 years. And with the incentives hosted in the executive order, it is expected that some of the Nigeria’s discovere

House Help Kills Her Employer In Lagos

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade A house help has allegedly stabbed a woman to death on Kiniun-Ifa Street, Sawmill Gbagada area of Lagos state. The unfortunate incident happened just seven days after the house help, identified as Peter, resumed work. Peter has reportedly fled the scene, a development, which has left the area in a state of confusion. Authorities have arrested a relative of the agent who introduced Peter to the household, as the main agent remains elusive. Details surrounding the timeline of the murder remain unclear, with reports suggesting the victim’s son discovered her lifeless body on March 9, 2024, during a visit.

Land Dispute Led To Killing Of Soldiers In Delta, Says Community Leader

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade Eye witness account in Delta State says the gruesome murder of s ome military personnel in Delta State was caused by land dispute. The account given by a community leader in the state, Olorogun Sleek Oshare said the seventeen( 17) persons killed in the Okuama community of Delta State last week was caused by inhabitants of the community, who are not ready to sheath their swords, despite the intervention of prominent people in the state. This happens as the development generates condemnation from Nigerian authorities. While giving insights into the killing on Monday, Oshare said the military personnel were in the area as part of measures to settle a land dispute between Okuama and a neighbouring community. “The quarrel was just a land dispute between one family and another family and land disputes happen over and over again,” he said on Channels Television’s Politics Today. “One community felt that the other had a military connecti

NCDMB Lauds Tinubu Executive Orders In Oil& Gas Industry

Tinubu By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Executive Secerary, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe has applauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for announcing three Presidential Executive Orders in order to deepening activities in the nation's energy sector. The orders would help in encouraging new investments in the sector, reducing contracting costs and timelines, and promoting cost efficiency in local content requirements. The Executive Orders are the Oil and Gas Companies (Tax Incentives, Exemption, Remission, ETC) Order 2024; Presidential Directive on Local Content Compliance Requirements, 2024 (EO 41); and Presidential Directive on Reduction of Petroleum Sector Contracting Costs and Timelines, 2024 (EO 42). Speaking at the Nigerian Content Tower in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, the Executive Secretary stated that the policy directives had reinforced the implementation of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Conten

March 31 Deadline For

LIRS, Chair, Mr Subair By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade Individual taxpayers in Lagos state have less than five weeks to file their Tax Returns, Lagos Internal Revenue Service ( LIRS) has said. The body, in statement, by its Executive Chairman, made available to the media and signed yesterday( Sunday) by its Head Corporate Communications, Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude, gave March 31, as deadline for filling of the Annual Tax Returns, adding that the development is in compliance with the stipulations containin the Personal Income Tax Amendment Act (PITA) Cap P8 2011. The statement added: " Under Section 41 of the Amendment Act, all taxable entities must submit a return reflecting their total income from all sources for the preceding fiscal year to the relevant state tax authority within 90 days of the commencement of each new assessment year. It quoted Mr. Subair as underscorimg the importance of adhering to the deadline as he urged all individual taxpayers, in

'NNPCL Deactivates 6, 465 Illegal Refineries'

Kyari By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has in the last two years, deactivated a total of 6,465 illegal refineries, its Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Mele Kyari, has said. The period is between 2022 to 2024.. He stated this yesterday ( Wednesday) during an oversight visit by the House of Representatives Special Committee on Oil Theft, to the headquarters of NNPCL in Abuja. Kyari, who decried the menace of oil theft, said no country surrenders the protection of such critical assets, which are our source of income, to non-state actors. He said, “It is very obvious that despite all the integrity issues with our pipeline and our facilities, we have capacity beyond 2 million barrels per day without doing anything. “But today, we are struggling to meet the budget estimate of 1.6 million barrels per day. This by no means is related to crude oil theft; no, it’s not true, but the core issue that is affecting t

'Seplat Wins Oil & Gas Award Of The Year'

By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade Seplat Energy Plc has emerged as the Oil & Gas Company of the Year during the recently concluded Annual Conference and Awards organised by the Newspaper in Abuja. According to the media, Seplat was recognised for striving to end routine flares in its operations by committing $11.5m towards projects that will end flaring and another $10.8m towards installing gas compression facilities at the flow stations in Amukpe, Oben and Sapele. The Newspaper said: “Seplat Energy is a leading supplier of processed natural gas to the expanding Nigerian domestic market with working interest gas volumes averaged 112.3 million metric standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd), 30 percent of processed gas used for electricity in Nigeria. “In 2023, the firm with listing in both the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges, committed $11.5m towards projects that will end routine flares in its operations, including $10.8m towards installing gas compression

Fed Govt Commissions Five Power Projects in Kogi, Edo & Three Other States

Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Federal Government has commissioned five power projects, with a view to improve supply of electricity in the country. The projects and their locations are in Okene, Kogi State, Amukpe, Delta State, Potiskum, Yobe State, Apo in Abuja, and Ihovbor, Edo State, under the phase one of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI). The phase one of the PPI is targeted at increasing Nigeria’s wheeling capacity by 272 megawatts, thus culminating in a more robust delivery of electricity to consumers across the nation. Speaking at the commissioning of the 60MVA Power Transformer yesterday, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, said: “Concurrently, we are remotely inaugurating four additional sites, namely Amukpe in Delta State, Potiskum in Yobe State, Apo in Abuja, and Ihvobor in Edo State. “This is why we commend the strides that have been made by the FGN Power Company under the Presidential Pow

CBN Revokes 4,173 Licences of BDC Operators

CBN's headquarters in Abuja By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it has revoked 4,173 licences of Bureaux De Change Operators in the country. The apex bank blamed the development on the refusal of the affected operators to observe the necessary regulatory provisions. The bank, in a statement issued yesterday, (Friday) by its Acting Director, Corporate Communications,Sidi Ali Hakama, said the move is part of efforts to restore confidence in the nation’s foreign exchange market. It noted that the list of affected BDC operators is available on the its website,adding that it is revising the regulatory and supervisory guidelines for Bureau de Change operations in Nigeria. The bank added that compliance with the new requirements will be mandatory for all stakeholders in the sector. It stated that the action is in exercise of the powers conferred on it under the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020, Act No. 5, and