Tag Archives: Production

Lagos Court Sentenced 3 Bolivians To 12 Years Imprisonment For Production Of Hard Drugs

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Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo, of the Federal High Court, Lagos, has sentenced three Bolivians to 12 years imprisonment for unlawful production of Methamphetamine, a drug similar to cocaine and heroin.
The convicts are: Reuben Ticono Jorge, Yhugo Chavaez Moreno, and Yerko Artunduago Dorado.
On Monday, November 21, 2016, the court convicted the three Bolivians after they pleaded guilty to two drug-related offences leveled against them by the National Drugs Laws Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
They were convicted after NDLEA’s prosecutor, Abu Ibrahim,   reviewed  facts of the charges, on the said day.
During a review of the charges, Ibrahim tendered several evidence, including Certificate of Test Analysis, drug analysis reports, statements written in English and Portuguese, among others, which were admitted as exhibits by the court.
However, Justice Oguntoyinbo reserved judgement till yesterday, following their counsel’s plea, Chief Benson Ndakara, that the court to be lenient in sentencing them due to the period they had spent in detention.
Delivering judgment, Justice Oguntoyinbo said the jail terms prescribed by the NDLEA Act for count one of the charge was life imprisonment without prescribing minimum sentence.
The judge also stated that the prescribed jail term for the second count was 25 years, without prescribing minimum jail terms.
Consequently, Jusice Oguntoyinbo sentenced the three Bolivians   to six years, on each counts respectively.
She ordered that the jail terms run concurrently “and it will start counting from February 2, 2012, when they were arrested.”
The convicted Bolivians, alongside two Nigerians; Basil Ikechukwu Uzoka and Uba Ubachukwu Collins, were arraigned and re-arraigned before the court, on a six count-charge bordering on unlawful production and storage of the controlled drug.
The convicted Bolivians, alongside the Nigerians, were charged on two count charges of unlawful production of controlled drug known as Methamphetamine and unlawfully using a property at Satellite Town, for the production of the said controlled drug. Ikechukwu pleaded not guilty to the charge while Collins allegedly allowed the said property to be used for the production of the drug.

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http://sunnewsonline.com/3-bolivians-bag-12-years-jail-for-production-of-hard-drugs/

Nigeria Records Increased Oil Output Ahead OPEC Production Cut Talks

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The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed in September in Algiers to trim production but the accord still has to be finalised on November 30 in Vienna.

In its November monthly report, OPEC said that its 14 members pumped 33.64 million barrels a day (mb/d) in October, 236,000 barrels more than in September.

Saudi Arabia’s output fell 51,700 bpd to 10.5 mb/d but Iraq and Iran, the next biggest producers, registered increases, as did Libya and Nigeria, the report said.

Iran, Saudi Arabia’s arch foe, in particular is keen to keep the taps open following the lifting of international sanctions under last year’s landmark nuclear deal.

The OPEC report chimed broadly with figures released Thursday by the International Energy Agency, which put cartel output at 33.8 mb/d.

The IEA said this was “well in excess” of the 32.5 mb/d to 33.0 mb/d range agreed by OPEC in September.

“This means that OPEC must agree to significant cuts in Vienna to turn its Algiers commitment into reality,” the IEA added.

The September agreement lifted oil prices but they remain hovering at around $45 per barrel.

On Friday late morning Brent North Sea was trading at $45.44 in London, down $0.40 from Thursday. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was down $0.57 at $44.09 on the Nymex.

Credit: AFP

Recession: Dangote threatens to stop tomato paste production

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Few days after Erisco Foods Limited threatened to shut down its tomato factory, Dangote Industries Limited yesterday disclosed plans to stop tomato paste production because of the harsh operating environment that gives advantage to imported production.

Group Vice President of Dangote Industries Limited, Alhaji Sani Dangote, disclosed that the group recently stopped tomato paste production because of the harsh operating environment that gives advantage to imported products.

He also said the company would not be able to pay farmers from whom they get the raw materials unless government did something urgently.

Although, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said it would not give dollars, Dangote noted that countries like China give their people huge support and waivers that allow them access to finance that they do not really feel the forex crunch being faced by their Nigerian competitors.

Dangote who spoke at the 2nd group meeting of the Zero Hunger Committee in Abuja, expressed dissatisfaction over the delay on the part of the ministries and agencies involved to address the issue of tomato importation.

The Chairman of Nigerian AgricBusiness Group (NABG) insisted that the only way out was for government to put in place a clear cut policy on tomato importation and local production, stressing: “We have bee n talking for the past one year and up till now there is no clear cut direction where the government is heading.”

He further said that the forex policy being implemented by the CBN has not stopped importers from making profit from importation instead it is the local industries that are recording losses.

According to him, forex was not the problem but establishing a policy that would restrict the importation of tomato.

“We are not looking for forex. We are only saying that government should put up a policy where we are producing tomato concentrate to those industries that are into packaging; we are not into retail packaging,” he said.

So, that about 30 of those retail companies in Nigeria that are importing would stop and buy from us and repackage into smaller sachets, tins and so on.

“If we are talking about importers and we are talking about local producers; there is no way we can have a common ground because they are looking at 100 per cent import and we are looking at 100 per cent local production.

Dangote, who stated that “some companies have opened industries in Ghana and other free zones under the disguise of ECOWAS and are importing”, was however, optimistic that President Muhammadu Buhari would key into the issue and find a lasting solution.

Recall that Erisco Foods Limited had indicated plans to shut down its tomato paste processing business in Nigeria owing to unfavourable operating climate which will lead to loss of about 1,500 jobs.

Dangote Tomato Resumes Production December

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The Dangote Tomato Processing Factory in Kadawa village in Kura Local Government Area of Kano State, which closed shop seven months ago, would resume production in December, the Managing Director of the company, Alhaji Abdulkadir Kaita, said.
Kaita made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Kano on Tuesday.

He said the company, which commenced production in February 2016, had to stop activities due to the lack of fresh tomatoes.

He, however, added that the company had already started preparations for the recommencement of commercial activities.

He noted: “Our target is to resume production in December 2016 because by then we expect tomato farmers to have produced enough for the company to process.”

The managing director said that the company, which could process 120 tonnes of fresh tomatoes per day, would soon begin recruitment of additional staff.

He said: “We have plan to recruit additional staff who will be deployed to different sections of the company to ensure effective service delivery.”

It would be recalled that the company, which started processing tomatoes into cans and sachet in February 2016 had to close shop due to scarcity of the commodity as most farms in about five states were affected by a pest popularly known as “Tuta Absoluta”, which destroyed the tomato species in the affected states.

The pest destroyed some tomato farms in Kano, Jigawa, Plateau, Katsina and Kaduna states.

Crude Oil Production Rises To 1.9M Barrels Per Day

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Nigeria’s crude oil production has risen to 1.9million barrels per day, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu disclosed yesterday.

Speaking when he formerly handed over to the newly appointed Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Dr. Maikanti Baru, the minister said the upstream sector of the oil industry was being repositioned to attain about 3million barrels per day.

Lately, Nigeria’s crude production had dropped to about 1.1 million barrels following attacks on oil installations in the Niger Delta region by the militant group, Niger Delta Avengers.

Expressing satisfaction in the performance of NNPC under his leadership, the minister said the Corporation has been positioned as a profit focus organisation, compared to what it was before he came on board.

While thanking President Muhammadu Buhari for giving him the opportunity to serve as both the Minister of State Petroleum Resources and Group Managing Director of NNPC, Kachikwu noted that public perception of NNPC was gradually changing for the better.

Credit: Leadership

Kaduna Refinery Begins Production Of 3.2 Million Litres Of Petrol Daily

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Kaduna Refining and Petroleum Company has started daily production of 3.2 million litres of petrol, a vloume authorities hope will end queues at fuel service stations across Nigeria.

A statement by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) confirmed that the plant, which commenced production over the weekend with an initial Premium Motor Spirit yield of about 1.5 million litres, has ramped up its daily yield to 3.2 million litres.

“The injection of this volume into the system will significantly impact ongoing special intervention efforts designed to bring relief to motorists across the country,” the Corporation stated.

Credit: ChannelsTv

Two Nigeria’s Refineries To Restart Production Before End Of Dec. 2015– Kachikwu

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Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu on Wednesday assures that two out of Nigeria’s four refineries will restart production in the next two weeks.

This is contained in a statement signed by Ohi Alegbe, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, on Wednesday in Abuja.

He said the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) equity production was 99,000 barrels per day.

He added that the declining Joint Venture reserves were due to inadequate and low investment in the oil assets.

The minister noted that issue of funding which had been identified as a major challenge to the sector would be addressed with adequate collaboration with the private and international investors.

Kacikwu said the average gas to power generation was about 3,000 megawatts and domestic gas supply of one billion standard cubic feet (scf) with the contribution of 600 million standard cubic feet from NPDC.

On the current state of the refineries, he said that two of the refineries might be re-streamed before the end of December.

“Efforts are on to engage private investors to build new refineries within the old ones to enable the refineries share power, pipelines and other resources,” he said.

He added that the new agenda for the Oil and Gas Industry would be centered on having the right people, doing the right things, at the right time.

This, he said, would be for the right purpose to yield the right results.

Kachikwu said the petroleum sector, under his watch, would ensure that the Nigeria Content policy would transform the Oil and Gas industry into the economic engine for job creation and national growth.

He said he was obliged to cancel the Offshore Processing Agreements (OPAs), crude-for-products-exchange arrangement (popularly known swap) and other unprofitable product and crude arrangements, all in a bid to avoid rent seekers.

He said the cancellation would help to add value to the Nigerian hydrocarbon resources.

On the downstream sector, the minister advocated for the introduction of a private sector model that would reinvigorate the efficient supply and distribution of petroleum products, especially in the area of pipeline assets.

“The menace of pipeline vandalism has led to huge losses of crude and petroleum products; 27,967 incidents of pipeline vandalism were recorded in the last few years.” he said .

Credit: Vanguard

Angola Overtakes Nigeria In Crude Oil Production

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Nigeria’s crude oil production fell by 250,000 barrels per day (bpd) in November, making the country lose its status as Africa’s top oil producer to Angola, latest data from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has shown. ¨Nigeria recorded the biggest drop in output in November among its peers in OPEC, followed by Saudi Arabia, the group’s biggest producer.¨

OPEC, in its latest monthly oil market report, put crude oil production from Nigeria at 1.607 million bpd in November based on direct communication, down from 1.812 million bpd in October. ¨Angola also saw its oil output drop to 1.722 million bpd last month from 1.762 million bpd in October.
Meanwhile, the oil cartel will hold urgent talks, if crude prices don’t recover by February, according to OPEC president and Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu. “It is expected that the upward trend in oil prices will be seen by February next year.

If it does not happen, it is clear that OPEC will need to have a very urgent meeting,” Interfax quoted the OPEC president as saying. ¨On December 4, OPEC decided to keep the current output level of around 31.5 million barrels per day despite oversupply on the global oil market.¨On Monday, Brent and WTI benchmarks sank to lows not seen since 2009. Brent crude fell below $37 a barrel while the US benchmark WTI dropped to below $35 per barrel. ¨Crude prices rebounded slightly in early trading yesterday with Brent trading at $37.73 and WTI at $36.18 per barrel as of 8.36am GMT. ¨OPEC produced 31.7 million barrels per day in November. It is the highest output in over three years and 1.7 million barrels per day over its former production limit…”

Credit: ThisDay

Kaduna Refinery To Resume Production In December- NNPC

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, disclosed yesterday that Kaduna Refinery will resume the production of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS (petrol), within the next three months.

This was even as NNPC stated that it had lifted the embargo earlier placed on 113 vessels, banning them from engaging in crude oil and gas loading activities in any of the terminals within Nigerian territorial waters.

In a statement by NNPC in Abuja, Group Managing Director of the corporation, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, stated that the Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit, FCCU, and the fuel section of the refinery would be brought back to life within this period to ensure that Nigerians continue to enjoy uninterrupted supply of petroleum products.

Kachikwu, who stated this during a facility tour of the Kaduna Refining Petrochemical Company, KRPC, said the refinery will get a turn around that will make it commercially sustainable.

He said: “All the component units of the refinery, including the FCCU and the fuel section, will be fully rehabilitated for resumption of crude supply to the plant.

“You will soon have a different company; we must do all it takes to make this company a success.”

Read More: vanguardngr

Kaduna Refinery Production Capacity Increases To 60%

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The production capacity of the Kaduna Refinery has been increased to 60 per cent after recent repairs, a top management official of the refinery has said.

The Managing Director of the Kaduna Refinery and Petro-Chemical Company, Saidu Mohammed, said that there were efforts to push production capacity to between 80 to 90 per cent before the second quarter of 2016.

According to him, a second phase of the rehabilitation exercise, which is ongoing in the plant, has been completed.

“We have carried out overhaul of all major compressors in the plant. Others are awaiting the arrival of some spare parts, but they are all in order to increase the capacity…”

Read More: channelstv

Warri Refinery To Resume Production In November- Kachikwu

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Recently shut Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, WRPC, will not be resuming operation any time soon, Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu has disclosed. The refinery will now resume full production in the first week of November. It has the capacity to process 125, 000 barrels of crude oil per day.

Kachikwu disclosed this yesterday during facility tour of the refinery and the adjoining Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, Jetty and Depot in Warri, Delta State, According to him, the new date was to enable WRPC carry out temporary maintenance on some facilities explaining that the recent shutdown was due to problem from the Fluid Catalytic Cracking, FCC, Unit at the plant. He said: “WRPC was not shut down because of lack of crude oil supply, neither was crude oil not supply because the refinery was down…”

Read More: nationalmirroronline

P/H Refinery Begins Production Of 5m Litres Of Petrol July

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As part of efforts aimed at bringing the persistent fuel scarcity in the country to an end, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has disclosed that the Port Harcourt refinery is expected to begin production of five million litres of petrol by July after rehabilitating its functionality to 80 per cent capacity.

Group managing director of the corporation, Engr. Joseph Dawha, who disclosed this in Abuja yesterday after a routine inspection of the NNPC’s mega filling stations in Abuja, said the development follows the completion of the Turn Around Maintenance(TAM) of the refinery which would help boost fuel availability.

He also disclosed that the phased TAM for other refineries would be completed within 18 months period, adding that presently, the NNPC has about 1.1 billion litres of fuel which is sufficient to cover for 27 days at a daily consumption level of 40 million litres.

“The Port Harcourt refinery which has reached advanced stage will start receiving crude by the end of this month and start contributing to the availability of products in the country.

“ At the end of 18 months, most of the refineries would have been rehabilitated to a certain level whereby they can actually process crude optimally and make contributions to products availability in the country,” he said.

Dawha added that as a supplier of last resort, the NNPC is presently the only importer of fuel into the country while expressing the hope that other oil marketers would resume import as soon as issues were resolved between them and the federal government.

“In the last five days we have brought 428 trucks of petrol, averaging 85 per cent trucks daily to address the petrol requirement in Abuja and its immediate environs,” he said, adding that arising from the meeting with other stakeholders recently, the NNPC and its downstream subsidiary Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC) was committed to ending fuel queues across the country soon.

Also speaking, the PPMC managing director, Haruna Momoh, who renewed appeal against pipeline vandalism said, “We have a robust pipeline network yet we cannot pump products through the pipelines. We have the products but need the distribution network to efficiently put the products in the filling stations.”

Credit: leadership