NNPC records ₦24.19bn trading surplus in December ― Report

 

BY AGENCY REPORTER                    

THE Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation says it recorded an increase of ₦24.19billion trading surplus in December 2020, compared to the ₦13.43billion surplus recorded in November of the same year.

The Corporation disclosed this in its Monthly Financial and Operation Report (MFOR) for the Month of December 2020, released in Abuja, on Thursday.

It said that the amount represented 80.12 per cent trading surplus.

Trading surplus or trading deficit is derived after deduction of the expenditure profile from the revenue in the period under review.

The report also revealed that the operating revenue of the NNPC Group in December 2020, as compared to November 2020, increased by 33.44 per cent or N137.00billion to stand at N546.65billion.

“Similarly, expenditure for the month increased by 27.54 per cent or N112.81billion to stand at N522.47billion.

“The December 2020 expenditure as a proportion of revenue is 0.96 as against 0.97 in November 2020,’’ it said.

The report also indicated that the 80.12 per cent increase was mainly due to the significant rise in the profit of NNPC’s Upstream entity, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) amid improved market fundamentals and strong global demand for crude oil.

Other contributory factors to the robust trading surplus recorded in the month under review, it said, included the improved performance by the Nigerian Gas Marketing Company (NGMC) and the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC).

Others are the National Engineering and Technical Company (NETCO) and Duke Oil Incorporated which recorded noticeable gains in their operations.

In the Downstream, the report noted that 2.26billion litres of white products were sold and distributed by PPMC in the month under review.

This, it said, compared to 1.72billion litres distributed in the month of November.

A breakdown indicated that the products comprised 2.254billion litres of petrol, translating to 72.72million litres/day, 11.40 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (diesel) and 0.48 million litres of kerosene.

“Total sale of white products for the period of December 2019 to December 2020 stood at 18.456billion litres and petrol accounted for 18.325billion litres or 99.29 per cent.

“In monetary terms, the volume translates to a value of ₦288.77billion recorded on the sale of white products by PPMC in the month of December 2020, compared to ₦226.08 billion sales in November.

“Total revenues generated from the sales of white products for the period December 2019 to December 2020 stood at ₦2.217triilion, where petrol contributed about 99.09per cent of the total sales with a value of ₦2.197trillion,” it added.

On the oil Pipelines, it said that 43 pipeline points were vandalised in the month under review, representing about 18.60 per cent increase from the 35 points recorded in November.

“Mosimi Area accounted for 56 per cent of the vandalised points while Kaduna Area and Port Harcourt accounted for the remaining 33 per cent and 12 per cent respectively,” it said.

In the Gas Sector, it said that natural gas production in December stood at 213.34Billion Cubic Feet (BCF), translating into an average daily production of 6,881.83million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd).

According to the report, the daily average natural gas supply to power plants increased by 3.52 per cent to 816 mmscfd, equivalent to power generation of 3,445MW.

“Out of the 208.61BCF of gas supplied in December, a total of 146.72BCF was commercialised; consisting of 42.90BCF and 103.82BCF for the domestic and export market respectively,” it said.

This, it noted, translated into a total supply of 1,383.93mmscfd of gas to the domestic market and 3,349.00mmscfd of gas supplied to the export market for the month, NAN reports.

The report said that it implied that 70.33per cent of the average daily gas produced was commercialised while the balance of 29.67 per cent was re-injected, used as upstream fuel gas or flared.

It added that Gas flare rate was 6.80 per cent for the month under review (i.e. 457.25 mmscfd) compared to average gas flare rate of 7.15 per cent (i.e. 538.59 mmscfd) for the period December 2019 to December 2020.

-ThePOint

 

Fraud Alert: Don’t become a victim, we’re not issuing new type of work Visa, US warns Nigerians

 

BY FOLASHADE KEHINDE                    

THE United States Embassy in Nigeria, on Thursday, warned Nigerians not to fall victim to scammers claiming that the US was offering a new type of work Visa for Nigerian citizens between 40 and 55 years.

In a statement on its Twitter handle, titled, “Fraud Alert”, the Embassy alerted Nigerians to the “fake press release” being circulated by the scammers.

The US warned that it was the same old trick, but with “fresh packaging”.

The statement read, “Scammers and fraudsters are circulating a fake ‘press release’ claiming to offer a new type of work visa to Nigerian citizens aged 40-55. It’s the same old scam, but in fresh packaging – don’t become a victim!

“If you have questions about whether visa information is legitimate, please refer only to official sources: https://travel.state.gov, https://ng.usembassy.gov/visas, and https://ustraveldocs.com/ng.”

 

 

FG spends over N100bn in Aviation sector in five years – Sirika

 

BY BANYO TEMITAYO                    

THE Federal Government says it has invested over N100 billion in the aviation sector in the last five years.

The expenditure, according to Government, covered funds for airport equipment, staff training and emolument from 2015 till date.

This was disclosed by the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, in Abuja, during the 8th Edition of the Aviation Workers Week, on Thursday.

The programme had the theme, “The challenges of COVID-19 pandemic in the Nigerian Aviation industry: The path to recovery.”

Represented by the Minister of State for Science and Technology, Mohammed Abdullahi, Sirika reiterated that the aviation sector was key to global security and must get adequate attention.

“The Federal Government deployed resources to equipping state governments through various interventions.

“From 2015 till date, the Federal Government has deployed over N100 billion to develop the aviation sector,” the minister noted.

 

 

Woman beats co-wife to death, sets her ablaze in Niger

 

BY RIMI ALIU                    

THE Police in Niger State have arrested a woman, identified as Amina Aliyu, for allegedly killing her co-wife.

The suspect, 24, had allegedly attacked the victim, Fatima, who was newly married to their husband, in her house, in the Sauka Kahuta area of Minna, the state capital.

It was learnt that the incident happened about two months after Fatima got married to their husband, Aliyu Abdullahi.

The suspect was said to have stormed Fatima’s house and beaten her to death with a pestle.

She then set her body ablaze, locked the lifeless body up in the house and fled.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Wasiu Abiodun, confirmed that the suspect hit the deceased with a pestle, which led to her death.

He said their husband, Abdullahi, had told the Police that he found his new wife’s lifeless body, with burns, in her living room, when he returned home from work on Tuesday.

 

Alleged money laundering: FG tenders $1m hard currency, others in trial of retired Air Chief

BY AGENCY REPORTER                    

THE Federal Government, on Thursday, tendered before the Federal High Court, Abuja, different currencies of dollars stashed in three bags as evidence in the money laundering charge against Air Commodore Umar Mohammed (retd).

Counsel to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Magaji Labaran, tendered the bags of money before Justice Inyang Ekwo while leading the only witness in the case, Stephen Olatubosun, in evidence.

Mohammed (1st defendant) and his company, Easy Jet Integrated Service Ltd (2nd defendant), are being charged with three counts bordering on money laundering, illegal possession of firearms and possession of classified documents without lawful authority.

The retired air officer and his company are alleged to have received the sum of one million, thirty thousand American Dollars ($1,030,000) in cash from Worldwide Consortium PTY Ltd, as payment for freight services on 19th June, 2016, contrary to the Money Laundering Act 2011 (as Amended).

Justice Ekwo had, on Wednesday, ordered that the currencies be counted with a counting machine at the office of the Deputy Chief Registrar (Litigation) in the presence of all the parties to ascertain the total amount before they were tendered at the court.

At the resumed trial on Thursday, the AGF lawyer told the court that the parties in the case had complied with the court order.

“My lord, we have done the needful at the office of the Chief Deputy Registrar (Litigation). The currencies were counted and are in three bags labelled Bag A, Bag B and Bag C,” Labaran said.

Also, lawyer to the defendants, Hassan Liman, SAN, confirmed that all the parties were duly represented during the counting of the currencies.

The prosecution witness, Olatubosun, a staff of the the Department of State Security Service (DSS), identified the three bags of money when he was being led in evidence by Labaran.

“There are three bags; two black and one brown. They are labelled as Bag A, Bag B and Bag C respectively with the currencies sum attached to them,” he responded.

The witness, giving the breakdown of the sum in each bags, said Bag A contained 529, 400 dollars and Bag B had 499, 800 dollars.

Olatubosun said Bag C contained different currencies of dollars including naira notes.

-ThePoint

 

Students’ abduction, banditry may involve least suspected people, institutions – Lukman, PGF DG

 

BY LINUS CHIBUIKE

DIRECTOR-GENERAL of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, Salihu Moh. Lukman, has said that an important determinant of return to peaceful coexistence and moving Nigeria forward under the leadership of the All Progressives Congress is dependent on the capacity to lift Nigerians out of poverty.

Indicating that poverty was a major reason for the worsening insecurity in the country, he said the Government must address the disturbing issue of high levels of poverty in Nigeria “beyond the narrow prism of politics”.

While noting that criminal activities of banditry and abduction of innocent school children were emerging to be very lucrative economic activities in the country, he said these activities were now a sophisticated business network that might involve people and institutions that are least suspected.

Lukman said this just as he called for the creation of State Police in view of the existential threats in the country, which he said was destroying the educational sector.

The DG, who spoke in a statement issued on Monday, noted that the North East had been ravaged by Boko Haram for more than 10 years, adding that the problems of banditry and kidnappings were gradually taking over the North West and North Central.

He said, “With all these sad reality of our existential threats in the country, which is destroying our educational sector, we are debating whether we should have state police or not. Anybody debating whether or not to have state police is simply part of the problem. How many private securities are guarding our homes?

“With all that is happening to our schools, isn’t it a case that requires the establishment of armed police station in each school to guarantee the safety of our children? Can this be provided by the Nigeria Police as it is constituted today? Isn’t this a challenge requiring emergency response?

“How can the lives of school children be so threatened, and we are busy debating politics? Our leaders in APC must wake up and stop all the hesitation around consideration of the APC True Federalism Report.

“Why was the Committee set up in the first place if our leaders knew that they are not committed to resolving problems that question what we have today? Isn’t it common knowledge that no problem can be solved by replicating exactly what may have created the problem?”

He added, “Being members of APC with all the commitment to contribute to the successes of the party, we need to tell ourselves the hard truth, which is that an important determinant of return to peaceful coexistence and moving Nigeria forward under the leadership of our party is dependent on the capacity of our governments to lift Nigerians out of poverty.

“Therefore, we need to engage the disturbing issue of high levels of poverty in Nigeria beyond the narrow prism of politics. Outside the simplistic strategy of promoting our political choices, it is equally important that we wake up to the reality that high levels of poverty have produced really unimaginable existential threats both for citizens and for the nation.

“Daily, lives are being lost, individual liberties and freedoms are under permanent threats, property and livelihoods are being destroyed. Every Nigerian today lives with the fear of one form of threat or the other. The North East has been ravaged by Boko Haram for more than 10 years. The problems of banditry and kidnappings are gradually taking over the North West and North Central.”

He said stakeholders might delude themselves “into all the debate based on the reckless consideration of amnesty and divisive ethnic and religious propaganda”, but added that “the reality is that criminal activities of banditry, kidnappings and abduction of innocent school children are emerging to be very lucrative economic activities in the country.”

He said, “It is now a sophisticated business network with frontend that may involve people and institutions that are least suspected.

“For instance, how is it possible that tens and hundreds of people would be abducted without any trace? Wouldn’t they pass through towns, villages, and communities? Along the routes they passed, wouldn’t there be police and security posts/stations, traditional and religious leaders that could confirm suspicious movements?

“As Nigerians and especially those of us who are members of APC, we must work hard to push our leaders to combine military and security strategy with successful implementation of ambitious national initiatives to lift Nigerians out of poverty.

“Our loyalty to our leaders must, as necessity, include getting our leaders to succeed in lifting Nigerians out of poverty. That is perhaps the only insurance cover that can support us to begin to move towards peaceful coexistence in the country.”

Lukman added, “So long as we have Nigerians living in conditions of extreme poverty, crime rates, including banditry, kidnapping and abduction of innocent school children will remain high. Reducing this challenge to issues of enforcement of law and order alone will be insufficient.

“The factory that produces bandits, kidnappers, abductors and insurgents is the very condition that holds more than 100 million Nigerians below the poverty line.”

 

 

Made-in-Nigeria helicopter: Presidency directs FIRS to remit NASENI’s statutory cash

AS part of steps to boost Science and Technology development in the country, the Presidency has directed the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, to remit the statutor deductions accruable to the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, NASENI.

The agency may soon get one to two per cent of the Federation Account as contained in its establishment law.

The directive followed the upholding of the decision of the Governing Board of NASENI, which is headed by President Muhammadu Buhari as the chairman.

The directive has also been communicated to the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed.

In the NASENI Establishment Act 2004, FIRS is statutorily expected to deduct and remit to it a quarter per cent of the levy on turnover of firms earning over N100million and above.

Although NASENI was established in 1992, the law guiding its funding has not been complied with by successive governments.

But in January, President Muhammadu Buhari decided to ensure total compliance with NASENI Act. Buhari has also approved the placement of NASENI directly under the supervision of the Presidency instead of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

According to a letter from the Presidency, signed by the Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, the FIRS has been directed to remit the deducted levy on turnover as approved by Buhari.

The letter said, “I write to inform you that on 24th January 2021, Mr. President approved the prayers of the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) on the funding of NASENI activities.

“In accordance with the NASENI Establishment Act, one of the prayers of the EVC relates to the funding of the agency via a levy on income or turnover of commercial companies and firms with turnover of N4million (later increased to N100million) by the NASENI Governing Board) at the rate of a quarter per cent( 1/4 %) of turnover.

“Accordingly, you are kindly requested to act on the implementation of this provision of the NASENI Act as soon as possible.”

It was learnt that the presidential directive was informed by seven key projects (inventions) being under-taking by NASENI with funding as a major hindrance.

One of the key projects is a Made-In-Nigeria helicopter which Buhari has mandated NASENI to produce.

Others are: establishment of First Made-In- Nigeria Transformer Plant and High Voltage Testing Laboratory to be located in Okene. Kogi State; first Made-In-Nigeria Plant for the manufacturing of Silica which is the major materials needed for local manufacturing of solar panels to resolve alternative/Renewable Energy supply for the nation; and funding of the plant for First Made-In-Nigeria Smart Prepaid Energy Meter, SPEM, which is already patented, before transferring them to private sector entrepreneurs as stipulated by its mandate.

Also included are establishment of Zonal (Six geo-political Zones) Agricultural Machinery & Equipment Development Institutes which had already been approved by President Muhammadu Buhari; completion of work on First Made-in-Nigeria E-Voting solutions designed and produced by Nigerian Engineers in NASENI; and completion of work on Reverse Engineering process of 5 Kilowatt small Hydro Kinetic Turbine.

A document, which explained how the decision to implement NASENI Act was taken by the President, read, “The President is the chairman of the Governing Board of NASENI. But the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of NASENI, Prof. Mohammed Sani Haruna, in his memo to the Governing Board on December 30, 2020, requested the implementations of the Statutory funding of the agency as provided for in NASENI Act to finance its projects and activities.

“While reflecting on the state of Nigeria’s response so far on the COVID-19 pandemic during a virtual meeting at the Presidential Villa on January 26th, 2021, the President observed that Nigeria’s continued reliance on solutions from other countries was a revelation of the research and development gap in the nation.

“He, in addition, therefore directed NASENI to scale up its responses to the pandemic in order to find appropriate solutions to prevent the further spread and treatment of the virus.

“Sitting as the Chair of the Board, the President stressed that for NASENI to succeed, it must be empowered through adequate provision of financial, human and material resources and allowed to exercise independence to forge partnerships.’’