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Nigeria’s Northeast Suffers String of Attacks by Boko Haram

ABUJA, Nigeria—Islamist terror group Boko Haram conducted a three-day spree of assaults that killed at least 42 people in northeast Nigeria, marking a grim beginning to the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari. The attacks began on Friday, when a bomb killed 10 people at a wedding in the town of Hawul, two residents said. The blast took place around the time Mr. Buhari was reciting his oath of office in the capital , Abuja, about 400 miles away. “Some of us managed to escape,” said Haruna Musa, who was at the wedding. The next day, a suicide bomber struck a market in Maiduguri, the largest city in northeast Nigeria, killing 16 people, a member of an anti-Boko Haram militia said. Maiduguri has been the focus of Boko Haram’s terror campaign over the past six years, and Mr. Buhari on Friday said Nigeria’s top generals will be relocated there to […]

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Islamic State militants in Libya ‘seize Sirte airport’

Militias withdrew from al-Ghardabiya airbase, also a civilian airport, on Thursday (file picture) Islamic State militants in Libya say they have seized the airport in the city of Sirte, as the group continues to make advances in the country. The news was announced by the group and by a Libyan militia that withdrew from the coastal city’s airport on Thursday. Most of Sirte, former leader Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown, fell to IS last week. In a statement, the group said it had also seized the Great Man Made River water project. The irrigation project, the world’s largest, supplies fresh water to Libyan cities and was also the base for the opposition Battalion 166, which has now fled. The battalion, and other Islamist militias, run the capital, Tripoli, although their government is not recognised by the international community. The al-Ghardabiya airport also housed an airbase, that was seized by militias after […]

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Oil Crunch, Islamist War, Power Cuts Face New Nigeria Leader

Nigerians queue to buy fuel at Mobil filling station in Abuja. Photographer: Stringer/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Crippling fuel shortages, power cuts, slowing economic growth and Islamist militants wreaking havoc. Muhammadu Buhari is taking on a tough job when he’s sworn in as Nigeria’s president on Friday. Former military ruler Buhari, 72, swept incumbent Goodluck Jonathan from office in March elections by pledging to end endemic corruption and Boko Haram’s rebellion in the north. His stewardship of Africa’s biggest oil producer, this time as elected president, may depend on the price of crude, which supplies the government with more than two-thirds of its income. “If you look at expectation and look at funding, there’s quite a gap,” Olusegun Sotola, a research fellow at the Lagos-based Initiative for Public Policy Analysis, said by phone. “Buhari is going to be running a government without the necessary funding, which is a big problem because […]

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Nigeria: Why Fuel Subsidy Must Go (II)

Lagos — As the world awaits the inauguration of Muhammadu Buhari as the President of Nigeria, controversy over the contentious fuel subsidy claims has taken a centre stage following the fuel scarcity that almost brought the country to its knees. This is coming as the Federal Government is said to have spent more than N6 trillion from 2006 to 2014 on fuel subsidies. Vanguard can now reveal the amount spent on subsidy since 2006. The table below shows the amount spent on subsidy from 2006: *2006 – N151.9 billion; *2007- N188 billion; *2008 – N256.3billion (January to July); *2009 – N421.5billion; *2010 – N673 billion; *2011 – (N1.3 trillion)revised to N2.19 trillion; *2012 – N888 billion + N161.6 billion supplementary *2013 – N971 billion; and, *2014 – N971.1 billion Although figures are now being bandied about by respective groups, but former President Olusegun Obasanjo reintroduced subsidy on fuel as […]

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Nigerian govt paying $800 million to oil suppliers to end fuel crisis crippling economy

The Associated Press By MICHELLE FAUL, Associated Press LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria’s outgoing government has agreed to pay a debt of $800 million to resolve a months-long fuel crisis crippling the economy days before the inauguration of a new president in the country, oil suppliers said Wednesday. Chaos reigned Tuesday at Nigerian airports where most flights were cancelled. Foreign airlines flew to other African countries to refuel. Cars and other vehicles formed queues two and three deep blocking roads for more than 2 kilometers (a mile) outside of gas stations. Attendants turned away people carrying yellow cans to buy kerosene for cooking. There was none. Banks started closing at lunchtime on Monday and cell phone companies warned they would be forced to shut down service countrywide for lack of diesel to fuel generators. Nigeria — Africa’s biggest oil producer— generates more than 2 million barrels of petroleum a […]

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Libyan Prime Minister Escapes Assassination Attempt

Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni on a visit to Tunis in March. ENLARGE Photo: mohamed messara/European Pressphoto Agency Libya’s internationally recognized prime minister escaped an assassination attempt, the latest sign of a widening security vacuum that is complicating European Union efforts to stem the flow of illegal migrants from the country. Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni was targeted Tuesday night when several unidentified gunmen shot at his motorcade as he left a parliamentary session in the eastern city of Tobruk, according to a member of parliament and security officials. Libya’s internationally recognized government is based in Tobruk while a rival administration opposed to Mr. Thinni is based in the capital Tripoli and controls the country’s west. Human smugglers have exploited Libya’s deep political crisis and insecurity to use the country as a launching ground for thousands of migrants —mostly African and Middle Eastern—making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean Sea. […]

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Total reaches production milestone in Angola

French energy company Total announces production milestone at offshore reserve area in Angola. Photo by James Jones Jr./Shutterstock PARIS, May 27 (UPI) — With 2 billion barrels of cumulative production from an offshore block in Angola, French energy company Total said Wednesday it set the global gold standard. Total announced it reached the milestone at its offshore Block 17 reserve area, located about 90 miles off the coast of Angola in deep waters. "Block 17 is a global benchmark in the deep offshore and represents a unique industrial adventure, with 15 discoveries and a very high level of production," Arnaud Breuillac, Total’s president of exploration and production," said in a statement. With more than 700,000 barrels of oil equivalent in production at the start of 2015, the French energy company said it’s the lead operator in Angola. Apart from Block 17, the company holds a 30 percent stake in […]

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Gunmen try to kill Libya’s recognized prime minister

AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko Interactive Interactives Buy AP Photo Reprints Multimedia Libya Opening Doors to Tourists BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — Gunmen tried to assassinate Libya’s internationally recognized prime minister on his way to the airport in the eastern city of Tobruk on Tuesday, a spokesman for his government said. Arish Said, head of the government’s media department, said that Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni’s motorcade was attacked and one of his guards was lightly wounded but that there were no fatalities. "They managed to escape," Said said. Prior to the attack, he said armed men who had been protesting outside a session of the Tobruk government’s House of Representatives tried to storm the building, firing shots into the air and demanding al-Thinni be removed from office. They were "threatening to kill the prime minister and force the House to sack him," Said said. He identified the men as being funded by […]

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Eni finds gas offshore Libya

MILAN, Italy, May 26 (UPI) — Italian energy company Eni announced Tuesday it made its second discovery of the year at an exploration prospect off the coast of Libya. Eni said it made a natural gas and condensate discovery in so-called Area 3, a reserve area about 85 miles off the Libyan coast. "The well represents the second discovery made by Eni in Libyan offshore Area D since the beginning of 2015," the company said in a statement. Production tests yielded a preliminary flow rate from the well at 1,340 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Eni estimates the well should be able to produce at least 3,000 boe per day at its peak. Before NATO forces intervened in Libyan civil war in 2011, the country was producing more than 1 million bpd. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in its latest market report said production from member-state Libya […]

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Libyan Prime Minister Survives Assassination Attempt Amid Protests

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — The prime minister of Libya ’s internationally recognized government survived an assassination attempt Tuesday after facing hostile questioning inside Parliament and demands for his resignation from armed protesters outside. The mayhem and violence broke out amid growing signs of divisions in the faction backing the government of Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni against a rival faction that has taken over the capital, Tripoli. If the conflicts and discord further threaten the stability of Mr. Thinni’s government, the result could cripple the United Nations-brokered talks aimed at bringing the two factions together and could further compound the chaos that has engulfed Libya since the fall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in 2011. It was unclear who was responsible for the assassination attempt. Armed forces allied with the government, which is based in Tobruk and Bayda, have been battling Islamist militants from Benghazi and Dernah. Last winter, militants hostile […]

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Peak Oil Dress Rehearsal?

This is extraordinary. Remember all those dire things that were supposed to happen when Peak Oil hit? All the stuff in The Long Emrgency? Cars queuing up for miles to buy petrol, public transportation jacking up rates, cell phones not working, banks closing their doors, planes grounded for lack of fuel, supermarkets stripped bare, scalpers selling gas in jerry-cans, factories shutting down, stations going off the air, people losing their jobs, political disorder, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria… Turns out all of it is happening…In Nigeria: Nigeria is facing a prolonged fuel-supply crisis that is taking a severe toll on the country’s economy, living conditions, and basic services, reports say. The shortage in Africa’s leading oil producer has forced an increasing number of drivers in Lagos to stop using their personal vehicles, but prices for commuters on public transport have more than doubled. Black market […]

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Report: South Sudan’s fate hinges on oil

Durability of Salva Kiir, president of South Sudan, may be closely linked to oil production in the war-torn country. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI JUBA, South Sudan, May 26 (UPI) — The political unity holding South Sudan together may hinge on battles over oil-producing regions along the country’s northern border, an analyst said. When it gained independence from Sudan in 2011, the landlocked country gained control over much of the oil-producing regions, but Sudan maintained its grip on export infrastructure. Conflict erupted in South Sudan in 2013 when Salva Kiir, the country’s president, accused former Vice President Riek Machar of staging a coup. Rebel forces two years on are waging battle for control over Paloch near the Sudanese border, the only part of South Sudan still producing oil. "Oil is South Sudan’s bread and butter," Luke Patey, a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies in Copenhagen, told […]

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Nigerian gas shortage resolved but new leader still faces major challenges

Hawkers sell gasoline in Abuja, Nigeria, on Monday. The country has been experiencing a severe scarcity of fuel. (Deji Yake / European Pressphoto Agency) Nigeria’s gasoline scarcity was resolved Monday, but only after the shortages had damaged the economy, canceled or diverted commercial flights, shut down radio stations and put mobile phone networks at risk. With incoming President Muhammadu Buhari set to be sworn in Friday, the opposition All Progressives Congress accused outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan of sabotaging the new administration. Buhari faces high expectations and myriad problems, including a government financial crisis partly caused by the fall in oil prices, a battle against the militant group Boko Haram in the country’s northeast, electricity outages, widespread corruption and poor infrastructure. In the final days of Jonathan’s term, the country has also faced dire gasoline shortages and millions in unpaid wages of government workers. The gasoline shortage began before the March election that […]

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Nigerian unions end strike that shut 100,000 b/d of oil output for week

Nigerian oil worker unions at state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and Nigerian Petroleum Development Company have called off a strike that shut about 100,000 b/d of production for a week, union and company officials said late Monday. The Pengassan and Nupeng unions started the strike May 18 to protest the transfer by the government of the operatorship of onshore oil block OML 42, sold by Shell to local firm Neconde. "Since the strike has been called off, other necessary things will follow," a NPDC spokesman said, referring to the restart of oil production at shut fields, without giving further details. Article continues below… For over 100 years Platts has been at the forefront of pricing and news in the energy markets. Today, we publish the essential information that you need to navigate the rapidly evolving commodity markets that Africa plays a key part in. Here you will find a […]

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Nigeria’s Energy Crisis Worsens – Only 5 of 23 Power Plants Functional

Nigeria’s energy crisis deteriorated Monday, as the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the government agency responsible for regulating operations in the electricity sector, reported that only five of the country’ 23 power plants are currently functional. By implication, Nigerians would now have to contend with a biting fuel supply crisis, which has almost grounded the economy for months, and lack of electricity to power. On Friday, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Power, Godknows Igali, had during a meeting with outgoing Vice-President, Namadi Sambo, in Abuja raised the alarm over the epileptic supply of electricity across the country. Mr. Igali, in the company of the Minister of Power, Chinedu Nebo, said the country’s dwindling electricity supply took a further nosedive to unprecedented all-time low level of 1,327 megawatts (MW) from the 4,800 MW level attained recently. He attributed the damning situation to the epileptic performance of most key power […]

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Nigeria: Fuel Crisis Grounds Economy

By Abel Orukpe, Tunde Opeseitan, Emma Nzomiwu, Chukwujekwu Ilozue And Temidayo Akinsuyi The lingering fuel crises caused by the refusal of oil marketers to lift and supply petroleum products until their demand for payment of oil subsidy is met by the federal government, appear to have affected virtually every sector of the Nigerian economy. Judicial activities at the various courts in Lagos were halted as those who managed to sit adjourned abruptly. In Enugu State, all the roads were deserted as the exorbitant cost of petrol forced motorists who could not afford to pay N200 per litre to either abandon their vehicles and trek or use commercial means of transportation. Also in Anambra State, business and social activities were almost shut down due to the crises. The price of petrol as at yesterday is said to have risen to between N180 to N250 per litre. Unfortunately, Mega stations from […]

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Nigerian Oil Dispute Exposes Dysfunction Ahead of Power Shift

By Drew Hinshaw And Patrick McGroarty LAGOS, Nigeria–The most oil-rich nation in Africa nearly ran out of gas this week. Airlines grounded flights because they couldn’t find jet fuel in recent days, and gas stations nearly all closed down. The companies licensed to restock Nigeria’s fuel depots refused to do so, saying the government here–defeated in an election in March–owed them more than $1 billion. The result was the worst fuel shortage here since a 1993 military coup, one that could echo for weeks in Africa’s top economy. Television stations, banks, and cellphone towers all went offline. Doctors worried their emergency rooms would go dark, and several soldiers in the north said they considered halting their pursuit of Boko Haram and the women the Islamist terrorist group has kidnapped. Late Monday, the shortage ended, when Nigeria’s government agreed to look into the debts it owed. On Tuesday, gas stations […]

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Nigeria: Fuel Crisis – Oil Workers Reach Agreement With Govt, Lifting Begins

The senate has intervened in the ongoing fuel crisis in the country leading to a commitment from all critical stakeholders to pave way for the lifting of fuel in the next six hours. This resolution was reached at the Senate inquest into the fuel crisis organised by the Senate Joint Committee on Petroleum Upstream and Downstream. LEADERSHIP recalls that sequel to a resolution of the Senate last week mandating its committees on petroleum resources (Upstream and Downstream) to investigate the persistent fuel scarcity in the country, the committees summoned the coordinating minister for the economy and finance minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and her petroleum ministry counterpart, Diezani Alison-Madueke, over the scarcity. Also invited by the joint committee, the group managing director of the NNPC, managing director, PPMC, director DPR, PPPRA, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) , Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and National Association of Road […]

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Nigeria’s Cocoa Industry Fears Shutdown Due to Fuel Shortage

By Obafemi Oredein Special to DOW JONES NEWSWIRES IBADAN, Nigeria–A severe shortage of petroleum products in Nigeria could shutdown the country’s cocoa industry, officials, traders and exporters said Monday. The nationwide shortage, now entering its fourth week, has affected the operations of commercial banks, telecommunication companies and the other key sectors of the economy. Commercial banks in Nigeria normally close at 4 pm local time, but a shortage of gasoline and diesel used to run generators is forcing them to shut earlier than normal. "If banks close down now, cocoa business is off," Monday Awulu, a senior official at Saro Agro Allied Ltd., a major cocoa exporting company in Nigeria, told Dow Jones Newswires. He said the severe petrol shortage didn’t have a major impact on the movement of cocoa, "but if diesel becomes difficult then cocoa movement becomes difficult as most of the vehicles we use are diesel-powered." […]

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Tanker-Driver Strike Worsens Nigeria Fuel Crisis: Flights Cancelled, Airwaves Go Quiet

A man carries jerrycans to search for fuel in Lagos, Nigeria, on May 21. ENLARGE Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty Images LAGOS, Nigeria—Nigerian airlines grounded flights on Saturday and radio stations were silenced, as a monthslong fuel shortage aggravated by striking oil-tanker drivers worsened in Africa’s biggest oil producer. Vehicles also were grounded. Normally bustling roads in Lagos, a metropolis of 20 million, were half-empty and gas stations closed on Saturday. One station owner said he had fuel, but strikers were threatening to set fire to any stations selling it. He insisted on anonymity for fear of reprisals. Police were arresting black marketers selling fuel at roadsides at four times the regulated 87 naira (40 cents) a liter. Meanwhile, radio stations went dead on Saturday night, including Classic FM, The Beat and City FM, hit by frequent power outages and out of diesel fuel for generators. Confusion reigned at bus stations […]

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Nigeria: Oil Workers’ Strike Cripples Activities Nationwide

Nigerians are sitting in long lines to purchase fuel for their cars and generators at high prices as the energy crisis in the country worsens. By Benrard Tolani Dada, Isaiah Benjamin, Juliet Alohan, Nnamdi Mbawike, Osa Okhomina The strike embarked upon by workers in the oil sector under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) over federal government’s transfer of the operatorship of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 42 to indigenous firms have resulted in a near collapse of business and commercial activities nationwide. The development is further compounded by the ongoing industrial action also embarked upon by the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) who have refused to lift petroleum products from the coastal depots in protest of the huge amounts owed them by […]

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Germany’s Wintershall Interested in Occidental’s Libyan Oil Assets

ENLARGE Illustration: Reuters Germany’s Wintershall Holding GmbH has expressed an interest in buying stakes in Libyan oil-and-gas assets from Occidental Petroleum Corp. OXY 0.18 % , Libyan officials said, a rare move by a western company to increase its foothold in the war-torn country. Houston-based Occidental has sought and obtained permission from Libya’s state-run National Oil Co. to allow Wintershall access to confidential data of fields it partly owns, Libyan officials said. “Occidental has been asking approval of NOC for disclosing information to Wintershall,” an official said. Occidental has been trying to sell up to a 40% stake in its Middle Eastern and North African interests since October 2013, as it tries to focus on its prolific North American assets. Its Libyan fields have been producing insignificant amounts, the company said in its 2014 report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as the country remains divided by a […]

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Nigeria: May 29 Handover – No Facts From Jonathan On Fuel Crisis – Buhari

APC Candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. By Levinus Nwabughiogu, Johnbosco Agbakwuru & Joseph Erunke Abuja — The president-elect, General Mohammadu Buhari, yesterday, lamented that the out-going administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has failed to provide the in-coming government with all the necessary information needed for a smooth take-off next week, particularly on how to tackle the current fuel scarcity in the country. The President-elect spoke on a day the Senate directed its committees on Petroleum Resources ( Upstream and Downstream ) to immediately commence investigation into the remote and immediate causes of the fuel crisis in the country. The Senate directive was sequel to the motion by the Deputy Senate Majority Leader, Senator Abdul Ningi, who had called on the lawmakers to pay serious attention to the fuel crisis that had created great hardship for Nigerians at the moment. Senator Ningi wondered why a country that has abundant oil resources should […]

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Nigeria — Africa’s largest oil producer — crippled by fuel shortages

Fuel shortage causing long lines in Nigeria 01:56 Lagos, Nigeria (CNN)Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer, but fuel shortages have paralyzed the country that just a year ago was declared Africa’s largest economy. At one gas station in Lagos, crowds push at the gates waving empty jerry cans. Cars queue for a kilometre down the road creating gridlock. Similar scenes are being repeated at almost every petrol station across Nigeria. "I’ve been here since 4 a.m. It’s not good," says local resident Abdulsalam Mohammed as he finally drives his car to the petrol pump. "Now it’s almost 3 p.m. Nobody can work today." "We are an oil producing country, very rich, a giant in Africa," says Seun Olewale, another driver who is carrying empty fuel cans. "But the experience we are getting now is so hard." The shortages have been going on since March despite the fact that, according […]

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Gaddafi’s home town falls to Islamic State in anarchic Libya

SIRTE, Libya Standing guard at his frontline post, Libyan soldier Mohammed Abu Shager can see where Islamic State militants are holed up with their heavy weaponry less than a kilometer away. The militants have effectively taken over former dictator Muammar Gaddafi’s home city of Sirte as they exploit a civil war between two rival governments to expand in North Africa. "Every night they open fire on us," said Abu Shebar, who with comrades on Sirte’s western outskirts holds the last position of troops belonging to one of the two warring Libyan governments, the General National Congress, which controls the capital Tripoli and most of the west of the country. "They are only active at night," he said, pointing to the militants’ position in a house just down the road blocked by sandbags. He sleeps in a shed next to his firing positions where used tank shells litter the ground. […]

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South Sudan Repels Rebels’ Oil-Field Attack

ENLARGE File pictures showing South Sudan President Salva Kiir, left, and the leader of South Sudan’s largest rebel group and former Vice-President Riek Machar. Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty Images KAMPALA, Uganda—South Sudan’s army has repelled a rebel attack on oil fields in Upper Nile state, allowing the country’s only functional crude oil facility to remain open, officials said Thursday. After capturing the Upper Nile state capital Malakal over the weekend, several thousand rebels loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar pushed toward the oil fields. But government troops backed by helicopter gunships, tanks and armored cars successfully defended one of the country’s major economic assets. “The rebels have been defeated” said military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer. “Oil fields are fully under our control”. By Wednesday evening both sides had lost dozens of fighters, but government troops beat back the rebel assault, the army and witnesses said. The rebel assault was […]

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Nigerians groan under biting petrol shortages over subsidy row

Business leaders in Africa’s leading oil producer Nigeria on Thursday warned that jobs could be at risk, as a weeks-long fuel crisis showed no signs of easing. Long queues have been seen for days outside filling stations, flights have been grounded and generators that kick in when the country’s patchy public electricity supply goes off have run silent, leaving many without power. "Many companies have shut down because they cannot get diesel to fuel their plants," Musa Yusuf, of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told AFP. "Unless the situation is redressed, companies may be forced to lay off (staff)." Addressing the crisis looks likely to be the first major task for incoming president Muhammadu Buhari, who takes office next Friday. – Empty tanks – Nigerian motorists have borne the brunt of the shortages, with long queues at petrol stations in major cities such as Lagos, the capital […]

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OMV unsure about Yemen, Libya

Austrian energy company OMV said it’s unsure about future operations in Libya and Yemen. File Photo By Dona_Bozzi/Shutterstock. VIENNA, May 19 (UPI) — Production of natural reserves in Libya and Yemen may be shuttered for the rest of the year because of ongoing violence, Austrian energy company OMV said. The end of the regime of Moammar Gadhafi in Libya divided the country along ethnic and tribal lines. Libyan oil production has been about half of the peak capacity above 1 million barrels per day. For Yemen, a pan-Arab offensive led by Saudi Arabia was meant to restore order in a restive country under pressure from the Houthi movement, a Shiite group. While not a major oil producer, the country hosts one of the busiest oil shipping lanes in the world. OMV in a financial report said first quarter production was down nearly 5 percent from the previous quarter to […]

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Libya’s State Oil Company Reassures West of Its Independence

LONDON—Libyan National Oil Co. officials have launched a charm offensive to reassure foreign companies that are increasingly nervous over the use of oil payments and security arrangements in the war-torn country. The state-run oil company has been caught in the middle of a conflict playing out since the ouster and death of dictator Moammar Gadhafi, dividing the country between an internationally recognized government in the city of Bayda and an Islamist militia, Libya Dawn, that controls the country’s capital of Tripoli. The industry has also been rattled by attacks by the radical Islamic State, worker strikes and sabotage of oil facilities. Amid the mounting chaos, National Oil Co. and Libyan Central Bank officials have met with international energy companies to assure them that their oil payments are being managed transparently and independently, the company’s chairman, Mustafa Sanallah, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Monday. “We […]

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Libya’s NOC chief sees higher oil prices, not relying on OPEC

LONDON The head of Libya’s National Oil Corp (NOC) sees higher oil prices and said the company is working to boost output and regain market share taken by other producers. Speaking on a visit to London, NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanallah said he saw signs of oil demand increasing across the globe and a fall in the supply of shale oil in the United States. "There is a general consensus that oil prices will recover. The worst of the market is behind us now," he said on Tuesday at the Platts Global Crude Oil Summit. "It is expected that the oil price will start to rise by the beginning of the second half of this year and continue to rise in 2016." Brent crude was trading at around $65 a barrel, up from a low near $45 seen in January but still nearly half the level set in June 2014 […]

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Islamic State Solidifies Foothold in Libya to Expand Reach

ENLARGE An image made available by an Islamist media outlet in February purports to show Islamic State militants parading in the Libyan coastal city of Sirte. Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty Images Islamic State leaders in Syria have sent money, trainers and fighters to Libya in increasing numbers, raising new concerns for the U.S. that the militant group is gaining traction in its attempts to broaden its reach and expand its influence. In recent months, U.S. military officials said, Islamic State has solidified its foothold in Libya as it searches for ways to capitalize on rising popularity among extremist groups around the world. “ISIL now has an operational presence in Libya, and they have aspirations to make Libya their African hub,” said one U.S. military official, using an acronym for the group. “Libya is part of their terror map now.” Islamic State’s growth as a powerful anti-Western force has militant groups […]

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Nigeria: Shell Shuts Down Nigeria’s Crude Export Pipeline

The Trans Nigeria Pipeline that carries Nigeria’s Bonny Light crude oil to an export terminal has been shut down since May 12, a Shell spokeswoman said on Thursday. While neither the reason for the shut down nor its expected duration have been disclosed as at the time of filing this report, traders affirmed that Bonny Light loadings have been delayed by up to four days over the past week. This development is taking place about a week after the Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Shell, declared force majeure on exports of Nigeria’s Forcados crude oil stream. "Force majeure" is a legal term releasing a company from contractual obligations when faced with circumstances beyond its control. It declared force majeure on the evening on May 5 following "a series of leaks" in the Trans Forcados pipeline that brings the oil to the export terminal. The pipeline itself is operated by the Nigerian […]

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Algeria Replaces Oil Minister Ahead of OPEC Meeting — State News Agency

By Benoit Faucon and Michael Amon Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has replaced the country’s oil minister ahead of a crucial OPEC meeting, the country’s state-run news service said on Thursday. Salah Khebri, a consultant and the former head of the Algerian Petroleum Institute, replaces Youcef Yousfi as the country’s minister of energy and mines, said APS, the news agency. Mr. Yousfi, 74 years old, a long-serving Algerian politician, was the president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in 1998 and 1999. He was named oil minister in 2010. Algeria will be among 12 OPEC nations that gather in Vienna on June 5 to decide whether to continue pumping increasing amounts of oil in the face of falling prices. Like other OPEC nations, Algeria’s budget is highly dependent on oil revenue and has been hurt by prices that have fallen by more than 40% since last summer. Mr. […]

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Nigeria: Missing U.S.$20 Billion – Sanusi Faults Alison-Madueke, Says Audit Report Proves At Least U.S.$18.5 Billion Lost

A former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Lamido Sanusi, has reacted to the recent audit report by PricewaterhouseCoopers on the alleged missing $20 billion oil money, saying the report has confirmed in the first instance that at least $18.5 billion was indeed missing. Mr. Sanusi faulted the petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, who said the report had exonerated the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, earlier accused of diverting the money. In an opinion article published by the Financial Times of London, Mr. Sanusi, who is now the Emir of Kano, said the argument that the outstanding amount was used by the NNPC for apparently unlawful purposes such as kerosene subsidy, does not dismiss the notion that the NNPC illegally withheld billions of oil dollars from the government. "Contrary to the claims of petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke, the audit report does not exonerate the NNPC. It establishes that […]

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Nigeria: Crude Oil Prices Rise Higher Than 2015 Budget Benchmark

Crude oil prices have continued to be on an upward swing in the last few days, signalling hope of better economic fortunes for Nigeria and other Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Brent crude futures rose towards $66 yesterday, which is far above the approved $53 per barrel benchmark for crude oil in Nigeria’s 2015 budget. The price of OPEC basket of 12 crudes stood at $62.03 a barrel on Monday, while it recorded $62.44 the previous Friday. June Brent crude was up 88 cents at $65.79 (£42.02) a barrel by 14.52 London time, easing back from an intraday high of $66.45 a barrel. June West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 58 cents to $59.83 a barrel, after touching $60.55 a barrel earlier in the day. Meanwhile, OPEC has warned against price speculators, accusing them of contributing to the uncertainty in crude oil prices. Speaking on the recent uncertainty in […]

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Doctors Group Recounts Migrant Rescue as E.U. Plans Crackdown on Smuggling Rings

Photo Migrants waited to exit the Phoenix after arriving in Sicily. The ship rescued them from dinghies stranded in the Mediterranean. Credit Francesco Malavolta/Associated Press UNITED NATIONS — Loaded with life jackets, medics and search-and-rescue teams, the ship sailed from port in Malta early last Thursday morning in search of migrants stranded at sea. The first dinghy was found by midday, a wooden fishing boat, piled with 118 people, including 25 children, said Will Turner, head of a Doctors Without Borders team on board. The sea was rough. The wind swept the boat from side to side in six-foot swells, he recalled. The toughest part was ensuring that the babies — there were nine children under 5 — could be handed over safely, not dropped into the water or crushed between the boats. Mr. Turner told this story on Friday in a Skype interview from the ship, the Phoenix, […]

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The Nigerian military is so broken, its soldiers are refusing to fight

LAGOS, Nigeria — As the Nigerian military battled Boko Haram over the past year, scores of soldiers made a decision that would put their lives in grave danger — they refused to fight. It wasn’t for lack of bravery, they said. It was for lack of weapons. At least 66 of the soldiers have been found guilty of mutiny and sentenced to death by firing squad. Dozens more remain in detention, awaiting trial. The Nigerian government describes them as cowards. Their supporters say they are scapegoats. “They joined the army to fight, not to commit suicide,” said Femi Falana, an attorney for 59 of the soldiers. The cases have opened a rare window into the Nigerian military, once one of the strongest in Africa but now struggling to combat an insurgency of several thousand fighters. Rebuilding the army is a major challenge for Muhammadu Buhari, who assumes the presidency […]

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Power Outages Mar South Africa’s Economic Expansion

ENLARGE DRDGOLD sends 60,000 tons of sludge through its machinery every day to extract traces of gold at its processing plant in Brakpan, South Africa. Photo: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg News BRAKPAN, South Africa—It takes a lot of power to extract traces of gold from the 60,000 tons of sludge DRDGOLD Ltd. DRD -4.05 % sends through its machinery here each day. That is something that the Johannesburg-based company hasn’t been able to count on recently. “It’s a worrying thing that you’ve got to watch all the time,” said Niël Pretorius, DRDGOLD’s chief executive. South Africa used to be one of the few countries on the continent where most people had reliable access to electricity. But a lack of maintenance and investment has pushed state-run power provider Eskom Holdings Ltd. into a daily crisis as it struggles to meet demand. Blackouts are threatening to drive Africa’s second-largest economy off a cliff, […]

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Nigeria subsidy fears threaten worse fuel shortage

* Queues for petrol worsen across the country * Importers hold back over subsidy fears * Buhari government faces backlog of payments By Libby George and Julia Payne LONDON/ABUJA, May 8 (Reuters) – Fuel shortages are set to worsen in Nigeria as international traders and local marketers back away from imports over fears that the cash-strapped new government will halt costly subsidy payments. Already, lines at petrol stations in the major cities are blocking traffic as Africa’s largest crude oil exporter runs out of domestic fuels. The shortage in some rural areas is even more acute due to a payment battle between independent retailers and the government. "We have exhausted our stocks," said Stanley Yakubu, a worker at the Forte Filling Station in the Maitama neighborhood of Abuja. "We thought government and marketers have resolved their issues but supply is very slow in coming." Traders said new bookings for […]

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Marathon: Libyan uncertainty remains

Uncertainty remains over Libya oil sector amid civil unrest, Marathon Oil said in a quarterly report. Photo By Dona_Bozzi/Shutterstock HOUSTON, May 7 (UPI) — There’s a "considerable" amount of uncertainty surrounding production from Libyan oil reserves, Marathon Oil said in a quarterly report. Marathon left Libya out of its forecasts in its quarterly report, noting it took no oil from Libya this year. In December, the Libyan National Oil Corp. declared force majeure, absolving itself from contractual obligations because of circumstances beyond its control, at key terminals because of civil unrest. "Considerable uncertainty remains around future timing of production and sales levels, and Marathon Oil continues to exclude production from Libya in its production forecasts," the U.S. company said in a Wednesday statement. Libya has been unable to coordinate political efforts across the wide range of groups vying for more power since civil war ended formally in 2011. Before […]

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Nigeria Borrows Money to Pay Government Salaries

Africa’s richest economy is borrowing money to pay salaries as it struggles through a "difficult cash crunch" brought on by halved oil prices, Nigeria’s finance minister revealed. The news comes as Nigeria prepares to welcome a new government at the end of this month and the country’s naira currency remains in a slump, hovering between 180 and 220 to the US dollar. It was trading at 160 a few months ago. Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala tried to be upbeat in a speech on Tuesday after lawmakers approved the 2015 budget – revised three times because of slashed oil prices that provide 80 percent of revenue for the government of Africa’s biggest petroleum producer. She said "revenue challenges" had prohibited the release of any funds for capital expenditure this year but that food prices and single-digit inflation remained quite stable. And she said the economy still was on course to grow […]

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Halt to Libya’s Zueitina oil port, linked fields cuts output more

TRIPOLI/BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – All crude flows to Libya’s Zueitina port have stopped after protesters demanding jobs blocked a pipeline, forcing the closure of several eastern oilfields, oil officials said on Tuesday. State oil firm NOC confirmed the port closure, reported by Reuters on Monday, but did not specify the impact on production. The closure should lower oil output to as low as 400,000 barrels a day, according to estimates based on previous production figures. "The protesters closed the pipeline to the port," Mohamed El Harari, spokesman for state oil firm NOC, said. He said that several oilfields in eastern Libya would have to close. "This will have a big impact on oil production," he said, without giving a figure. A port official said the security situation at the terminal was normal, adding that the port would technically stay open. Libyan oil ports and oilfields regularly have to shut […]

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Libyan oil exports to slow as protests block pipeline to Zueitina port: sources

Exports from Libya’s 70,000 b/d capacity Zueitina oil export facility are likely to slip after protesters blocked a pipeline feeding the port, sources said Tuesday. The latest wave of civil unrest in Libya — this time said to be workers demanding improved pay and conditions at the port — could see the North African country’s oil exports drop further from already significantly reduced levels. Production in Libya has fallen to an estimated 400,000 b/d with exports likely to be only half that after output was shut in at the major Elephant (El Feel) field in late April, adding to the ongoing disruption elsewhere in the country. At Zueitina, loadings continue from stockpiles, one trading source said, but that could not continue indefinitely. Article continues below… "Exports from stock are still going on [but] if the unrest remains, Zueitina will be [exporting] less," the source said. Another said the disruption […]

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Protesters close eastern Libyan oil port of Zueitina: port engineer

TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Protesters demanding state jobs have shut down the eastern Libyan oil export port of Zueitina, a port engineer said on Monday. No more information was immediately available. Libyan oil ports and oilfields regularly have to shut down due to protesters seizing them or armed groups fighting for control of the facilities. The protesters were complaining they had not been hired by the state as promised by a previous oil minister, said the engineer, asking not to be named. "They closed a pipeline leading to the port," he said. Zueitina is one of the few Libyan ports still exporting oil as the largest have closed due to fighting or blocked oilfields connected to them, part of turmoil gripping the North African country four years after the ousting of Muammar Gaddafi. Zueitina port, located near the main eastern city of Benghazi, has closed several times since 2011 due […]

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The Devastation of Energy Poverty

The McKinsey Company has recently issued a report, Powering Africa.  The first sentence makes a statement that is obvious—“There is a direct correlation between economic growth and electricity supply”.  It goes on to state that “if sub-Saharan Africa is to fulfill its promise, it needs power—and lots of it”.  The sub-Saharan region is starved for electricity, as are many other emerging economies.  According to McKinsey, no matter what criterion is used—energy access, installed capacity, or consumption, the region’s power sector is seriously underdeveloped. Without access to commercial energy, countries cannot achieve, much less sustain economic growth.  Although the region’s potential capacity is great, electric power access is severely limited.  McKinsey notes that Countries with electrification rates of less than 80 percent of the population consistently suffer from reduced GDP per capita.  Even countries like Angola and Gabon that have significant natural resources, still have electrification rates under 80 percent.  […]

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Libyan protesters end strike at eastern port of Brega: spokesman

BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – Protesters have ended a strike at state-run Sirte Oil Co in eastern Libyan port of Brega which had forced the closure of the Irda gas field, a company spokesman said on Sunday. "We have reached an agreement with the protesters to end their strike," the spokesman said. The protesters had demanded jobs at the oil firm and had prevented staff from working at the company’s headquarters. It was not immediately clear whether the Irda field had resumed work. (Reporting by Ayman al-Warfalli; writing by Ulf Laessing ; editing by Jason Neely )

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Central Tunisia discovery yields 4,300 b/d

The Chouchet El Atrous-1 (Cat-1) well, drilled by Mazarine Energy Tunisia BV in the Zaafrane permit in central Tunisia, has discovered two net oil-bearing reservoirs with combined 38-m net pay. Primary objectives of the Cat-1 were to test the Ordovician El Hamra and El Atchane formations. Each zone has confirmed 19-m net pay. On test, the Cat-1 flowed 4,300 bo/d and 395,000 cu m/day of natural gas. The Cat-1 is the first of a two-well campaign, the company said. Compagnie Tunisienne de Forage drilled the Cat-1 well, which reached a total depth of 3,950 m. The DGH-1 well will follow. The Zaafrane permit spans an area of 5,168 sq km in central Tunisia. Mazarine Energy is the operator of the permit, with state-owned Enterprise Tunisienne d’Activites Petrolieres (ETAP) and Medex Petroleum (Tunisia) Ltd. as partners.

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Uganda: Refinery Will Take Five Years to Complete

Repairs to the railway network operated by RVR in Kenya and Tanzania. Transport infrastructure remains a challenge as Uganda readies itself for oil production. Uganda’s planned crude oil refinery will take five years to complete, a representative of the firm that won the bid to build the multi-billion 60,000 barrels per day facility has revealed. Andrey Kozenyashev, the Regional Representative of RT Global Resources in East Africa told an industry meeting convened by the Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum in Kampala yesterday that the company anticipates to complete the project in 2020 at the earliest. "After signing the agreement, it will take one and a half years to do the designs and then three years for construction of the facility," Kozenyashev said. The RT-Global Resources-led consortium beat off a challenge from another consortium led by South Korea’s SK Group to win the $2.5 billion project that will involve […]

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Nigeria: Fuel Crisis – Marketers Deny Receiving Payment From Govt, Say Strike Continues

Despite the claim by the Federal Government that N156 billion was released on Thursday to oil marketers to facilitate the quick resolution of the current fuel crisis, the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), has said normal lifting of fuel will not resume till their members’ accounts are duly credited by the banks. As at 4.35 p.m. on Thursday, the Executive Secretary, Depot & Petroleum Products Marketers Association(DAPPMA), Odufemi Adewole, told PREMIUM TIMES in a telephone interview that none of its members and their counterparts in the Major Oil Marketers Association(MOMAN), had confirmed receiving any payment. "The money government said it was paying to marketers has not yet hit our accounts. So, there is little we can do about the situation," Mr, Adewole said. "The money the Minister of Finance promised to pay us last February did not get into our hands till about four or five weeks […]

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Ghana told to stop oil drilling

Ghana told to stop oil drilling thumbnail Ghana has been told by an international tribunal not to begin any new offshore drilling for oil in disputed waters with the Ivory Coast. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea did, however, allow Ghana to continue developing current oilfields. These include the so called-Ten fields, part owned by UK firm Tullow Oil. Ivory Coast had asked that all drilling be suspended, but the tribunal ruled this would risk “considerable financial loss” to Ghana. Instead, it told the West African nation to “take all necessary steps to ensure than no new drilling either by Ghana or under its control takes place in the disputed area” and to “refrain from granting any new permit for oil exploration and exploitation in the disputed area”. ‘Call for restraint’ The area is believed to contain large reserves of oil, which both countries are keen […]

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