Xenox: And u seem to not to perceive the urgency of the effect of Fracking on the net oil export of Nigeria. There was 41% drop in the crude exports of oil-producing African Nations of which Nigeria's share was 11% in one year.

US has plenty reserve of conventional crude and huge unconventional reserve which they have just started to produce with relatively cheaper Fracking process, this shale oil has grown from 111,000bpd in 2004 to 553,000bpd in 2011 equivalent to a growth rate of around 26% per year. Argentina, China, New Zealand, Mexico, Russia, Columbia, Australia, Japan, have invested heavily in projects to assess non-conventional energy potential and in the extraction and production of shale oil which will surely displace OPEC as the chief price fixer. Even if other minor countries import oil from Nigeria, it will at a lower price per barrel and this will rip our economic fabric into pieces.

Obama: We Don’t Need Energy from Africa

30 Jun 2013

Urges strong institutions as bulwark against terrorism
Festus Akanbi
United States President Barack Obama Saturday confirmed the fears in some quarters that the days of crude oil importation from African oil producing countries, including Nigeria, were numbered, as oil export from Nigeria is on a downward trend.

Speaking at a press conference with South African President Jacob Zuma during his visit to that country as part of his three-nation African visit, Obama said his country does not need energy from Africa.

“Well, the truth is, the United States, at this point, on issues of energy, for example, frankly, we don't need energy from Africa. Because of advances that have been made, we're seeing oil production and natural gas production, as well as clean energy production all growing at a rapid rate in the United States,” he said.

“So our primary interest when it comes to working with Africa on energy issues has to do with how do we power Africa so that it can be an effective market creating jobs and opportunity in Africa, but then we also then have somebody to trade with and sell iPods to, and airplanes, and all kinds of good stuff,” he added.

He challenged Africans to insist on equitable deals from the various foreign investors who are swarming the continent.

Over the years, the US, Nigeria’s biggest oil customer, has been slashing down its oil imports from the country amid surging output and refinery closures in North America, prompting Nigeria’s oil marketers to find alternative markets in Asia, twice the distance of America.

And according to Managing Director Petromix and a Switzerland-based consultant, Oliver Jacob, “It’s a very plausible scenario that one day the U.S. won’t need to import crude oil from Nigeria.”

Following the Organisation of Petroleum Producing Countries, (OPEC), Nigeria’s dwindling oil exports to the United States (U.S.) has crashed further to the lowest in 15 years, noting that it was up to Nigeria to seek out new markets on its own.

Also speaking when he fielded questions from a crop of young leaders from the African continent, the US President said his administration wanted a more equitable partnership, which would help African economies to grow into consumer powerhouses.

He spoke of the readiness of the US to encourage the adoption of the use of clean energy technology and strategies by African nations in an effort to reduce carbon emission.

The US President urged Africans to ask more questions about lopsided deals with some foreign investors, while dismissing talk of a Chinese and US scramble for influence on the continent. Obama said he welcomed renewed interest from larger emerging markets.
According to him, "I actually welcome the attention that Africa is receiving from countries like China and Brazil and India and Turkey." But he urged African nations to make sure trade was not a one-way street.

"When we look at what other countries are doing in Africa, I think our only advice is, make sure it's a good deal for Africa.

"Somebody says they want to come build something here: Are they hiring African workers? Somebody says that we want to help you develop your natural resources: How much of the money is staying in Africa?''

He regretted that too often foreign investment did not benefit locals and actually encouraged the type of corruption and resource-stripping that guts economies.
"I do think that it's important for Africans to make sure that these interactions are good for Africa.

"There has been a long history of extracting resources from Africa, you take raw materials, you send them to someplace else where they get used processed, sometimes sold back to Africa.
"The profits stay there, the jobs stay there and not much stays in Africa," he said.

Chinese investment in Africa was estimated at $218 billion last year, fuelling uncertainty among US businesses, which have expressed concern that Africa is a diplomatic blind spot for their government.

In March, China's new President Xi Jinping visited Africa, as well as Russia, on his first foreign trip, signing a raft of business and energy deals signalling Beijing's intent to deepen ties further.
Responding to a question on the war against terror from a youth leader from Nigeria, Obama said his administration was making a considerable effort in tackling insecurity and curbing terror with the death of Osama Bin Laden but he was quick to recognise existence of Boko Haram in Nigeria.

“There is no doubt in the progress we have made in dealing with some extremist groups, for example core Al Qaida and Bin Laden” he said stressing that “they have been greatly diminished”.

He, however, noted, “What is also true is that in some ways the problem has also metamorphised, we have more regional terrorist organisations like Boko Haram in Nigeria espousing an extremist ideology, showing no regard for human life.”

He admitted that despite not having a transnational capacity like the other organisations “they are doing great harm in Africa and in the Middle East and in South Asia.”

Obama blamed the upsurge of terrorist groups on the fact that “countries are not delivering for their people and where there are sources of conflict and underlining frustrations that have not been adequately dealt with.”

To curb such uprisings, Obama said, “we have to build institutions, a lot of what we talked about in terms of responsiveness, governance and democracy. Those things become defence mechanisms against terrorism, they are the most important defence against terrorism,” he said.
He ruled out military solutions in tackling terrorism but said the more governments “give people opportunity, education and resolve conflicts through regular democratic processes, the less likely they are to take root.”

The US president, whose itinerary did not include seeing the hospitalised South African anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, however paid glowing tributes to the man he eulogised as a hero to the world. He also later met with the Mandela family.

la_unique: And what is obama and americans feeling like now? God?

dasparrow: @Post

Its time for Nigeria to diversify and stop depending on oil as our main income as a nation. That is what that means.

Symphony007: unlike the british and americans, the chinese are not imperialist. They are'nt sending their companies to dominant and expliot countries. They do their buisness, get their profit, the host government gets it's profit and they leave. They are'nt hipocrites like the west who rant against corruption in africa and use the seven sister oil companies and corporations to exastubate that corruption so expliotation can be easier. Africa cannot grow on it's own. No country or continent did. We need someone to help us build up those fences and the chinese are the best.

ndu_chucks:
“Frankly we don’t need energy from Africa,” he said pointing to developments in natural gas, clean energy and oil shale at home.

Source:Vanguard

If this does not serve as a wake up call for the lazy fools in government and equally lazy fools, whose only claim to fame is that majority of our onshore oil is found in their region, I don't know what will. Excellent news!!