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FG Pledges Support Towards Completion of Dangote Petroleum Refinery

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The  Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, has pledged support of the Federal Government towards ensuring the completion of the historic 650,000 BPD, Dangote Petroleum Refinery during an official visit to the Petrochemical complex located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos, Nigeria.

The minister who was led on a tour of the Refinery by the Group President,  Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, and the company’s Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects and Portfolio Development, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, was accompanied by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum Downstream, Senator Sabo Nakudu; Chairman, Senate Committee on Services/member, Senate Committee, Upstream, Senator Muhammad Musa; GMD, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari; Director, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Mr. Ahmed Shakur; Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote; and the Executive Secretary, Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF), Mr. Ahmed Boboi; among others.

He said: “This is a very heartwarming moment for all of us as Nigerians. There is no way a project of this magnitude will be going on and government will not be interested. Anywhere in the world, if a citizen of a country has committed so much money into investing in this kind of massive project, government must show interest.

“I must say now that Dangote Group has turned this project to the story of all of us, we must all support this project to succeed, because the success of this project signals a lot. Of course, I am sure that the whole world is looking at the success of this project. Investors all over the world will look at the success of this project and will come to Nigeria to at least also enjoy the benefit of investing here. So, we are actually here to assure you, Dangote Group, that as a government, as NNPC, we will support this project as much as we can. You have definitely done very well.”

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“As you can see, the whole team is complete, and whatever your concerns are, whatever your problems are, please feel free to let us know, so that we will together find a solution to problems that you might encounter. Because of course, in project of this magnitude, you cannot expect that you will not have problems.

Sylva said the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical was a testament that the country possesses enabling environment for businesses to thrive and added that the success of the project will boost investors confidence in the country’s oil and gas project. He implored Nigerians to support the refinery project with a view to ensuring that it creates more value addition to the economy.

Mr Mele Kyari, NNPC GMD said that “we are not competing with Dangote but complimenting each other to boost production capacity. Our objective is the same, to make Nigeria a net exporter of crude. We can’t do this until we have complementary activities between the private sector and government.”

“ln the next five years, Dangote will add 650,000 barrels, government with 445,000 barrels with others companies coming up to boost capacity,” he said.

In his remarks, Aliko Dangote, Group President and Chief Executive, Dangote Group said ” We believed in Nigeria and if we don’t do it ourselves, nobody will come down to do it for us. There is three per cent growth population increase annually in Nigeria, so, apart from that Nigeria are supposed to meet the needs of West, East and Central Africa in terms of supply.”

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Similarly, Mr Devakumar Edwin,the company’s Group Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects and Portfolio Development, said that the asset creates market for 11billion per annum of Nigerian crude and can meet 100 per cent of the Nigerian requirement of all liquid products.

He said that Nigeria is Africa’s largest crude oil producer, but lacks refining capacity to meet its own fuel needs.

“The Dangote refinery, which is designed to maximise petrol output, will produce enough to allow for a small surplus of that fuel for export. It will also be able to send a large volume of diesel and jet fuel to international markets.”

He disclosed that Dangote plans to take advantage of local crude supply, adding that it won’t participate in the crude-for-fuel swap deal that is managed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

“We are going to buy the crude just at the export price and will sell our products at the import price, the crude swap is operating only for the importers of the product. The new refinery has been designed to process varieties of crude from sweet to light crude sourced both locally, and abroad.

“Dangote plans to export its diesel to Europe and gasoline to Latin America, Western and Central African markets, Edwin said.

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He said that evacuation of refined products will be done by sea and through roads.

“We are thinking of investing in vessels. We want to make sure we are not held for ransom by any transport operators. Africa’s largest oil refinery had revealed that it would deliver its fuels to Nigerian consumers via roads and sea ports, and will effectively replace all of Nigeria’s fuel imports once fully operational.”

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Bitcoin Hits $50,000 For First Time Since 2021

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A picture taken on February 6, 2018 shows a visual representation of the digital crypto-currency Bitcoin, at the “Bitcoin Change” shop in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP)

Bitcoin surpassed the $50,000 mark on Tuesday, marking its highest value in over two years.

Investor optimism surged as anticipation grew regarding broader trading approval in the US, with hopes riding high on potential green lights for cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Despite an initial dip following Washington’s approval signal last month, Bitcoin has rebounded impressively, boasting a 25 percent rally since January 22.

As of the latest data from Bloomberg, the cryptocurrency peaked at $50,328, underscoring the resilience and upward momentum in the crypto market, leaving observers optimistic about its future trajectory.

“Enthusiast buyers bring in more enthusiast buyers pushing prices further up,” Fadi Aboualfa, of Copper Technologies, said.

“The cryptocurrency has momentum on the back of several green weeks and has a large chance of going up further when markets see weekly movements upwards of 10 percent (as we saw last week).”

By 0330 GMT Tuesday, bitcoin had dropped slightly, to $49,950.

While Bitcoin has made an impressive recovery, currently standing above $50,000, it still lags significantly behind its peak value of nearly $69,000 in 2020. This rally signals a bounce-back for the cryptocurrency, which faced turbulent times marked by high-profile scandals and collapses within the crypto industry.

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Last year, FTX, the world’s second-largest crypto exchange, suffered a dramatic downfall, with its CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, now confronting potential consequences. Prosecutors have characterised the situation as “one of the biggest financial frauds in American history,” and Bankman-Fried faces the looming threat of up to 110 years in prison.

In November, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao resigned as CEO of Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, following both his and the company’s admission of guilt in extensive money laundering violations.

Bitcoin’s upward trajectory is further fueled by optimism surrounding potential interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve this year, as inflation appears to be easing. The cryptocurrency’s value is also influenced by an anticipated supply crunch next year, attributed to the recurring event known as “halving.”

Bitcoin, earned through intricate problem-solving by powerful computers in a process called “mining,” experiences a reduction in reward every four years. With the next “halving” scheduled for April, the limited supply dynamic continues to be a driving force behind Bitcoin’s value surge.

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Microsoft Joins Apple In $3 Trillion Club

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Microsoft joined Apple on Wednesday as a three trillion dollar company, as its big bet on artificial intelligence continued to impress Wall Street.

Now second to Apple as the world’s biggest company by market capitalization, Microsoft’s shares were up 1.31 percent at $404.

 

Apple remains narrowly in first place at $3.02 trillion after reaching the $3 trillion market capitalization mark for the first time in January 2022.

 

But it has fallen below the milestone, even briefly losing the pole position as biggest company on the markets when Microsoft briefly overtook the iPhone maker earlier this month.

 

Microsoft more than any other tech giant is riding the wave of excitement over AI.

The Redmond, Washington-based group has a major partnership with OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT, that is reportedly worth $13 billion.

Since the arrival of ChatGPT, Microsoft has launched several products enabling companies and individuals to use the capabilities of generative AI, notably via its Bing search engine and Copilot virtual assistant.

Since the launch of ChatGPT in early November 2022, Microsoft shares have gained some 67 percent, with Apple’s up by about 40 percent.

Microsoft publishes its results on January 30.

 

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Nigeria: Shell Announces Sale of Onshore Oil Assets

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In an aerial view, gas prices nearing $6.00 a gallon are displayed at a Shell gas station on February 23, 2022 in San Francisco, California. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/AFP

Shell has announced a deal to offload its Nigerian onshore subsidiary, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), to Renaissance.

The acquiring entity, Renaissance, stands as a consortium comprising four local exploration and production companies in Nigeria, alongside an international energy group.

Shell,  in a Tuesday statement on its website, said, “Completion of the transaction is subject to approvals by the Federal Government of Nigeria and other conditions.

“Transaction will preserve SPDC’s operating capabilities for the benefit of a joint venture. The transaction has been designed to preserve the full range of SPDC’s operating capabilities following the change of ownership. This includes the technical expertise, management systems, and processes that SPDC implements on behalf of all the companies in the SPDC Joint Venture (SPDC JV)”.

But, it said, “SPDC’s staff will continue to be employed by the company as it transitions to new ownership”.

Shell emphasised  that amidst the competitive landscape, the company remains committed to supporting the management of SPDC JV facilities. These facilities play a crucial role in supplying a significant portion of feed gas to Nigeria LNG (NLNG), highlighting Shell’s dedication to assisting the nation in maximizing value from its NLNG endeavors.

“This agreement marks an important milestone for Shell in Nigeria, aligning with our previously announced intent to exit onshore oil production in the Niger Delta, simplifying our portfolio and focusing future disciplined investment in Nigeria on our Deepwater and Integrated Gas positions,” Shell’s Integrated Gas and Upstream Director Zoë Yujnovich said.

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“It is a significant moment for SPDC, whose people have built it into a high-quality business over many years. Now, after decades as a pioneer in Nigeria’s energy sector, SPDC will move to its next chapter under the ownership of an experienced, ambitious Nigerian-led consortium.

“Shell sees a bright future in Nigeria with a positive investment outlook for its energy sector. We will continue to support the country’s growing energy needs and export ambitions in areas aligned with our strategy.”

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