Nigeria’s state oil firm, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has picked 16 consortia for its new crude-for-fuel swap contracts for one year starting in August, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The list includes major Swiss trading firms Trafigura, Vitol and Mercuria, oil major Total as well as large Nigerian traders Sahara Energy, Oando and MRS Oil. The contracts, known as direct sale, direct purchase (DSDP) are coveted since they are used to supply nearly all of Nigeria’s gasoline needs as well as cover some of its diesel and jet fuel consumption. Two sources said each consortium would receive 20,000 barrels per day of crude oil in exchange for products, making the combined total 320,000 barrels per day of Nigeria’s output. Nigeria produced about 1.5 million bpd of crude in April. The companies were invited on Friday to submit commercial bids, which were due on Tuesday. Those involved in the process said the list of winners was unlikely to change substantially. A spokesman for NNPC said that the list was still being finalised but did not provide further details. The new DSDPs will replace those from 2019 which were extended until mid-2021. If a foreign oil company wins then it is typically paired with at least one Nigerian firm.

The FG is about to begin the prosecution of 400 suspected Boko Haram financiers, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami said on Thursday. Mr Malami said the government would soon “resuscitate and reinvigorate the existing special terrorism courts in the country” for that purpose. This comes about a week after Mr Malami told reporters at the Presidential Villa in Abuja that the government was profiling some high-profile Nigerians strongly suspected to be financing terrorism for prosecution. He had disclosed that investigations revealing the suspected terrorism financiers were triggered by a recent conviction of some Nigerians in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for funding Boko Haram. When asked about the number of the suspects already identified, he said it could not be given because investigations were still ongoing. Mr Malami, however, gave a clue about the number in a statement released by his spokesperson, Umar Gwandu, to commemorate the Eid-el-Fitr celebration on Thursday. The minister also said the government was taking more measures to counter insurgency and general insecurity in addition to the move to prosecute the 400 suspected Boko Haram financiers.

President Buhari has approved the supply of power to the Aluminum Smelter Company of Nigeria (ALSCON in a bid to return it to full production capacity. The move, according to Buhari, is to ensure that the nation’s economy is revamped through the mineral and metals sector. This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah, during his extensive tour of the ALSCON facility in Ikot-Abasi, Akwa Ibom. Ogah stated that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) described the approval to connect the company to the national grid as a sign that Buhari’s administration is committed to ensuring that the ALSCON is functional due to its great economic potential that would benefit not just Nigeria but Africa. Ogah, in a statement issued by the Director of Press, Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Mrs. Etore Thomas, stated that the company could employ about two thousand Nigerians when it began full operations. He added that the federal government would provide all necessary support to see that the plant is up and running. The Managing Director of the ALSCON, Mr. Zavalov Dmitry, revealed that shortage of gas supply forced the plant to shut down in 2014. Dmitry, however, disclosed that the company has commenced plans to restart the plant and appealed for the provision of alternative sources of gas supply because “globally, industries that produce metal always have two sources of supply of gas.”

Kenya’s High Court ruled on Thursday that a drive by President Uhuru Kenyatta to change the constitution was illegal, stopping what his critics have called a political move designed to check his deputy, whom he has fallen out with publicly. Parliament has already passed the proposed amendments, popularly known as the Building Bridges Initiative, which mark the biggest change to the East African country’s government structure since a new constitution was adopted in 2010. But issuing a ruling on several challenges lodged by various parties, a five-judge bench of the court said Kenyatta had used a constitutional provision reserved for citizens to initiate the changes, making the process illegal. “The president cannot be both player and umpire in the same match,” said Jairus Ngaah, one of the judges. The government, which wants to hold a referendum after Kenyatta signs the bill into law, said it will appeal the ruling. Kenyatta says the bill promotes the sharing of power among competing ethnic groups to reduce cyclical election violence and is not targeting anyone. It will create 70 new constituencies, return the role of cabinet ministers to elected members of parliament, and create several powerful new posts: a prime minister, two deputies and an official leader of the parliamentary opposition. Kenyatta initiated the changes with the backing of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, after the two made peace in January 2018 following a divisive presidential election the previous year in which the president beat Odinga. The rapprochement isolated Kenyatta’s deputy, William Ruto, who wants to succeed his boss when he steps down next year after serving the constitutionally allowed two, five-year terms. The constitutional amendments are partly designed to tame Ruto’s political ambitions, by making it possible to cobble together an alliance against him, said John Githongo, a prominent anti-graft campaigner. “It is very clear that some of these alignments are to sideline him,” he said.





https://www.sbmintel.com/2021/05/daily-watch-fg-to-prosecute-400-suspected-boko-haram-financiers-kenyan-court-dismisses-kenyattas-constitutional-changes/