Vanguard, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2014 — 25
BRIEF
Vietnam to commence purchase of Nigeria’s crude By Paul Chibuzor, with Agency Report
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IETNAM has indicated interest in purchasing crude oil from Nigeria, with the first set of purchases likely to be by November. Quoting oil dealers, Reuters said Vietnam’s state energy company, Petro Vietnam, will this week issue a tender to buy crude oil from Nigeria, some West Africa countries, Libya and Azerbaijan. The report also said Vietnam will issue a tender specifying it is looking to buy crude oil grades including the Nigerian Qua Iboe, Escravos, Forcados, Erha, Brass River, Yoho as well as Azeri and Libyan grades. The oil dealers said it was the first time they had seen West African crude oil grades targeted by Vietnam, adding that the country’s decision to opt for West African crude in the tender may have been prompted by the lower premium of Brent crude to Dubai DUB-EFS-1M. According to the report, ýthe premium grade fell in August to its lowest since 2010, but had since recovered slightly, adding that the move also reflects a more outward-looking approach from Petro Vietnam.
Tanker drivers threaten strike over bad roads By Chris Ochayi
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ETROLEUM Tanker Drivers, PTD, branch of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, has threatened to embark on strike over deplorable conditions of some highways in the country. The Union listed the Port Harcourt-Eleme junction, Okigwe-Umuahia, and JebbaOloru-Ilorin roads in Rivers, Abia and Kwara states respectively, as the worst highways, warning it will commence an indefinite strike if government failed to urgently repair them. The National Chairman of PTD, Comrade Salimon Oladiti, who gave the warning after an executive meeting in Abuja, said the roads have claimed the lives of some PTD members, and portends great dangers to more lives and properties. He said the deplorable state of the Port Harcourt-Eleme Junction road a distance of about 10 Kilometers, takes up to seven to eight hours for trucks to maneuver.
From left: Commissioner, Government and Consumer Affairs, National Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, Dr. Abba Ibrahim; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Power, Hon. Patrick Ikhariale; Executive Director (Commercial), Benin Electricity Distribution Company, BEDC, Mr. Abu Ismail-Ejoor; and Commissioner, Engineering, Standards and Safety, NERC, Mrs. Mary Awolokun, during a workshop.
Global fuel use projected to rise 38% by 2040 … Infrastructure, oil theft stunt Nigeria’s production By Sebastine Obasi
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HERE are indications that world petroleum and other liquid fuels consumption may rise to 38 percent by 2040, spurred by increased demand in the developing Asia and Middle East, according to projections in International Energy Outlook 2014, IEO2014. The IEO2014, recently
released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, EIA, however, stated that though Nigeria increased its output from deepwater fields in recent years, onshore production has declined. It added that infrastructure constraints and incidents of oil theft and attacks on pipelines have curbed production growth and are expected to continue in the near-to mid-
term. It also said that the West African OPEC crude and lease condensate production will increase to 5.3 million barrels daily (MMbbl/d) in 2040, from 4.4 MMbbl/d in 2010. The report noted that Angola is expanding its offshore deepwater production, and as relative geopolitical stability improves, is likely to develop onshore exploration and
FG explains policy on renewable energy By Chris Ochayi
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HE Federal Government has said that the proposed National Policy on renewable energy and energy efficiency was conceived to boost electricity supply nationwide. The Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, said this at the stakeholders’ forum on renewable energy in Abuja, last week, adding that the proposed policy framework will drive renewable energy issues and would be well accepted internally and externally. The Minister, who was represented by his Senior Special Assistant, Prof. Chidi Onyia, urged participants at the workshop to do all within their capacities to fast track it. He said this is a key element in government’s renewed efforts to increase and expand access to electricity by Nigerians, especially in the rural areas. He said the power sector has
been marred in the past, partly due to unnecessary emphasis on the national grid, which has been proven to be incapable to reach communities that are far flung and remote. The new matrix is based on greater access, easy cost recovery mechanism and indeed guide with approach to ensure that more Nigerians have access to electricity. He then urged the participants at the workshop drawn from the industry, civil society groups, NonGovernmental Organisations, and other stakeholders to brace-up to the challenge of championing a new order that will drive the nation’s power sector. The Coordinator of the workshop and Director inCharge at the Ministry, Mr. A. Adebisi, described the policy as a document that will push the nation far ahead of its peers on the continent. It is conceived to provide a lead and sense of direction for all actors in the
nation’s electricity industry from generation to transmission and distribution. Presidential Aide on the North-East Transformation, Prof. Soji Adelaja, an economist, earlier in his keynote address assured participants that the policy will take Nigeria into the global picture as a country serious and ready to address its power challenges. He said that the policy is long overdue against the backdrop of the compelling need for Nigeria to harness its vast energy potential. Adelaja said that with the abundant wind, solar and biomass in all parts of Nigeria, it has become far cheaper to explore renewable energy sources, away from the undue emphasis on the national grid. For entrepreneurs renewable energy sources elicit mature thinking and real value for money, as investors can quickly recoup their investment from renewable energy sources, he said.
production areas as well. To meet the government’s goal of maintaining oil production at around 2 MMbbl/d, state-owned Sonangol plans to make substantial exploration and development investments in deepwater and ultradeepwater areas of its Congo Fan region. It will also develop pre-salt resources in the Kwanza and Benguela basins. It estimated that around $30 billion is expected to be invested in 12 deepwater developments between 2013 and 2020. The report said that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, will maintain a cohesive policy limiting supply growth, rather than maximising total annual revenues. It also said that no geopolitical events will cause prolonged supply shocks in the OPEC countries that could further limit production growth. Accordingly, world oil prices will trend downward, from $113 per barrel in 2011 to about $92 in 2017, and then increase steadily to $141 per barrel in 2040. It also said that OPEC producers will invest in incremental production capacity to enable them to increase crude and lease condensate production by 14.2 MMbbl/d from 2010 to 2040. This will account for between 41 and 47 percent of total crude and lease condensate production worldwide over the course of the projection. The IEO2014 further said that crude and lease condensate production in OPEC’s North African member countries, Libya and Algeria is projected to decline from 3.2 MMbbl/d in 2010 to 3.0 MMbbl/d in 2040. It noted that the potential for growth in Libya’s production is high, but the country has been unable to stabilize production amid social and political unrest. After the 2011 overthrow of the Muammar al-Gaddafi regime, Libya’s crude and lease condensate production returned to pre-revolution levels of about 1.6 MMbbl/d in October 2012. But with ongoing political unrest and mechanical problems, production levels have continued to decline, to less than 0.5 MMbbl/d. Until a permanent government is in place, it will be difficult to improve conditions sufficiently to attract the foreign investment needed to repair and improve Libya’s production infrastructure. As a result, the country’s prospects for increased production are unlikely to improve substantially for several years. The report also said that North African OPEC member Algeria has also encountered difficulties in improving its petroleum production.