Alison-Madueke, NNPC Donate to Bomb Victims

Fri, Apr 18, 2014

By publisher

9 MIN READ

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Dan Efebo, group executive director, corporate services, NNPC, who represented Alison-Madueke condemned the nefarious activities of the terrorists while visiting the two hospitals to see how injured victims were responding to treatment. She described unwarranted attacks on hapless Nigerians as barbaric. She thus, called on well-meaning Nigerians to team up with the federal government to stop the menace.

The minister while identifying with the injured victims, prayed God to grant the bereaved families the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss and rest to the souls of the departed. Receiving the representative of the petroleum minister and the NNPC team, Tony Okam, board chairman, National Hospital Abuja, commended minister and the NNPC for their show of solidarity at the moment of national disaster and used the opportunity to solicit for the donation of ambulances to help the prompt response to emergency by the hospital.

Speaking in the same vein, Abubakar Ahmadu, medical director, Asokoro District Hospital, Abuja, expressed gratitude to the minister and the NNPC for their kind gesture assuring that the equipment would go a long way in stabilising the health conditions of the victims of the bomb blast. The NNPC team would pay a similar visit to the Nyanya General Hospital on Tuesday, April 22, to extend the gesture to the victims in the hospital.

Refineries Increase Capacity Utilisation

THE Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has put the combined average capacity utilisation of Nigeria’s four refineries at 25.95 percent for the month of December 2013. According to the data from the NNPC’s December 2013 Monthly Petroleum Information, this is a significant improvement from the 6.46 percent average capacity utilisation of the refineries in November 2013, and a slight decline from the 30.87 percent utilisation year-on-year to December 2012.

The refineries are the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, KRPC, the two Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC, and the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, WRPC. Specifically, the NNPC put the respective average capacity utilisation of the refineries in December as follows: KRPC 32.96 percent, PHRC 4.48 percent, and WRPC 40.41 percent.

According to the NNPC, 388,000 metric tonnes, MT, of dry crude oil, condensate and slop was received by the refineries, in the month under review. “With an opening stock of 433,000MT, total crude oil available for processing was 816,000MT, out of which 403,000MT was processed. Total national domestic refining produced 368,000MT of finished and intermediate products. Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, which lifts products from the refineries evacuated 284,000MT of products,” it stated.

Meanwhile, in November 2013, the NNPC stated that 474,000MT of dry crude oil, condensate and slop was received by the refineries. With an opening stock of 215,000MT, the NNPC explained that total crude oil available for processing was 689,000MT, out of which 86,000MT was processed. It disclosed that the respective average capacity utilisation of the refineries in November 2013 was 19.37 percent for KRPC and zero percent for both PHRC and WRPC. “Total national domestic refining produced 84,000MT of finished and intermediate products. PPMC which lifts products from the refineries evacuated 225,000MT of products,” the NNPC said.

However, the NNPC said 40,314MT of products was used by the three refineries as fuel and loss, adding that consumption of fuel was 9.03 percent while loss and flare accounted for 0.98 percent of production in December. “NNPC Retail Limited and Independent Petroleum Products Marketing Companies distributed about 673.92 million litres of various petroleum products in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, in December. This shows an increase of 150.33 million litres or 22.31 percent when compared with 523.58 million litres distributed in November 2013. The NNPC Retail Limited distributed 140.66 million litres, 20.87 percent of the total sales of petroleum products, while the independent marketing companies distributed 533.26 million litres, representing 79.13 percent of the total.”

Getting More Nigerians to Use Cooking Gas

THE management of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG, limited has expressed commitment to support federal government’s efforts to get more Nigerians to switch to cooking gas by making the product available for consumption. Babs Omotowa, managing director, NLNG, who disclosed this in Abuja, on Monday, April 14, said the company was more determined to ameliorate the difficulties Nigerians were facing in accessing liquefied petroleum gas, LPG also known as cooking gas.

He said the use of cooking gas placed Nigerians at better advantages than the continued use of fire wood and kerosene, alternatives that have environmental and health disadvantages for citizens. “In addition to ameliorating the difficulties Nigerians are having with LPG, the NLNG commenced LPG distribution to the domestic market in 2007, and by that singular intervention brought down the price of cooking gas from N7,000 to N3,500 per 12.5 kg cylinder. We currently supply over 80 per cent of cooking gas, LPG, in Nigeria, and are increasing the volume to 250,000 metric tonnes per annum, MTA, representing 67 percent increase. NLNG’s business has strong impact on key microeconomic variables and our contribution to the Goss Domestic Product, GDP, rose to four percent in 2008.”

Omotowa pointed out that Nigeria’s strength is that with 187 trillion cubic feet, TCF, of proven gas reserves and 600TCF of unproven gas reserves,“ Nigeria has more than enough gas for both our domestic and export needs.” He noted that the country’s domestic power and petrochemical needs with all the expected exports from Brass LNG, OKLNG, come to less than 187tcf; “yet we still have 600tcf unproven reserves.

“To further illustrate this, Australia with only 60 percent of our proven gas reserves, generates more than 40,000 megawatts of power and is working to export 80,000mta, whereas all our three LNG plants will only come to 52,000m with the current plans. However, notwithstanding these historic achievements, we face significant challenges in the future, which we are already developing strategies to overcome. Internally, we face challenges of sustained feed gas supply as well as ageing plants and ships. Externally, the Shale Gas phenomenon and the expected start of mega LNG plants in Australia and East Africa, pose significant competition and threat to our business.

“As an insight into the extent of the threat, the huge unconventional shale gas discoveries in the USA, with over 100 years supply has led to the USA, who used to consume 10 per cent of world LNG, becoming an exporter. As a result, the LNG price in the US, the Henry Hub, has fallen from $15/million British thermal unit, mmbtu, in 2005 to less than $4.50/mmbtu today. Along with Australia, East Africa, etc., these supply potentials, if realised, may leave only a limited window of opportunity for the LNG projects to remain robust. The challenge being that whilst demand may continue to grow, pricing is likely to become depressed due to supply glut.

“NLNG can stay profitable and continue to deliver excellent value to the country, if we are able to play the number game of volumes in the global market. Part of the next phase of our company’s strategic response to the growing competition is the addition of a seventh train. When achieved, this will enable the NLNG to add some eight million metric tonnes to its current production capacity, and increase annual output to 30 million metric tonnes. This is potentially capable of monetising more of our gas, and yielding an estimated $3billion in additional revenues. More importantly, this will enable the creation of over 18,000 jobs during the construction phase, a deliverable that is in line with Mr President’s transformation agenda of creating jobs for the youths of the country.”

IPMAN On Global Challenges of Downstream Sector

THE Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, the umbrella body of petroleum marketers, has directed its members to focus more on sustainable revival of Nigeria’s petroleum downstream sector. IPMAN said that the need became imperative following the global challenges and dynamics of the sector.

The association’s new directive to its members was issued after its National Executive Council, NEC, meeting held in Lagos on Saturday, April 12. Danladi Pasali, media adviser to  IPMAN national president, who signed the communiqué on behalf of the president, said that  members need to focus on how to improve the socio-economic growth than creating national disorder.

According to him, “We urge members to embrace peace and unity with one another to move the association forward towards achieving the best desired unity.” Pasali said that the current administration wouldl ensure credible transition of new members at the appropriate time. He pledged the association’s commitment toward a credible election and assured that IPMAN would ensure effective distribution of petroleum products across the country.

The media adviser said that IPMAN’s leadership had appealed to the warring members to be law abiding in the interest of national development. “We are appealing to all our members to be law abiding, prepare for the upcoming elections which will soon be conducted for eligible candidates who wish to vie for any office at the national, zonal and depots positions  as the case may be. We also appeal to our members to carry on with their legal and normal businesses without the fear of anything in order to serve our fatherland, the association’s primary objective of supplying petroleum products throughout the country,” he said.

He explained that the tenure of Aminu Abdulkadri-led national executive would terminate on May 27, 2014, while the Federal High Court judgment in Port Harcourt, nullifying the Abdulkadri executive has been appealed against.

Compiled by Anayo Ezugwu

— Apr. 28, 2014 @ 01:00 GMT