Electricity supply in Nigeria dropped from 3,000 megawatts to 847.97mw

At least, 18 out of the 23 power plants in the country are unable to generate electricity due shortage of gas supply to the thermal plants.
Also, one of the hydro stations is currently faced with water management challenges. This has led to loss of over 2,000megawatts in the national grid.

Electricity supply has dropped from about 3,000 megawatts, mw to 847.97mw.

This situation is further compounded by the recent industrial actions embarked upon by workers in the oil and gas industry, a development which is taking toll on other sectors of the economy. Gas supplies to the thermal plants have been further constrained by the industrial actions of workers in the oil and gas industry.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission had proactively engaged the gas supply companies and its licencees when two weeks ago discussion was held on how to firm up gas supply in order to increase power supply.

Nigerians make Forbes’ most powerful women list

Nigeria’s Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been named among the most powerful women in the world by Forbes.

Also on the list is Nigerian billionaire, Folorunsho Alakija, who occupies the 87th spot. Okonjo-Iweala, who also recently received an honorary degree from Yale, is number 48 on the list.

Find their profiles and the full list below:

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala:
The minister of finance for Nigeria, has helped the country's economy, the largest in Africa, grow an average of 6% (per annum) over three years.

She is credited with developing reform programs that helped improve governmental transparency and stabilizing the economy. Okonjo-Iweala is the first woman to be the finance minister and the foreign minister of the West African country with a GDP of $502 billion.

But the start of the year has been difficult for Nigeria. The country voted in former general Muhammadu Buhari as president, ousting long-time President Goodluck Jonathan, with the hope he will help fight against the local terrorist group Boko Haram.

Harvard- and M.I.T.-trained Okonjo-Iweala spent 21 years as a development economist at the World Bank.

Folorunsho Alakija:

The richest self-made woman in Africa and one of just two female billionaires on the continent. Folorunsho Alakija's first company was an upscale fashion label that catered to Nigeria's elite, including the wife of the former military president, Ibrahim Babangida.

This connection paid off: the president later gave Alakija's company a prospecting license for one of the most lucrative oil fields in Nigeria. The drop in oil prices has dented the fortune of Alakija, one of just two women billionaires in Africa.

Find the full list below:

                            Angela Merkel       

                            Hillary Clinton       

                            Melinda Gates       

                            Janet Yellen            

                            Mary Barra

                            Christine Lagarde 

                            Dilma Rousseff      

                           Sheryl Sandberg    

                            Susan Wojcicki      

                            Michelle Obama   

                            Park Geun-hye      

                            Oprah Winfrey     

                            Ginni Rometty       

                            Meg Whitman       

                            Indra Nooyi

                            Cristina Fernández de Kirchner

                            Irene Rosenfeld    

                            Ana Patricia Botín

                            Abigail Johnson     

                            Marillyn Hewson  

                            Beyoncé Knowles 

                            Marissa Mayer      

                            Helen Clark            

                            Safra Catz   

                            Angela Ahrendts   

                           Ellen Kullman         

                            Michelle Bachelet 

                            Anna Wintour       

                           Ursula Burns           

                           Arundhati Bhattacharya 

                            Sri Mulyani Indrawati     

                            Ruth Porat  

                            Lucy Peng   

                            Loretta Lynch        

                            Chanda Kochhar   

                            Federica Mogherini         

                            Gina Rinehart        

                            Nancy Pelosi          

                            Adena Friedman   

                            Ewa Kopacz

                            Queen Elizabeth II

                            Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi

                            Ho Ching     

                            Laurene Powell Jobs        

                            Renée James          

                            Drew Gilpin Faust            

                            Ertharin Cousin     

                            Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala      

                            Samantha Power 

                            Ellen DeGeneres   

                            Amy Hood  

                            Bonnie Hammer   

                            Mary Callahan Erdoes     

                            Angelina Jolie                    

                            Beth Comstock      

                            Phebe Novakovic 

                            Sofía Vergara        

                            Donna Langley      

                            Sheikh Hasina Wajed      

                            Katie Jacobs Stanton       

                            Arianna Huffington         

                            Margaret Chan     

                            Mary Jo White      

                            Taylor Swift           

                            Rosalind Brewer   

                            Nemat (Minouche) Shafik         

                            Lubna S. Olayan   

                            Peng Liyuan

                            Zhang Xin   

                            Güler Sabanci        

                            Elvira Nabiullina    

                            Elizabeth Holmes  

                            Tory Burch 

                            Dana Walden        

                            Diane von Furstenberg               

                           Carol Meyrowitz   

                           Mary Meeker        

                            Solina Chau

                            Miuccia Prada       

                            Katharine Viner    

                            Shakira Mebarak  

                            Yao Chen    

                            Fabiola Gianotti    

                            Padmasree Warrior         

                            Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw  

                            Kaci Kullmann Five           

                            Folorunsho Alakija           

                            Judy Faulkner

                            Patricia Harris       

                            Gwynne Shotwell 

                            Sara Blakely           

                            Risa Lavizzo-Mourey       

                            Shobhana Bhartia

                            Beth Brooke-Marciniak  

                            Weili Dai     

                            Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf       

                            Raja Easa Al Gurg 

                            Jenny Lee    

                            Greta Van Susteren         

                            Lee Boo-Jin 

Why Ifeanyi Uba Had 70m Litres of Fuel When Petrol Became Really Scarce

The Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA), has revealed why Ifeanyi Uba's Capital Oil had millions of litres of petrol when scarcity of the product became really high in recent days, The Sun reports.

In a statement signed by its Executive Secretary, Mr. Olufemi Adewole, the association explained that ‘‘Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited does not participate in the petroleum subsidy scheme having been disqualified from the ‘PSF scheme’ by the government regulatory agency hence it does not import PMS (petrol).

 "The company is not owed a kobo under the ‘PSF scheme as it cannot make any claim hence it does not feel the impact of non-payment of subsidy reimbursements; instead the company stores petroleum products for NNPC/PPMC under a ‘throughput arrangement’ like a few other members of our association.

FG to Revoke Licenses of Stations Selling Fuel Above N87/Litre

The Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, in a statement has warned petrol stations selling fuel above N87/litre to desist from such act or face the punishment of getting its license revoked.

The statement by its Head Public Affairs, Dorothy Bassey, also tasked Nigerians to report any marketer who sells the product above the regulated price to its officials or law enforcement agents.

“No station should sell in jerry cans as there is enough fuel and for safety reasons. Any station caught dispensing into jerry cans will be sealed.

Petrol distribution resumes but disruption persists

Fuel supplies slowly resumed in Nigeria on Tuesday after a strike by fuel marketers was called off, but long queues at petrol stations and interruptions to businesses persisted in Africa's biggest economy and oil producer.

The dispute, which ended on Monday, brought much of Nigeria to a standstill as private generators that produce most of the electricity for the nation's 170 million inhabitants ran out of fuel, days before the inauguration of Muhammadu Buhari as the new president on May 29.

Nigeria subsidizes gasoline and must import the bulk of the 40 million litres a day that it consumes owing to a neglected refining system. A dilapidated power grid means businesses and households depend on diesel for electricity.

Fuel importers said they were owed money by the government and shut depots to press their case.
Besides airlines, which could not obtain aviation fuel, phone companies such as MTN Group and domestic banks had ground to a halt for lack of electricity.

MTN said on Tuesday that its Nigerian services continued to be hampered despite the end of the fuel strike.
"Diesel is still not easily available at this time...It is likely to take some time for normality to be restored," Funmilayo Onajide, a spokeswoman for the company, said.

Fuel Scarcity: Black marketers source product from Cotonou

The lingering scarcity of petroleum products in the country which has caused petrol to be sold at between N4,500 and N5,000 per five litres has forced Nigerians to source the product from Cotonou.

The country which is the world’s sixth largest oil producer has been in fuel crisis for more than two weeks.

On Monday, petrol sold for between N4,500 and N5,000 per litre along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway as black marketers claimed they sourced the product from neighbouring Cotonou in the Republic of Benin which is not an oil producing country.

Hundreds of passengers were stranded at bus stops while vehicle owners groaned under the high price of the products occasioned by the ongoing strike by petroleum marketers.

A petrol hawker, who identified himself as Simpson Samuel, saidthat he bought five litres from Cotonou and resold it for N5, 000 in Lagos.

“I purchased this fuel for 800 Cedis a litre, which is equivalent of N3,500.

“We have been at filling stations along this Badagry road, but we did not get fuel. Some of our colleagues directed us to Cotonou and that is where we bought these ones. Many people who have also gone there cannot buy because of the rush by our people,’’ Samuel said.

In other parts of Lagos, some black marketers sold between N5, 000 and N6, 000.

At a filling station located at the Agric bus top, along the Badagry Expressway, fuel was sold for N300 per litre.

Mr Francis Johnson, General Secretary, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PENGASSAN), advised the incoming government to declare a state of emergency in the oil and gas industry.

Johnson attributed the leakages in the nation’s revenue to the importation of refined petroleum products.

He added that the situation was creating jobs for the nations Nigeria was importing the refined product from and causing unemployment for Nigerians.

According to him, the continued importation of refined petroleum products was putting the Naira under pressure and creating social problems for the economy.

He said that there was the need for stakeholders to meet and fashion out a strategy to be adopted in stopping the importation of petroleum products.

The Chairman of Capital Oil, Mr Ifeanyi Uba, had on Sunday promised to release 13 million litres fuel which amounts to of 400 tankers of fuel.

He also promised to release 70 million litres subsequently, while denying knowledge of the ongoing strike by petroleum marketers and tanker drivers.

Uba said it was sad that Nigerians, especially those that provided healthcare service were suffering because of the scarcity.

Meanwhile, banks and other financial institutions have announced that they would close business at 1 p.m. because of the situation.

The telecommunications companies have also announced closure of some of their services from today till the situated improves.

Nigeria’s energy crisis worsens; only 5 of 23 power plants functional — NERC

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 plants in the country, including those located in at Utorogu, Chevron Oredo, Oben gas-fired power plants, as well as Ughelli and Chevron Escravos power plant, which have all been shut down.

Mr. Igali also spoke of the closure of the National Integrated Power Plants (NIPPs), including Nigeria’s largest power plant at Egbin, Olorunshogo 1 & 11, Omotosho 1& 11, Geregu I & 11, Ihonvor and Sapele on the western axis and Alaoji on the eastern end.

Late on Monday, the Chairman of NERC, Sam Amadi, said the current acute shortage of electricity supply to consumers was as a result of 18 of the country’s 23 power plants not generating electricity at the moment.

Mr. Amadi acknowledged the attendant hardship the situation had imposed on Nigerians, and appealed for calm, saying the government was doing all within its powers to improve the situation.

In the last couple of months, he said electricity supply has been poor generally on account of increased vandalism prior to the April 2015 elections. He said since then the poor supply condition has grown worse in the last few days.

“At present, 18 out of the 23 power plants in the country are unable to generate electricity due to shortage of gas supply to the thermal plants, with one of the hydro stations faced with water management issue. This has led to loss of over 2,000 megawatts in the national grid,” Mr. Amadi said.

He said the situation was further compounded by the strike action by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) chapter of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).

The strike, he explained, had seriously affected all other sectors in the energy supply chain of the economy, particularly gas supply to the thermal power plants.

Although the Chairman said the Commission had recently engaged the gas supply companies and its licensees on strategies to boost gas supply to power plants, he expressed regrets that not much progress was made.

He blamed the poor outcome on the inability of the NNPC and its subsidiary, the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) to maintain regular supply, due to the high incidence of vandalism on the Trans-Forcados pipeline in the western axis and Escravos-Lagos gas pipeline in the eastern axis.

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) had on Sunday reported another systems collapse at Shiroro power plant, which reduced the level of electricity supply to Abuja zone to just 15 MW, from about less than 200MW daily enjoyed in recent times.

Banks resumes normal hours following fuel strike suspension

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) has resumed normal banking hours following the suspension of the oil marketers’ strike which led to a severe fuel scarcity in the country.

The strike was called off on Monday, May 25, 2015, following a meeting between the marketers and the Federal Government.

GTB announced the resumption of its usual schedule via a statement released to customers on Monday.

It reads in part:

“We are pleased to inform you that from tomorrow, Tuesday, 26th of May 2015, all our branches nationwide will resume normal banking hours of 8am – 5pm for all your banking services, as the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have announced the suspension of the petroleum product strike.”

“Thank you for bearing with us during the 1 day early closure period, and we sincerely apologise for every inconvenience this might have caused you.”

The bank and several others had announced the early closure measure in a bid to cope with the lack of fuel in the country.

Other banks who closed early include First City Monument Bank (FCMB), WEMA bank and First bank.

MTN says Nigeria services still impacted despite end to fuel strike

 

Africa's largest telecoms operator, MTN Group, said on Tuesday that its Nigerian services continued to be hampered despite the end of a fuel strike on Monday.

Nigeria, its biggest market, has been suffering acute gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel shortages for the last few weeks due to a strike by marketers and distributors over non-payment of subsidies by the government.

Africa's biggest oil producer and economy subsidizes gasoline and must import the bulk of the 40 million litres a day that it consumes owing to a neglected refining system.

A dilapidated and grossly inadequate power grid means businesses and households depend on diesel for electricity.

Other local telecoms operators also warned customers of reduced services and banks said they would start closing their branches early from Monday. Airlines, particularly Arik Air, have been forced to cancel or delay domestic flights.

With an impending change in government on May 29, stakeholders across the fuel supply chain were concerned that the incoming government may not payout the remaining subsidy debt. Marketers said they were owed around $1 billion.

Most importers stopped bringing in tankers and depots were shutdown to deprive retailers of the gasoline and diesel to put pressure on the finance ministry.

President-elect Muhammadu Buhari is expected to closely review the subsidy scheme, which was revealed to have paid out over $6 billion in fraudulent claims in 2012. (Reporting by Julia Payne; Editing by James Macharia)

Nigerian oil union shuts down Halliburton operation over job cuts

 

Nigeria's main oil union has shut down the local operations of U.S. oilfield services provider Halliburton Co. in protest against job cuts, the trade body said on Tuesday.


Tokunbo Korodo, Lagos chairman for the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), told Reuters the group halted operations on Monday saying it was opposed to Halliburton's decision to sack 46 local staff members.

The union accused Halliburton of not following due process.

Halliburton, which offers drilling services to Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron in Africa's top oil producer, was not immediately available to comment.

Government Releases Full Report On Missing $20bn Oil Money

The incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan demanded the immediate full report of the forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The president said that his government has nothing to cover on the matter.

Jonathan also rejected accusations credited to the All Progressives Congress (APC) that his officials were boarding on last minute looting.

HERE is the report...

Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years - NOI

 

Five days after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, promised that the ministry would publish details of the excess crude account (ECA) for the last four years, the information has been made public.

Paul Nwabuikwu, her special adviser on communications, released a statement late Sunday, revealing that the federal and state governments shared a total of N6. 21 trillion from the ECA between 2011 and 2015.

A breakdown of the sum collected by the state governments were N966.6 billion in 2011, N816.3 billion in 2012, N859.4 billion in 2013 and N282.8 billion in 2014. Okonjo-Iweala had promised to disclose ECA details after the Nigerian governors forum (NGF) alleged that $20 billion being accruals of the excess crude account (ECA) from May 2013 till April 2015, was unaccounted for.

SEE THE FIGURES HERE...

NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years ⌂Back To Homepage Subscribe To RSS Feed NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years May 25 07:58 2015 Print This Article Share it With Friends 👤by Taiwo George  0 Comments Five days after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, promised that the ministry would publish details of the excess crude account (ECA) for the last four years, the information has been made public. Paul Nwabuikwu, her special adviser on communications, released a statement late Sunday, revealing that the federal and state governments shared a total of N6. 21 trillion from the ECA between 2011 and 2015. A breakdown of the sum collected by the state governments were N966.6 billion in 2011, N816.3 billion in 2012, N859.4 billion in 2013 and N282.8 billion in 2014. Okonjo-Iweala had promised to disclose ECA details after the Nigerian governors forum (NGF) alleged that $20 billion being accruals of the excess crude account (ECA) from May 2013 till April 2015, was unaccounted for. The minister dismissed the allegation, asking the governors to consult their commissioners of finance if they needed clarification. “The statement by the governors is totally strange because Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), meets every month and the ECA is discussed at every session with all the state commissioners of finance present,” she had said. “Nothing is hidden. At these meetings, the minister of state, who is the chairman of FAAC, announces the balance in the ECA which is then discussed. Governors who want any information about the ECA should ask for details from their commissioners who should have the records of what was discussed and agreed upon.” From the figures released, five states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Kano and Lagos top the list of highest recipients with N265 billion, N230.4 billion, N216.7 billion, N176.3 billion, N106.5 billion and N82.9 billion, respectively. While Kwara, Enugu, Gombe, Nassarawa, Ekiti and Ebonyi states received the lowest allocations of N52.8 billion, N51.6 billion, N47.7 billion, N46.9 billion, N46.8 billion and N44.3 billion respectively. The balance of the ECA as at May 2015 was put at $2.07 billion. The statement added that the summary of the inflows and outflows from the account shows that the opening balance was $4.56 billion in 2011 and reached a peak the following year at $8.7 billion before declining to $2.3 billion in 2013. The fluctuation was attributed to the sharing of the proceeds usually requested by state governors as well as the practice of augmentation which involves additional sharing from the ECA when available funds are not adequate to meet revenue projections. The ministry noted that Subsidy and SURE-P payments were also made from the account. Below is a breakdown of the allocations. S/N STATE

Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng

NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years ⌂Back To Homepage Subscribe To RSS Feed NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years May 25 07:58 2015 Print This Article Share it With Friends 👤by Taiwo George  0 Comments Five days after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, promised that the ministry would publish details of the excess crude account (ECA) for the last four years, the information has been made public. Paul Nwabuikwu, her special adviser on communications, released a statement late Sunday, revealing that the federal and state governments shared a total of N6. 21 trillion from the ECA between 2011 and 2015. A breakdown of the sum collected by the state governments were N966.6 billion in 2011, N816.3 billion in 2012, N859.4 billion in 2013 and N282.8 billion in 2014. Okonjo-Iweala had promised to disclose ECA details after the Nigerian governors forum (NGF) alleged that $20 billion being accruals of the excess crude account (ECA) from May 2013 till April 2015, was unaccounted for. The minister dismissed the allegation, asking the governors to consult their commissioners of finance if they needed clarification. “The statement by the governors is totally strange because Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), meets every month and the ECA is discussed at every session with all the state commissioners of finance present,” she had said. “Nothing is hidden. At these meetings, the minister of state, who is the chairman of FAAC, announces the balance in the ECA which is then discussed. Governors who want any information about the ECA should ask for details from their commissioners who should have the records of what was discussed and agreed upon.” From the figures released, five states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Kano and Lagos top the list of highest recipients with N265 billion, N230.4 billion, N216.7 billion, N176.3 billion, N106.5 billion and N82.9 billion, respectively. While Kwara, Enugu, Gombe, Nassarawa, Ekiti and Ebonyi states received the lowest allocations of N52.8 billion, N51.6 billion, N47.7 billion, N46.9 billion, N46.8 billion and N44.3 billion respectively. The balance of the ECA as at May 2015 was put at $2.07 billion. The statement added that the summary of the inflows and outflows from the account shows that the opening balance was $4.56 billion in 2011 and reached a peak the following year at $8.7 billion before declining to $2.3 billion in 2013. The fluctuation was attributed to the sharing of the proceeds usually requested by state governors as well as the practice of augmentation which involves additional sharing from the ECA when available funds are not adequate to meet revenue projections. The ministry noted that Subsidy and SURE-P payments were also made from the account. Below is a breakdown of the allocations. S/N STATE

Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng

NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years ⌂Back To Homepage Subscribe To RSS Feed NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years May 25 07:58 2015 Print This Article Share it With Friends 👤by Taiwo George  0 Comments Five days after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, promised that the ministry would publish details of the excess crude account (ECA) for the last four years, the information has been made public. Paul Nwabuikwu, her special adviser on communications, released a statement late Sunday, revealing that the federal and state governments shared a total of N6. 21 trillion from the ECA between 2011 and 2015. A breakdown of the sum collected by the state governments were N966.6 billion in 2011, N816.3 billion in 2012, N859.4 billion in 2013 and N282.8 billion in 2014. Okonjo-Iweala had promised to disclose ECA details after the Nigerian governors forum (NGF) alleged that $20 billion being accruals of the excess crude account (ECA) from May 2013 till April 2015, was unaccounted for. The minister dismissed the allegation, asking the governors to consult their commissioners of finance if they needed clarification. “The statement by the governors is totally strange because Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), meets every month and the ECA is discussed at every session with all the state commissioners of finance present,” she had said. “Nothing is hidden. At these meetings, the minister of state, who is the chairman of FAAC, announces the balance in the ECA which is then discussed. Governors who want any information about the ECA should ask for details from their commissioners who should have the records of what was discussed and agreed upon.” From the figures released, five states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Kano and Lagos top the list of highest recipients with N265 billion, N230.4 billion, N216.7 billion, N176.3 billion, N106.5 billion and N82.9 billion, respectively. While Kwara, Enugu, Gombe, Nassarawa, Ekiti and Ebonyi states received the lowest allocations of N52.8 billion, N51.6 billion, N47.7 billion, N46.9 billion, N46.8 billion and N44.3 billion respectively. The balance of the ECA as at May 2015 was put at $2.07 billion. The statement added that the summary of the inflows and outflows from the account shows that the opening balance was $4.56 billion in 2011 and reached a peak the following year at $8.7 billion before declining to $2.3 billion in 2013. The fluctuation was attributed to the sharing of the proceeds usually requested by state governors as well as the practice of augmentation which involves additional sharing from the ECA when available funds are not adequate to meet revenue projections. The ministry noted that Subsidy and SURE-P payments were also made from the account. Below is a breakdown of the allocations.

Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng

NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years ⌂Back To Homepage Subscribe To RSS Feed NOI: Governors got N2.92tr from ECA in 4 years May 25 07:58 2015 Print This Article Share it With Friends 👤by Taiwo George  0 Comments Five days after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, promised that the ministry would publish details of the excess crude account (ECA) for the last four years, the information has been made public. Paul Nwabuikwu, her special adviser on communications, released a statement late Sunday, revealing that the federal and state governments shared a total of N6. 21 trillion from the ECA between 2011 and 2015. A breakdown of the sum collected by the state governments were N966.6 billion in 2011, N816.3 billion in 2012, N859.4 billion in 2013 and N282.8 billion in 2014. Okonjo-Iweala had promised to disclose ECA details after the Nigerian governors forum (NGF) alleged that $20 billion being accruals of the excess crude account (ECA) from May 2013 till April 2015, was unaccounted for. The minister dismissed the allegation, asking the governors to consult their commissioners of finance if they needed clarification. “The statement by the governors is totally strange because Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), meets every month and the ECA is discussed at every session with all the state commissioners of finance present,” she had said. “Nothing is hidden. At these meetings, the minister of state, who is the chairman of FAAC, announces the balance in the ECA which is then discussed. Governors who want any information about the ECA should ask for details from their commissioners who should have the records of what was discussed and agreed upon.” From the figures released, five states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Kano and Lagos top the list of highest recipients with N265 billion, N230.4 billion, N216.7 billion, N176.3 billion, N106.5 billion and N82.9 billion, respectively. While Kwara, Enugu, Gombe, Nassarawa, Ekiti and Ebonyi states received the lowest allocations of N52.8 billion, N51.6 billion, N47.7 billion, N46.9 billion, N46.8 billion and N44.3 billion respectively. The balance of the ECA as at May 2015 was put at $2.07 billion. The statement added that the summary of the inflows and outflows from the account shows that the opening balance was $4.56 billion in 2011 and reached a peak the following year at $8.7 billion before declining to $2.3 billion in 2013. The fluctuation was attributed to the sharing of the proceeds usually requested by state governors as well as the practice of augmentation which involves additional sharing from the ECA when available funds are not adequate to meet revenue projections. The ministry noted that Subsidy and SURE-P payments were also made from the account. Below is a breakdown of the allocations.

Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng

Etisalat says Nigeria fuel shortages may disrupt local services

 

Abu Dhabi-listed telecommunications company Etisalat said on Monday its local services may be adversely affected by Nigeria's fuel shortages.




"The scarcity of petroleum products has impacted every sector of the economy and the provision of telecommunications services is no exception," it said in a statement.

Guaranty Trust bank closed early on Monday due to fuel shortage

Nigeria's Guaranty Trust bank today closed all its branches nationwide from 1 pm local time due to the national fuel shortage, a spokeswoman said on Monday, confirming the contents of a message sent by the bank to customers.

Bank customers were seen in large numbers queuing up to get into the bank before 1pm. The development is uncertain if it will be sustained, following the agreement reached between the government and oil marketers earlier today. 

Fuel shortages hit MTN, Guaranty Trust bank

 

Severe fuel shortages in Nigeria hit the services of Africa's largest mobile telecoms operator, MTN, on Monday and forced Guaranty Trust Bank to close its branches nationwide at lunchtime.

"Services are already degraded and some of our customers are already feeling the impact," Funmilayo Onajide, a spokeswoman for South Africa-based MTN, said.

Africa's biggest crude producer subsidises gasoline heavily and depends on imports for the bulk of its domestic fuel due to inadequate refineries.

The gasoline importers say they are owed money from the government and have shut depots until their demands have been met.

The telecommunications, banking and aviation sectors have been brought to a virtual standstill because fuel is needed to power the private generators that produce most of the electricity in the nation of 170 million.

MTN had nearly 60 million users in Nigeria in 2014 - about 27 percent of its entire subscriber base across 22 countries - making Africa's most populous country its biggest revenue contributor.

In the commercial hub of Lagos, the usually gridlocked streets were relatively clear during the Monday morning rush-hour because many drivers had run out of petrol.

Some drivers resorted to buying black market fuel for 500 naira per litre, more than five times the 87 naira per litre subsidised price.

Oil Marketers Resolve Differences, Begin Lifting Of Petroleum Products

The oil marketers have agreed to make petroleum products available in the country in the next six hours.
The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) have also agreed to begin lifting petroleum products also in the next six hours.

These agreements were reached at a meeting called by the Senate Committees on Petroleum Upstream and Downstream to find solutions to the lingering fuel crises in the country.

The agreement also states that the Department Of Petroleum Resources, DPR, should also revoke the license of any oil marketer that refuses to lift petroleum products across the country.

In addition, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association, DAPMAN, has also agreed to open their depot in the next six hours.