Martin0:


kpomo and palm wine, see nor call am rubbish oo that thing is so delicious

Really? i hope you are not on a suicide mission, don't tell me you ate that thing! , palm wine, yes! but the kpomo looks scary to me oo! **jokes** dis one wey you go eat kpomo and palm wine you go village?

gypsey:
Really? i hope you are not on a suicide mission, don't tell me you ate that thing! , palm wine, yes! but the kpomo looks scary to me oo! **jokes** dis one wey you go eat kpomo and palm wine you go village?

hahahahah suicide mission kwa not only me sha we are 3. mehn that kpomo correct wella

no oo I nor go village, just for town here some local area around town Na we go buy am ooo

Born2Breed:


Gone are those days.

Your turn is coming

PrecisionFx:



On the contrary, where I come from no matter ur age, wealth or influence, U earn respect, Its not accorded to age.

That's why in my region u don't see our youth praising my leader or politician like Yorubas do to Tinubu or like Hausas do to Buhari.

That is the same reason your region children will see their parents carrying loads on their head and they will walk past .Respect indeed .No wonder

Temptee101:
I totally disagree with you? If i may ask, what qualities does buhari possess to merit being called an elder? Being an elder is not just a title, you earn it

Elders lead by example
Elders are compassionate and kind
Elders are role models and mentors
Elders are wise and knowledgeable and many more. ..

Buhari is the exact opposite of the aforementioned, so he doesn't deserve being called an elder. He is even worst than a monster.

Your turn is coming

DSDLIVEREPORT:


Your turn is coming

Your turn is NOW! Ewobi!

DSDLIVEREPORT:


That is the same reason your region children will see there parents carrying loads on their head and they will walk past .Respect indeed .No wonder

How can u know this wen ur yet to visit the SE in ur entire life?

PrecisionFx:



How can u know this wen ur yet to visit the SE in ur entire life?

I had years of tertiary education there but I don't even need to travel there. Go to festac,okota & even Coker @ orile where the amichis dominate it's all over. Na u start am o.

ggoldmine:
While others made their wealth by doing something spectacular; cc Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Jeff Besos, Jack Ma, Aliko Dangote, Mark Zuckerberg, she made hers by faith!…doing something unembellished and still competing with these men. Well, it's for those that have regards for her wealth Coz I don't. She doesn't even deserve to be counted among the richest women in Africa, a title she didn't work for. Imagine comparing her with the likes of Oprah Winfrey…naa, she doesn't deserve it.

Do you even know how her story? She paid the required fees to acquire the oil block to govt, got a license to operate it, signed an agreement with Texaco/Stardeep to drill the bloc, was able to give employment to several Nigerians by virtue of the activities carried out at that oil field, has remitted millions in taxes to Federal Govt as a result of her company's operations, and even had to fight Obasanjo's govt in court for 10 long years when the oil well was initially taken away from her, before she could get it back!! If that is not tenacity, hardwork and adding value to a project, I don't know what you can call it.

Many people got oil blocs but were unable to develop it, or engage a competent oil firm to operate it for them. Alakija succeeded in doing all these, and you are still mocking her? If you got an oil bloc would you decline it? Receive sense, abeg!

Odingo1:
If you give a mad man an oil well, he will become very rich, Alakija should just park one side.
She is just plucking money from the tree that bears money.

Stop telling lies. Many people got oil blocks but have never been able to produce a drop of crude, from such blocs. You think say exploration and production activities in the upstream sector, na beans?

hedonistic:
Stop spinning stupid lies to misinform and mislead the gullible public. Her husband, Modupe Alakija, is a Lawyer and NOT a geologist. He doesn't know zilch about the technicalities of oil prospecting or exploration, let alone be in a position to make any meaningful decision on such matters.

He is just a figurehead, if not, why is he merely the titular "chairman" of Famfa yet he doesn't own enough shares there to be a dollar billionaire? Why is Folorunsho the Forbes rated owner of the company and not him?

You dey mind am? Let that chap you quoted, be misyarning rubbish there. He does not even realise that the case over OPL 216 which later became OML 127, owned by Alakija was in court for many years, as federal govt under Obasanjo tried to take over the well, after they had discovered it was now profitable. This was after subsequent seismic studies, drilling etc., embarked upon by Alakija's firm and their operators, now revealed that the oil field was actually more profitable because it had higher yields, than everyone had originally thought!

Icon4s:
She didn't say she accepted any Well. She accepted a block!

Wells are drilled after several Exploration activities, and several field development plans have been carried out.

It is a very tedious process that involves expertise, time and very importantly money.

Even that Kayode is just talking like an illiterate. Cos from his statement he doesn't know the difference between a Well and a block.

I believe the Woman's story. It takes Faith to accept a Green block when you are not sure whether you'll strike oil or not.

But what she didn't tell us the source of funding the project.

Thank you for educating the clueless, my brother. I hear the first set of money she got, came from the operator of the block. She sold part of her shares in the oil block to them, in exchange for their technical expertise.

Toks2008:
I don't know why people are quoting her out of context.

From what I understand,she accepted a non functional well that has zero potential of profitability but having the faith that she will turn it around and that came to pass.

I don't know but this is my own idea of what she wrote.

Exactly, o! You are one of the very few people that actually understood her post. She accepted what everyone initially thought was a low yield marginal field, with the best of intentions - by simply hoping for the best, and praying that things would eventually work out for her firm, in the end. She probably hoped they would manage to break even, without incurring losses at that initial stage.

Icon4s:
I am glad you have an idea of where I am coming from.

But let me clear this, no government gave anybody any Oil Block as a gift!

Do you know why they are regarded as a gift? Because of the cost of acquiring those blocks as compared to the huge revenues later recovered from them. This thing you guy think are gifts were worth hundreds of millions in Dollars.

Prio to the discovery of huge fields like Agbami, Bonga and Erha, the deep offshore were no go areas. No business man would want to invest his money where they knew there were several limitations ranging from lack of available detailed Geological data to Lack of technical expertise and experience among others.

The government had to give out those offshore blocks to potential investors at a cheaper price compared to those onshore as an incentive to attract them towards it and then which in turn will boost our Oil reserves. Which is a win-win scenario.

Let's even say (as you guys think) she was given the block for free. Do you know the amount of Capital investment (CAPEX) that will go into such a block before you will get to the stage of Drilling the first well? What if after spending so much and then drill wells and the wells are dry? And you say she has nothing to lose? Do you know how much it costs to even drill wells offshore?

Please if we don't know about certain issues let's ask questions before making comments

Folorunsho Alakija's story cannot be beneficial to every entrepreneur. It is for only those that understand the nitty gritty of the Oil business.

I would like to sit with her and share from her success story on that Oil Block.

You are too much!! May God continue to increase the wisdom He has deposited in your life! If that oil bloc had been given directly to Shell, Mobil etc., none of those uttering invectives against Alakija would have batted an eyelid. All the oil blocks and wells drilled by Shell, Mobil, ChevronTexaco, Agip etc, how much did those multinationals pay for each one? How are the chaps wailing on this thread, so sure these firms were not given those blocks as a gift, right from the days of Oloibiri?

Jahdriel:
How do you think all these other guys got to where they are today? First, they all had one or two opportunities and they grab these opportunities with everything they've got. Alakija did the same, she was give an opportunity and she took it. You think the men you've mentioned made their wealth by simply doing their businesses the simple way! They all mingled and still mingling with governments. They excel on governments goodwill.

Why do you think Dangote was with Jonathan before election results were announced and few hours after Buhari was announced winner, he left Jonathan and went to sit with Buhari. Why has it been difficult for the US to pass any serious bill on gun control.

Whenever any government in US organizes bigtime election fund raisers what kind of people show up at these funds raisers? It's the likes of the ones you've mentioned above. Some them don't get oil wells or contracts from government, but go and check government policies as regards these people's businesses, for example Dangote and cement manufacturing in Nigeria. How do you think Alhaji got the license to start a private refinery?

When Oprah wias donating to Obama's campaigns, donated to Michelle's special projects she will not loud it now and u won't be there too, then when she wants to do an all access interview for the Obama's or even a documentary to be aired on O network with advertisers paying millions to get on board, then you people will start saying she's the only that can move such weight. The thing is some might get oil wells, some licenses, some goodwill, some favourable policies, etc. The fact and truth is, there's no $billionaire that does not make friends with government or got to where they are without ever making friends with government, how and what was at stake may be different. And you too my friend will do the same when or if u get to that point in life!

Well said!! Very correct! Nothing more to add.

LaudableXX:

Stop telling lies. Many people got oil blocks but have never been able to produce a drop of crude, from such blocs. You think say exploration and production activities in the upstream sector, na beans?

If you get an oil block, even if you don't do anything else but merely decide to invite oil majors to partake in it, you should get at least $15m to $30m in so-called 'farming fees, regardless of whether they later find oil or not. If you want to flip it altogether, you would get at least between $30m - $100m depending on its perceived prospects. If they find oil, you would still receive annual royalties (in millions of dollars). Isn't that enough to make you very rich?

Because the likes of Alakija, Adenuga, and Lulu-Briggs decided that they wanted more than farming fees and royalties, and went the extra mile to invite technical partners to do all the work for them, while they sit back and share in the proceeds, that doesn't mean that they're smart or hardworking.

The whole oil block award and operation process in Nigeria is riddled with extreme corruption, and anybody that made their wealth through this can never be a genuine entrepreneurship role model.

DSDLIVEREPORT:


I had years of tertiary education there but I don't even need to travel there. Go to festac,okota & even Coker @ orile where the amichis dominate it's all over. Na u start am o.

This post sincerely makes no sense.

Do a Better one.

hedonistic:
If you get an oil block, even if you don't do anything else but merely decide to invite oil majors to partake in it, you should get at least $15m to $30m in so-called 'farming fees, regardless of whether they later find oil or not. If you want to flip it altogether, you would get at least between $30m - $100m depending on its perceived prospects. If they find oil, you would still receive annual royalties (in millions of dollars). Isn't that enough to make you very rich?

Because the likes of Alakija, Adenuga, and Lulu-Briggs decided that they wanted more than farming fees and royalties, and went the extra mile to invite technical partners to do all the work for them, while they sit back and share in the proceeds, that doesn't mean that they're smart or hardworking.

The whole oil block award and operation process in Nigeria is riddled with extreme corruption, and anybody that made their wealth through this can never be a genuine entrepreneurship role model.

When Mobil, Shell, Agip and the oil majors got awarded oil blocks, are you saying the process was not riddled with corruption? Under what guidelines or bidding processes were they awarded these blocks, from the 60s to the 90s? Please tell us. Some of you guys, feel comfortable when foreigners drill your national oil assets, but start crying 'blue murder,' when a Nigerian is given a permit to drill for the same oil!

Are you aware that there are several individuals that were awarded oil blocks within marginal fields from year 1991 till 2003 but were never able to get oil majors or any exploration firm to partner with them, until the licenses of those oil blocks expired? Why? Simply because from the seismic reports, not all those oil blocks could boast of oil in commercial quantity. So the owners of those oil blocks NEVER earned a penny from it.

If truly the likes of Alakija were just awarded oil blocks without them paying for it, then when their case got to court such an issue would have been exposed. But the case went all the way to the Supreme Court and from the evidence tendered, it was obvious that the Alakija's company Famfa paid in full for the rights to that oil block, and the court ended up preventing Obasanjo's govt from revoking their license to it.

Getting an oil block is one thing, but being able to bring together those with the expertise, equipment and resources to make it a profitable operation, takes a lot of guts, negotiation and persistence. One needs to give Alakija a pass mark at least, in this area!

If you look back, many of those oil blocks fell within marginal fields that had been in the custody of oil majors for many years, but which they had not bothered to operate, because they felt the returns would not be worth their while or the block would not yield oil in commercial quantity.

But since those blocks were awarded to Nigerians, it has shown the rest of the world that our citizens also have the expertise to develop, operate and coordinate exploration activities successfully. The likes of companies like Dubri Oil, Emerald Energy, Amni International, Niger-Delta Exploration and Production Co (which has installed the first mini-refinery/topping plant producing diesel for sale), Waltersmith Petromann and a few others have lent credence to that fact.

Oil acreage ownership in Nigeria does not have ethnic colouration. What’s more important, sustaining production from oil and gas assets, whether or not awarded by the state, is determined by how much of a businessman you are.

When Jibril Aminu handed out oil prospecting blocks, in the first comprehensive effort “to encourage indigenous participation” in 1991, he gave blocks to companies owned by Folawiyo, Abiola, Adenuga, Udoji, Ibru, Igbinedion,(all Southerners) as much as he gave to enterprises set up by people like Saleh Jumbo and Mai Deribe.

Between 1991 and 1993, we suddenly had over 25 companies, that were Nigerian E&P companies and they took themselves so seriously that they set up an association they christened “Nigerian Association of Indigenous Petroleum Exploration Companies”. But what did these people do with the acreages? They were mostly clueless about how to progress things.

Out of that class of awardees, only Mike Adenuga created what you could really call an E&P company. He is the only one producing oil today, from his own block.

It’s bad enough that Nigerian indigenous private acreage holders don’t produce, as a collective, up to 150,000 Barrels per day, or 7% of the national daily production, so why are we fighting ourselves? But false information misleads all of us into false conclusions, which reduce the complexity of the solutions we ought to be proffering.

The first field the author mentions is Obe field, which, he rightly claims, is held by Cavendish Petroleum, a company set up by Alhaji Mai Deribe. Alabo- George lied by saying that the Obe field, the main hydrocarbon pool in OML 110, contains 500Million barrels of oil reserves.

The Obe field does not have a proven 20 Million barrels. I am not sure it has 10Million barrels. It is not producing as I write. The Obe field has not produced for five years, since 2007, when Tranfigura, the last technical partner engaged by Cavendish, walked out.

I don’t know what discipline Mr Alabo-George belongs to, but this point I am about to make is well known to every junior petroleum geologist with three year experience in the crummiest E&P company: If a field holds 500 Million barrels of oil, proven, in shallow water Nigeria, it won’t lie fallow. Investors would rush it.

And I am less keen on how much you’re getting as rent from the asset you are holding, than the capacity you are building as manager of a Nigerian oil company who is awarded the asset, in trust for the rest of us.

True, Indimi’s Oriental Resources holds the three assets. OML 115 is not producing as I write. No one has certified that there’s a producible field in the acreage. Ebok is being produced, on Oriental Resources’ behalf, by Afren, a UK listed company. Last year, the field delivered an average of 8,000Barrels of Oil per Day(BOPD), according to Afren’s website. You can google it. Okwok, as I write, is still in development. Translation: it has produced nary a drop of oil.

Read the rest here: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/123588-the-north-does-not-control-nigerias-oil-blocks-by-toyin-akinosho.html