Category: West Africa

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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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