U.S. shale companies are beginning to panic in the new year as a global supply glut sinks crude further to 11-year lows, putting added financial stress on the most heavily indebted.
Debt and equity investors have all but given up on the exploration and production sector as oil prices tumble lower. In the last year, the SIG index of oil companies .EPX fell 42 percent, compared with a 0.6 percent decline in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index .
SandRidge Energy Inc, a once high-flying Oklahoma-based shale company backed by billionaire investors Leon Cooperman and Canada’s Prem Watsa, was delisted by the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. The stock last traded on the NYSE for less than 20 cents a share.
Though companies ended 2015 with enough cash on hand to cover interest payments for well into next year, they cannot afford to drill new wells. The gloomier outlook is expected to prod more of them to restructure and give up on trying to ride out a downdraft showing no signs of abating soon.
Oil CLc1 is down 10 percent since Dec. 31 to $33 a barrel, falling away from the crucial $50 to $60 level that many shale companies need for long-term survival.
“You are going to see a lot more bankruptcies and restructurings this year,” said Bill Costello, an energy analyst at Westwood Holdings Group Inc. “This year is going to be much worse for companies with weak balance sheets.”
Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, Saleh Dunoma, has disclosed that construction work at the Katsina Airport terminal has been completed and the project is ready for commissioning.
Dunoma said the authority is presently putting finishing touches for final takeover of the new terminal.
Speaking on the viability of the airport, he explained that the airport is of strategic importance and relevance as it would serve as alternative to other airports in the North.
He added that the terminal would add substantial value to the revenue generation drive of FAAN through annual the Hajj operations.
He also stated that the authority would continue to prioritize safety and security in line with international best practices.
The airport constructed in 1991 was being operated as airstrip before being upgraded to operate standard operations, according to a statement by spokesman of FAAN, Yakubu Dati.
Meanwhile, the MD while receiving officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) said the authority would continue to do its best to ensure safety and security on the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Access Road, Lagos.
It was learnt that the meeting was centred on providing a safe and secure driveway along MMIA Access Road, Lagos by permanently vacating the petroleum tankers positioned along that road.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has said it is putting in place machinery to clear unclaimed dividends worth over N80 billion.
Its Head, Corporate Communications, Naif Abdussalam, said that the capital market regulator would this week commence a road show to sensitise Nigerians on their rights to the unclaimed dividends and how to redeem them before holding a Town Hall meeting with stakeholders on the matter.
He said the SEC, has “directed all registrars of public companies to return all unclaimed dividends, which have been in their custody for 15 months and above, to the paying companies.”
The SEC also notified the public that enrolment for e-Dividend payments could now be efficiently conducted at bank and registrar branches nationwide through the online platform launched on July 29, last year.
The e-Dividend scheme, Abdussalam said, “has been a priority initiative for the entire capital market in a bid to curb the growth of unclaimed dividends and improve the overall efficiency of Nigeria’s equities markets.”
Multinational oil company, Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) has provided over $10 million (aboutN1.9 billion), to fund various infrastructural and non-infrastructural community development projects in its operational areas in Nigeria in the last one year.
These projects are under its Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMoU), its Manager, Communications Policy, Government & Public Affairs, A. O. Adebawo, has said.
He spoke at the company’s headquarters in Lagos during the presentation of a prize to the Nigerian Media Merit Award (NMMA) 2015 winner of ‘Chevron Prize for Oil & Gas Reporter of the Year,’ to The Nation’s Assistant Editor Chikodi Okereocha.
He said under the GMoU, which improves local participation in determining the needs Chevron’s programs should address by giving host communities a greater role in managing their development through Regional Development Councils (RDCs), the company had spent over $10million in the last one year.
Adebawo said on the strength of the GMoU, which has brought peace and stability to areas where Chevron operates, several communities have benefited from projects including water supplies, rural electrification projects, school building, cottage hospital, road and drainage networks, town halls, housing for displaced people, scholarship, and micro-credit scheme among others.
CNL endowed the Chevron Prize for Oil & Gas Reporter of the Year category.
Adebawo said Chevron’s GMoU, a new and innovative approach to engagement with host oil communities, has significantly improved relationship with host communities.
Nigeria Breweries Plc (NBL) has said it saved N2.5billion from energy efficiency, adding that the company has recorded annual energy efficiency increase through production volumes increase yearly since its application in 2009.
Managing Director/CEO, Nicholaas A. Vervelde, who revealed this said plans are on top gear to switch from diesel to gas.
He said: “We have extended the number of breweries that are natural gas from three to four. Others will switch in future. These will significantly reduce our carbon footprint and operating cost.”
Vervelde stated this in a document titled: “Sustainability report” made available to our reporter.
He said the firm’s subsidiary, Aba Brewery, achieved 49 per cent reduction in thermal energy consumption representing nearly 80 million standard cubic feet of gas not burned to release Co2 into the atmosphere thereby saving on estimated electricity consumption by nearly 600 averaged sized homes.
In addition, he said the amount of carbon would have required more than 110,000 trees grown for 10 years, noting it remains the best thermal energy consumption results in the entire Heineken world.
American automobile manufacturer, Ford, has reported record sales of about 1.1 million vehicles in China in 2015.
The Dearborn, Michigan, automaker said on Friday, January 8 that its 2015 sales in the country were up by three percent from the previous year as demand for small sport-utility vehicles there continues to grow.
It also set a new monthly sales record in December, selling 124,768 vehicles. That’s up 27 percent from the prior-year period.
Ford also tapped into China’s booming market for luxury cars with 11,630 Lincoln vehicles sold during the brand’s first full year in the country, where its entire SUV line-up is offered.
Lincoln added eight more dealerships than expected for a total of 33 in the 2015.
The company is aiming for 60 dealerships in 50 cities by year-end.
The highest electricity generation Nigeria has attained is about 4,600Mw, which is less than 5Gw, experts have said.
Meanwhile, the country should be 160 gigawatts (Gw) or 160,000 megawatts (Mw),the experts, who spoke to The Nation in Lagos on condition of anonymity, said.
They said it was laughable that the sector’s regulator, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) would put a ceiling of N50 billion per year on the 11 electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) in the country.
They noted that NERC had to take the decision because anything above the amount may be difficult for the DISCOs to recover considering the poor revenue collections they make from electricity bills, as well as low tariff, which they said is not cost-reflective.
For the Federal Government to achieve its industrialisation aspiration, which is primarily premised on adequate and stable power supply, the sector should be opened to massive investment.
Transactions on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, closed in the Red zone on Friday, January 8, as the All Share Index dropped by 0.87 per cent to close at 27,028.39 points from 27,266.18 on Thursday, January 7.
Similarly, market capitalization plunged from N9.377 trillion to N9.296 trillion.
Okomu Oil led the gainer table of seven stocks with the highest gain of N3.25 gain or 9.85 per cent to N36.25 followed by Dangote Sugar with a gain of N0.28 or 4.86 per cent to close at N6.04 followed by Ikeja Hotel that gained N0.15 or 4.81 per cent to close at N3.27 per share.
On the other hand, Honywell Flour topped 29 stocks on the losers’ chart with N0.17 loss or 8.95 per cent to close at N1.73 followed by Unity Bank that lost 0.08 or 8.60 per cent to close at N0.85 per share, and Flour Mill that lost N1.04 or 5 per cent to close at N19.76 per share.
All together, a total of 235,554,505 shares worth N1.938 billion exchange hands in 2,953 deals.
Nigeria’s external reserves have continued to slide hitting a 12-year low as it crossed the $29 billion mark to a 30-day moving average of $28.931 billion as at Friday January 8, 2016.
This brings the total decline of the reserves from the beginning of December 2015 to 3.17 per cent.
The reserves which was at $29.880 billion as at December 1, 2015 had dropped by 2.7 per cent within the month to $29.069 the last day of last year before a further shed of $138.668 million dollars between December 31, 2015 and January 7, 2016.
Having hovered around $30 billion since September last year, the reserves began a steady decline in December, crossing over to $29 billion which it maintained throughout the month before it hit $28 on January 4, 2016 which is the latest figure given by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The external reserves had depreciated by 14.1 per cent last year having fallen from fallen from $34.46 billion which it was as at December 31, 2014 to $29.069 billion as at December 31, 2015 according to figures given by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its website, covering barely four months of imports.
A source within the CBN explained that the decline was due to the fact that the level of inflow into the reserves was lower than the level of outflow during the 30-day period.
According to Olubunmi Asaolu of FBN Quest Research, the dropping level of the reserves also reflects the falling oil prices at the international market.
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, may announce a new exchange rate band, with a floor of N185 and a ceiling of N220 in the first quarter of 2016 in an effort to bring the external and domestic economic variable into equilibrium.
Some analysts have expressed optimism that the apex bank may unveil the new band when the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meets in two weeks, at a time when there are mixed signals on the direction of monetary policy in Nigeria.
Bismarck Rewane, chief executive officer, Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) said interest rate will likely respond to the new band.
Money market rates are already at an all-time low.
“We expect to see a creeping up of rates as the level of government borrowing increases”, he said.
The anticipated tweak in the exchange rate band is expected to slowdown the rate of depletion,of the external reserves, already below $29 billion, as the demand pressure eases.
BUA Group has announced the divestment of its flour business to Olam International in a deal worth $275million.
Founder, BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu, who spoke at the signing ceremony over the weekend, said: “This signing marks a major milestone in our medium term strategy. Over the years, we have run one of the largest and most efficient flour milling businesses in Nigeria and are confident in the value it will add to the buyer’s operations.”
“Our Group’s strategic focus will now be to diversify to business areas with greater potential for export where the sourcing and utilisation of foreign exchange is less and most of the materials needed for production can be sourced locally whilst also positioning our current line of Foods and Infrastructure businesses for market leadership.”
Further speaking on the Group’s medium term growth strategy, Alhaji Rabiu, who is also the executive chairman of BUA, said that expanding the backward integration of its sugar plantations in Kwara and Kogi States is key.
“Extensive work is ongoing in Lafiagi, Kwara State with over 20,000 hectares and we have another 50,000 hectares of farmland in Bassa, Kogi. These two operations form the fulcrum of our backward integration programme for sugar and this will further reduce the country’s dependence on imported raw sugar while supporting the value chain in sugar production within Nigeria
“Similarly, we expect to replicate the successes we have recorded through the deep integration of our cement operations.”
“With most raw materials for cement currently being sourced locally, we have been able to scale up operations significantly with minimal dependence on foreign exchange and will soon start exporting to neighbouring countries from both our Obu and Sokoto plants which are currently undergoing 3.5million MTPA and 1.5million MTPA capacity expansions respectively to bring the Group’s cement production capacity to around 10 million MTPA by 2018,” he added.
Indications have emerged that the National Assembly, NASS, may have discarded the nation’s automotive policy.
This assumption is coming as both the executive and the legislature unveiled plan to acquire various automobiles budgeted at a whopping N4.7 billion for the National Assembly and over N3.7 billion for principal officials of the federal government is implemented.
Findings by Leadership revealed that, of all the cars, sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and other logistics vehicles to be purchased by both the National Assembly and the presidency, none of them is from among the locally assembled models in the country, raising doubts on the support of the government to the celebrated national automotive policy.
While the Presidency voted the sum of N3.63 billion for BMW saloon cars for principal officers and another N189.1 million voted for tyres for various vehicles, including the bulletproof and plain Mercedes Benz cars being used in the Presidency in the 2016 budget, the Senate plans to spend its share of the total sum of N4.7 billion on Toyota Land Cruisers 2016 model for its 109 members. The senators also want their vehicles to come with integrated navigator cruise control, and QI-Compartible wireless charging and Kinetic dynamic suspension system.
The House of Representatives plans to buy two Mercedes Benz S550 2016 Model, with full option and bullet proof, as well as 14 Toyota Land Cruisers, 5.7L petrol engine, 2016 Model, with full option and keyless entry.
The identities of the choice cars for the members of the legislature were contained in an advertorial placed in one of the national dailies on November 13.
Other favored car brands and models include American brand, V8, VXR “with intelligence,” Peugeot 607 and 406 sedans, Prado jeeps, Hilux vans and other exotic Toyota models, broadly described as “utility and operational vehicles.” None of these are currently being assembled in Nigeria.
While Toyota, Mercedes and BMW cars are not being assembled in the country at the moment, PAN Nigeria has not commenced local manufacturing of Peugeot 607 and 406 models, suggesting the government and the NASS will have to source the vehicles from abroad, a rejection of the made-in-Nigeria brands and models.
Automobile industry investors and stakeholders who spoke on the matter lamented that the plan of the government to source the vehicles from outside the country, stressing that sourcing the automobiles from the local industry would save the country from huge capital flight that leads to severe loss of foreign exchange.
Transactions on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, kick started the year 2016 on negative note run as 190 equities listed declined by N555 billion during the first trading week of the year.
Index movement indicates that the NSE All-Share Index and market capitalization depreciated by 5.63 per cent to close the week at 27,028.39 and N9.296 trillion respectively.
Similarly, all other Indices finished lower during the week, with the exception of the NSE Industrial Goods Index that rose by 0.45 per cent to close at 2,176.44.
At the end of the week, a turnover of 899.604 million shares worth N7.669 billion in 14,164 deals were traded by investors on the floor of the exchange in contrast to a total of 2.965 billion shares valued at N9.364 billion that exchanged hands last week in 7,174 deals.
The Financial Services Industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 764.790 million shares valued at N4.858 billion traded in 8,904 deals; thus contributing 85.01 per cent and 63.34 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
The Conglomerates Industry followed with 40.164 million shares worth N100.471 million in 626 deals. The third place was occupied by the Consumer Goods Industry with a turnover of 40.006 million shares worth N1.707 billion in 2,116 deals.
Trading in the top three equities namely Access Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc.(measured by volume) accounted for 339.027 million shares worth N2.800 billion in 3,116 deals, contributing 37.69 per cent and 36.51 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
Day by day trading indicates that the year opens on the bears as local bourse losing 271.93 basis points to close at 28,370.32 points on the first trading day in 2016.
Consequently market capitalization lost N94 billion to settle at N9.757 trillion. In line with the direction of Monday trading sentiments, market activity measured by value and volume traded deceased. The value traded lost 81.5 per cent to settle at N700.5 million while the volume traded decreased to 99 million units respectively. Market breadth settled at a positive as 12 stocks appreciated in prices against 18 depreciations.
The Consumer Services sector started the week on a negative footing, as losses in Nigeria Breweries and Nestle Nigeria drove a negative 2.9 per cent return. Despite the gains of 1.8 per cent in Zenith Bank, the Financial Services sector also returned negative 0.4 per cent based on losses of 4.9 per cent and 0.7 per cent seen in FBN Holdings and Guaranty Trust Bank respectively. Oando’s 1.7 per cent gain contributed to the Oil and Gas sectors 0.1 per cent return. Regardless of the flat daily return in Dangote Cement, the Industrial Goods sector returned negative 0.1 per cent on the back of a 4 per cent decrease in Ashaka Cement share price.
As crude oil price continue to slide, global speculators are reported to be buying put options contracts that will only pay out if price drops to as low as $15 a barrel in 2017, the latest sign some investors expect an even deeper slump in energy prices.
The prices on Wednesday dipped below $35 per barrel for the first time since 2004, tumbling more than five percent as the row between Saudi Arabia and Iran made any cooperation between major exporters on cutting crude oil supply to the international market more unlikely.
The diplomatic rift between Saudi Arabia and Iran after the Saudi execution of a Shi’ite cleric, Nimr al-Nimris believed to have ended speculation that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) could agree to cut production to lift the price of oil.
Riyadh had called off diplomatic ties with Tehran over Iran’s response to the execution of the Saudi Shi’ite cleric, while the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have backed Saudi Arabia in the diplomatic crisis that could deepen sectarian tension in the Arab world.
Bloomberg reported that the bearish wagers come as OPEC’s effective scrapping of output limits, Iran’s anticipated return to the market and the resilience of production from countries such as Russia raise the prospect of a prolonged global oil glut.
Head of Commodities Research at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Mr. Jeffrey Currie was quoted as saying that the oversupply would continue into 2017, adding there is risk oil prices would fall to $20 a barrel to force production shutdowns if mild weather continues to damp demand.
The bearish outlook has prompted investors to buy put options , which give them the right to sell at a predetermined price and time at strike prices of $30, $25, $20 and even $15 a barrel, according to data from the New York Mercantile Exchange and the United States Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the United States benchmark, is currently trading at about $36 a barrel.
The data, which only covers options deals that have been put through the US exchange or cleared, is viewed as a proxy for the overall market and volumes have increased this week as oil plunged.
Investors can buy options contracts in the bilateral, over-the-counter market too. They have bought increasing volumes of put options that will pay out if the price of WTI drops to $20 to $30 a barrel next year, the data shows.
The Association of Electricity Distributors, ANED, has stated that the, CAPEX, allowed for electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) yearly was inadequate to meet the expected improvement in the nation’s power sector.
Executive Director, Sunday Olurotimi Oduntan, who stated this at a press conference in Lagos, advocated the need to exempt the Credit Advance Payment for Metering Implementation (CAPMI) from the limit placed on CAPEX, even as he expressed displeasure over the huge gap in the nation’s power sector funding over the years.
He said: “According to the power sector privatisation agreement, all the DISCOs can only invest an average of N50 billion in a year because of the present tariff structure,” he stated.
“But if the CAPMI is exempted from the CAPEX limit, our members can channel their investment into metering all the customers without affecting other intended investment in infrastructural development to boost power supply across their networks,” Oduntan added.
Chief Executive Officer, Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), Mrs Funke Osibodu, stated that DISCOs take the blame for every problem in the power sector because they directly interface with the power consumers.
“We don’t have control over generation and transmission. We are like collection agents for the entire power industry. Across the financial value chain in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), we get just 25 per cent of the total collections,” she explained.
“Once we collect the billing from the customers, the generation companies (GENCOS) get 60 per cent, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) gets 11 per cent… We are directed to meter all our customers within one year, but we are constrained by the limit of CAPEX that we can invest.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has ordered suspended BGL Group and their sponsors to appear before the Administrative Proceedings Committee (APC) on February 3.
The capital market regulator said it has invited the BGL Group, which consists of BGL Securities, BGL Assets Management and their sponsors to appear before the APC.
SEC said the summons was prompted by the receipt of 10 new complaints, valued at over N2.9 billion, against the group between May 20 and November 10, 2015 from various investors.
The commission said the investors have alleged several violations of the Investments and Securities Act (2007), SEC Rules and Regulations as well as the Code of Conduct for Capital Market Operators, including performance of a capital market function without due registration, promoting and marketing products not registered by the commission.
Others allegation against BGL are failure/refusal to resolve clients’ complaints, failure to file statutory returns and furnishing the commission with false and misleading information.
Following the outrage that trailed the sale of NITEL/MTEL obsolete items, the National President of the Nigeria Association of Auctioneers, NAA, Aliyu Kiliya, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the sale of the former leading telecoms operator in the country.
Kiliya made the appeal in an open letter to the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo and the Chairman Council of Propertisation, a copy of which was made available to reporters on Friday, January 8 in Bauchi.
“The National Association of Auctioneers (NAA) as stakeholders filed a case in Bauchi Federal High Court against the liquidator who was appointed by the Bureau for Public Enterprise (BPE).
“We feel disappointed by the way and manner NITEL and MTEL sale was carried out.
“The items were supposed to be sold by open and competitive bidding, instead of secret bidding,” Kiliya said.
He said the NAA is dismayed that despite the direction by the Federal High Court judge that status quo should be maintained, it was regretable that NETCOM Company Limited has taken over the disposal of all the items of NITEL/MTEL nationwide, contravening the order that was given by the court.
“In this regard we are appealing to your good office to as a matter of urgency to kindly stop immediately the selling of NITEL/MTEL as we believe that a lot of revenue is being looted that is why they are rushing to sell and if this is allowed to happen a lot of revenue will be lost,”he said.
At the beginning of year, a majority of Nigerians pick up their diaries to write down their vacation plans for Easter, summer or other periods when they intend to take their work-leave for the year and one of the most important factors they consider is the destination.
In recent times, the go-to for most people in Nigeria has included Ghana, Dubai, London, and other obvious cities. However, while they may have the time of their lives, visiting these places more than once takes out the fun and makes the journey boring. And these trips almost always bring about major pocketbook damage.
This 2016, Jovago.com, Africa’s No. 1 online hotel booking site has made a list of top 5 best value destinations for Nigerians. These destinations are not only be novel for most travellers, they are wallet-friendly and offer adventure and stunning scenery. From high style and budget shopping to breathe-taking art, unique cultures and cuisines, read on to discover these places.
Tallinn, Estonia
Estonia is a major destination on a lot of lists (including Lonely planet, Forbes and CNN) as best value for 2016. Found in Northern Europe, it is often described as one of the most wired countries in the continent. Tallinn, the largest city in the state is cheap by most standards and a popular getaway. Food, drinks and nightlife are quite affordable compared to other European cities and visitors also have a lot to see: thepreserved Old Town in the capital of Tallinn which boasts of rich history, the enchanting forests of Lahemaa National Park, and other sites.
Kampala, Uganda
Kampala, one of the favorite cities in Uganda, actually beats any other East African capital. While it is not as clean as Kigali, or as globalized as Nairobi, it is a dynamic and engaging city that features worthy attractions enough to keep you occupied for the duration of your vacation. With swanky restaurants and bars around the city, budget lodges and a bustling nightlife, you are bound to get the best value in this city.
Galicia, Spain
The usual destinations for Nigerians visiting in Spain include Ibiza, Barcelona and Madrid, however, Galicia, located in the northwest region of the country offers a rocky coastline and communities barely explored by tourists. Nigerians who love to discover new places will definitely get the best experience in this area. The food- including meat, cheese and seafood- is affordable and can be found in the many restaurants and bars throughout the region. Hostels and apartments are also available accommodations for budget travellers.
Goa, India
Most Nigerians tend to think of India as the place to go to when you have a medical emergency or health problem, however, the country is much more than that. While large cities like Mumbai and Delhi might not be of such great value (budget-wise), Goa a small state in the country offers a great travel bargain. Its collection of beach and inland towns offer enough motivation to hang around. The state also offers the cheapest hotels and a variety of gastronomies for Indian food lovers.
From mountains, hills and caves to seasides and natural springs, the Western region of Nigeria which covers states such as Lagos, Ogun and Ekiti offers a variety of marvelous destinations for adventure seekers.
Although not as naturally endowed as the northern regions of the country in terms of landscape, and inhabited mostly by the Yoruba tribe, indigenes from other tribes as well as tourists from other countries visit the region regularly to seek adventure or test their survival skills.
Visiting western Nigeria and getting bored already? Swap the ‘sightseeing’ for something more extreme. In many survival situations it is up to you to save yourself, so, Jovago.com, Africa’s No.1 online hotel booking site has picked out 4 places that will offer you opportunities to learn how to do just that.
Idanre Hills
While Idanre Hill looks like an easy climb, it really is not. Listed as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) it attracts a lot of adventure seekers from around the world. Featuring a cluster of intimidating and imposing hills with abundant the flora and fauna you already have a lot on your plate. Fortunately, you are free to camp on this site for a while , and this gives you opportunity to gain a lot of survival skills from Navigation, signaling, knot tying, first aid and basic fire-starting.
Ikogosi Warm Spring
Located at Ikogosi in Ekiti State, the spring flows warm water from a rock. Flowing abreast the warm spring is another cold spring which meets the warm spring at a confluence, each maintaining its thermal properties. A wooden foot bridge leads to the source of the cold and warm spring water, and research suggests that the warm spring has a temperature of about 70C at the source and 37C at the confluence. Visiting the spring requires a lot of trekking and exploration on the part of the visitor, as the vegetation at the spring can be considered a highly thick forest. The location tests you in many ways
Olumo Rock
A pillar that dates back to ancient Yoruba folklore, Olumo rock is one of the best places to test your survival skills while visiting the Western region of Nigeria. Aside from the intriguing mystery of the serpent, Olumo Rock which stands at 137metres from its base, makes for an exhilarating climb. The heavy duty escalator and a glass elevator running the different levels of the rock alongside the old stairway are a pleasure to those who love climbing. Generally, it gives your opportunity to test your stamina and build endurance. Also, the caves feed your curiosity and even bring a rush of adrenalin.
IITA Forest Ibadan
One of few natural forest reserves in Western Nigeria, the IITA Forest is a huge part of the renowned International Institute of Tropical Agriculture’s Natural Resource Management, and it is located at Ibadan, Oyo State. Covering an area of more than 300 hectares, the forest reserve provides habitat to quite a number of rare and endangered migrating birds and small animals. The IITA Forest Project organizes the event ‘walks on the wild side’, which is open to the general public. The activities in this event are particularly suited to visitors looking test their survival skills.
The Director of the Department of Petroleum Resources, Mordecai Ladan, said on Friday that Nigeria would need about $2 billion (N3.9 trillion) annually to drive its power production.
Ladan stated this in a statement issued by the Communication Officer, Nigeria-South African Chamber of Commerce, Gbenga Akinyode, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos.
The director, who was represented by his Senior Technical Assistant, Abel Nsa, sent the message to a breakfast meeting organised by the chamber
He said the investment revolved around provision of gas pipelines and processing plants for the nation’s gas reserves to boost economic growth.
Ladan said Nigeria was enriched with the largest gas reserves in Africa with an estimate of 188 trillion Cubic Ft. of natural gas.
He said that despite the huge resources and government policies, the nation was still struggling to ensure domestic availability of gas, especially for the power sector.
The director cited some of the challenges bedeviling gas production such as poor infrastructure, vandalism, poor pricing and weak policy implementation.
Keypoints
The Industrial Training Fund has launched a business incubation programme for artisans under its Skill-Up Artisans (SUPA) initiative.
The programme aims to strengthen entrepreneurship and...
