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T H I S D AY • TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2016
BUSINESSWORLD WOOD MACKENZIE: OIL COMPANIES FACE INCREASING COST WITH GROWTH IN RENEWABLES
in their long-term planning, the big question is how much risk each has taken into account,” McConnell said. However, assumptions vary greatly by geography, timeline and on price from between $6 to $80 a tonne. According to the study the global major oil companies are under pressure to de-risk their existing business models and diversify into low-carbon energies. However, diversification into renewables will be challenging as it will be difficult to both justify allocating already scarce capital to low-returning projects and transform existing business models. “The timing of a transition to low-carbon energy will be critical. Diversifying to renewable energy will be a balancing act. Moving too quickly could leave money on the table from the majors’ fossil fuels business. But too slowly, and they could miss their window of opportunity. The biggest risk for oil and gas companies is to do nothing, and be left exposed to investors making their own minds up.
OSINBAJO: NIGERIA NEEDS OIL REVENUES TO GET OUT OF OIL
the quality of thoughts and insights and solutions that should be on offer should be unique indeed. I am pleased to say that from my assessment of one of the books, he did not disappoint,” Osinbajo added. He maintained that Kachikwu clearly took advantage of the rare convergence of scholarship, contemporary experience and policy wisdom to deliver what are probably today the most significant contribution to the understanding of major issues and nuances of the Nigerian petroleum industry. Similarly, Kachikwu explained at the launch that Nigeria is going through difficult times, where thinking outside the box is absolutely the key for the country to succeed as a nation.
Group Business Editor
Chika Amanze-Nwachuku AgriBusiness/Industry Editor
Crusoe Osagie
Comms/e-Business Editor
Emma Okonji
Capital Market Editor
Goddy Egene
Senior Correspondent
Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents
Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Linda Eroke (Labour) Eromosele Abiodun (Maritime) Ejiofor Alike (Energy) James Emejo (Nation’s Capital) Obinna Chima (Money Mkt) Reporters
Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (Cap Mkt)
NEWS
IBEDC to Restore Power Supply to Ogun Communities After 10 Years in Darkness Stories by Ejiofor Alike The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) Plc has embarked on massive projects to restore power supply to some parts of Ibafon, Mowe, Magboro, Oke-afa, Ofada, and Owode communities in Ogun State, which have been without electricity supply for 10 years. Speaking at the New Abeokuta 132/33KV Transmission Substation when he led journalists and community leaders of the affected communities to inspect the ongoing projects, the Chief Technical Officer of IBEDC, Mr. Ade Ayileka assured the communities that the projects would be completed within six weeks. Ayileka noted that with the completion of the new transmission substation located at the Kobape Road in Abeokuta, the affected communities in ObafemiOwode Local Government Area of Ogun State would soon receive more reliable and better quality power supply from the substation. The Chief Technical Officer, who also conducted journalists and community leaders around the ongoing erection of 40-feet electric poles and lines from the new transmission substation to the affected communities, added that the power to be supplied would be more reliable and of better quality than the power from the Ogere transmission substation where some of the communities are currently getting epileptic supply. “As you have seen, it
(New Abeokuta Transmission Substation) is a new transmission substation. The power capacity is available and is much more than the power capacity coming from Ogere. At Ogere, we have this kind of transmission substation. But Ogere is far from this location and this substation is closer to Mowe than Ogere. So, the close you are to the power station, the better the quality of power and in some cases, the better the capacity. Ogere
station is overloaded; it has many lines emanating from it. But Mowe-Ibafon line is going to be the first line that will emanate from this new substation. So, it is going to have enough capacity to supply power to Mowe-Ibafon,” Ayileka explained. Ayileka stated that the communities would start enjoying regular supply as soon as the ongoing erection of new lines by IBEDC is completed in the next six weeks.
Also speaking the Chief Commercial Officer of IBEDC, Mr. Deolu Ijose appealed to the communities to cooperate with the contractors to ensure the completion of the projects on schedule. Ijose noted that each of the poles used in erecting the new lines is 40-feet pole to demonstrate IBEDC’s commitment to quality and safety. Addressing journalists on the progress of work on the projects, the Project Engineer
of Tommy Toak Enterprises, the contractors handling the work, Mr. Ope Akintomide revealed that the erection of the lines and poles had progressed significantly before the Ogun State Government wrote to IBEDC that it wanted to reconstruct the road into 10-lane express road. According to him, this interrupted the project as the contractors had to erect another 40 poles on a new route.
GOOD TO SEE YOU
R-L: Executive Director, Commercial, Benin Electricity Distribution Plc. (BEDC), Mr. Abu Ejoor; Ag. Director General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, Dr. Vincent Akpotaire; MD/CEO, BEDC, Mrs. Funke Osibodu; Chairman, Senate Committee on Privatisation, Senator Ben Murray Bruce, Senator Shaaba Lafiaji; Senator Yahaya Abdullahi and alternate Director, BEDC, also from BPE, Mrs. Martina Omojola during the visit by the Senate Committee on Privatisation to BEDC in Benin, Edo State…recently
Enugu Free Zone Attracts N240bn Foreign Direct Dangote Begins In-country Coal Mining, Ends Importation Investment The federal government’s economic diversification programme may have recorded a head-start as investment groups gather for the ground breaking ceremony of the Enpower Free Trade Zone (ENPOWER FTZ) scheduled this with a target to attract N240 billion Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and 20,000 jobs. Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi who consolidates on foundation efforts of former Governor Sullivan Chime on the project, was quoted as saying in a statement at the weekend that the ground breaking ceremony for the facility would bear the first set of investment fruits which will give highly needed momentum to his government’s economic diversification programme. According to him, “Enpower FTZ has put in substantial efforts into attracting specific, targeted high-profile investors right from the outset. These anchor investors play an important signaling role to other potential investors, and we expect them to attract a network of suppliers and partners.” The ceremony which holds at the Akanu Ibiam Airport site of the Free Zone is expected to attract up to $500 million (N240 billion) worth of foreign direct investments (FDI) from
leading global manufacturing companies. Activities of the industrial clusters hosted in the free zone are also expected to create over 20,000 jobs across three major regions in the country. Licensed by the federal government to operate as a free trade zone in December, 2015, ENPOWER FTZ is a Public-Private initiative with the Enugu State government offering international and domestic investors the benefits of connecting to business opportunities from the SouthEastern cluster, which according to Canback & Company and the McKinsey Global Institute, is the second largest economic cluster in Nigeria, outside of the Lagos Cluster. Governor Ugwuanyi and his government’s private project developers are positioning the free trade zone project as the biggest private sector investment support to the government’s economic recovery efforts. Enpower is affiliated, as a full voting member; to the Dubai-based World Free Zones Organisation (WorldFZO) and the Africa Free Zones Association (AFZA) respectively. It intends to function as a certified SMART-SUSTAINABLE & SAFE free trade zone.
According to the statement by the investment promoters intend to provide uninterrupted power supply via an embedded power arrangements, certify the free zone’s infrastructure and operations to globally accepted standards, operate the free trade zone as a one-stop investment destination by integrating all free zone operations with the documentation and cargo handling, customs, immigration administration processes to achieve an Ease of Doing Business rating equivalent to that of Dubai. Besides, the ENPOWER FTZ is to host Africa’s first ever Nigeria-China “Dragon Market”, the second such manufacturing and wholesale centre, after the famous Dubai Dragon Market. Dragon Mart Dubai is the largest trading hub for Chinese products outside mainland China. The industrial park also gives access to markets covered by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS); South East Asian countries including China, India and Malaysia; the European Union including Czech Republic and Germany; and the untapped industrial heartland of SouthEastern Nigeria especially the commercial cities of Onitsha, Nnewi and Aba.
Chineme Okafor in Abuja Dangote Cement Industries has said it will commence the mining and sourcing of coal for its cement production within Nigeria in the next two and half months, thus putting an end to its importation of the mineral from foreign sources. Speaking at the 46th Annual General Meeting and conference of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (NSChE) at the weekend in Abuja, the Group Managing Director of Dangote Cements, Mr. Edwin Devakumar said the company has concluded on this and will go ahead with it. Devakumar stated that with the planned commencement of coal mining, Dangote will use local coal for cement production to replace imported coal. He said there was a huge potential for this which cement producers in the country can benefit from. Although he did not disclose the expected production volume from the coal mine, he however said the solid minerals sector in Nigeria if properly harnessed would propel economic growth and industrialisation, including
cement production. He called on the government to prioritise the minerals it hopes to develop in its solid minerals development plan as against taking up everything at once, and eventually achieving little or nothing with the plan. “The success story in the cement sub-sector is a testament to what the private sector can do when government provides the right policy signals and creates a conducive environment for private capital. “There is therefore no reason why the same or even greater success stories cannot be recorded with other mineral assets. We intend to open up our coal mining business in the two and half months, and stop importation of coal for our cement production,” said Devakumar. According to him, “Whilst one acknowledges government’s effort over the past decade, like the enactment of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007, Nigerian Mineral and Metals Policy (2008), and creation of a modern Mining Cadastral Office, a lot still remains to be done.