hayoakins:

I won

Thanks.

hayoakins: Any free tickets for Nairalanders ...I would love to come celebrate the Kongi too

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), has issued an ultimatum to Chevron Nigeria Limited to, within 14 days, recall all its members recently sacked or risk its facilities in Delta, Edo, Ondo, Kogi and Ekiti states being shutdown.

The union, in a letter to Chevron dated July 7 and signed by Wale Ajayi, Senior Assistant Secretary General, on behalf of PENGASSAN, Warri Zone, asked the oil giant to honour its demands as the failure to honour the demands before Monday, the 21st of July, or risk the grounding of all activities on its facilities (export locations, oil rigs, refinery and gas transmission lines) in the mentioned states.

It stated that all chairmen/ secretaries of branches/chapters and units of PENGASSAN in the affected states have been directed to commence total mobilisation against the alleged injustice, “as injury to one is an injury to all".

The market for Nigerian-made cables has received a boost with a recent contract by Nexans Kabelmetal Nigeria Plc to supply electric cables worth N176 million to South-Korea, for use in ship construction.

The vessels, totaling six, were procured by Bonny Gas Transport (BGT), a subsidiary of Nigeria LNG Limited and are worth $1.6 billion. They are being constructed by two ship builders- Samsung Heavy Industries and Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea.

An agreement signed with the ship builders by BGT stated that five per cent of total contract value will be spent procuring suitable Nigerian goods, services and labour in fulfilment of Nigerian content development plan for the project.

Managing Director of Nexans Kabelmetal, Robert Kretschmer, commended the development. “It is significant that a company based in Nigeria is exporting finished industrial goods to a technologically advanced country like South Korea," he said.

“It places a premium on what we do as a company, despite the challenging business environment in Nigeria. I must say that Nexans Kabelmetal has a long standing relationship with NLNG; and for us, this is the beginning of a new level in this relationship. We look forward to this generating other business leads from South-Korea and other countries.”

The new vessels, each with a capacity of 170,000m3, will replace old BGT Ships.

BGT owns 13 of the 23 vessels in Nigeria LNG’s fleet – by far the largest in Nigeria - which deliver liquefied natural gas to customers across the world. The company was established in 1989, to provide shipping capacity for NLNG.

Nigeria, Mexico, Iraq, Russia and Indonesia have been identified as the oil producing nations with the highest crude oil theft in the world.

According to Oil Price, as much as 400,000 barrels of oil a day are stolen (or deferred) in Nigeria, equating to losses of $1.7 billion a month.

This represents 7.7 per cent of Nigeria's GDP vanishing; more than the country spends on education and healthcare. Oil theft hit record levels in 2013.

These numbers paint a harsh picture about the inability of the Nigerian government, and the multinational oil companies in the Niger Delta, to do anything about this rampant theft.

According to Global Financial Initiative, stolen Nigerian crude oil is transported on internationally registered vessels, sold to international buyers, processed by international oil refineries and paid for using international bank accounts.

“With one group of thieves admitting to profits of nearly $7,000 a day from their illicit activities, it will take some doing to stop them," it stated.

In Mexico, Carlos Morales, the former head of Pemex’s Exploration and Production subsidiary, admitted that fuel theft was growing 30 per cent annually in Mexico, for a total theft of 5,000 to 10,000 barrels per day.

The development has been attributed to powerful drug cartels like the Zetas realising the potential of the black gold being pumped through territory they control.

In Iraq, oil smuggling was institutionalised in the days of Saddam Hussein; one US Senate estimate is that the Baath regime pocketed $21.3 billion from the UN Food-for-Oil programme.

More...

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Lagos Region, has announced a planned disruption of electricity supply to some parts of the Lagos metropolis today between 10:00am and 2:00pm.

In a statement, the company’s Senior Manager, Public Affairs, Celestina Osin, said the planned outage, which will emanate from the Akangba Sub-Region, was to enable the company carry out annual preventive maintenance on the secondary breaker and bus isolator, which are very important equipment in the power transformers in the station.

The statement explained that electricity supply will receive a further boost in the areas that will be affected due to the maintenance of the equipment.

The outage will see consumers in Ajele, Marina, Broad Street, Ijora Cause Way, Ijora Olopa and their environs being without electricity supply for the period that the maintenance work will last
as about 30MW of load will be interrupted because two power transformers (a 30MVA and a 45MVA) will be out of service during the period.

“We solicit the understanding and patience of all our esteemed customers that will be affected by the outage, more so that the notice for the disruption is coming at such a short notice," the statement said. “We also use this medium to apologise for any inconveniences the planned blackout will cause them.”

The Federal University of Technology, Minna, STEP-B Centre for Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology, has produced the first carbon nanoparticles in Nigeria.

The research was conducted through the use of one of the centre’s Catalytic Vapour Deposition Reactor (CVD) at the Bosso Campus.
Coordinator of the research team, who is also the Deputy Dean, School of Engineering & Engineering Technology, Dr. Abdulkareem Saka said the research is a landmark achievement in the history of the university owing to the fact that no institution in the country has recorded the breakthrough done by the team.

He said the researchers developed their catalyst to produce the carbon nanoparticles of two grams within 45 minutes of production at the first attempt.

According to him, the production would go a long way in assisting drugs delivery, fuel cell technology, solar energy development, new high performance material, improved molecular sieve as well as various bio-medical genetics and electronic advancement.

The nanoparticles will also be used for waste-water treatment, forming metal composite, developing solar cells, noting that it will enhance learning and research in the university due to the fact that some postgraduate students are currently working in such areas.

“This research breakthrough will help us to save cost that we would have used to buy the catalyst from our collaborators in South Africa to produce the nanoparticles,” Dr. Saka revealed.

Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Musbau Akanji, expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the research and urged the research team not to relent but to do more towards making the university a research reference point in the country.

The research was conducted by Masters and PhD students of the institution.

Environmentalist and delegate at the ongoing National Conference, Nnimmo Bassey, on Monday, put latest figures of Nigeria's loss to gas flaring annually at $2 billion.

Bassey, the founder of Health of Mother Earth Foundation, said the situation has become an economic crime committed by the oil companies involved in flaring.

“This gas that is being flared in the oil fields equally impacts human health as it causes acid rain, cancer, breathing difficulties, skin and other diseases such as bronchitis and asthma and acid rain," he said.

“Communities have experienced a drop in agricultural yields when you get nearer to gas flaring fields. You have to be as far away as at least one kilometre to expect to have fair yields from your crop because some of this gas is being flared in communities.”

He said his committee on the environment at the conference had made far-reaching recommendations aimed at protecting Nigeria’s environment from danger and explained that the conference adopted most of the recommendations of the environment committee, which included outlawing gas flaring.

“We cannot continue to kill our people on the altar of cash; we need to have an environment where people will survive," he said.

Brand new locally assembled cars will be made easily available to Nigerians from November as part of the Federal Government’s vehicle acquisition finance scheme.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga, said on Thursday that the Federal Government is currently discussing with local and international financial institutions on how to make the scheme achieve the aim of making made in Nigeria cars affordable.

“We are looking at an affordable interest rate of not more than 10 percent against the current interest rate regime in the banks, which is over 20 percent," he said.

“We are currently engaging local and international financial institutions to provide the funds. People should be able to pay over four years at 10 percent. We are still discussing; we have not yet finalised the details.”

According to him, local vehicle manufacturers and assemblers have enough capacity to meet the expected high demand for new cars.
“The rumour that the Federal Government has increased the tariff on imported cars to 70 percent is incorrect and misleading," he said. “The Nigerian Automotive Manufacturers Association has already assured the government and all Nigerians that there is adequate stock of imported vehicles and that its members have not, and will not, increase the prices of imported vehicles.

Nigeria is the only country in the world where used vehicles were not banned following the introduction of the new Automotive policy.

This is because President Goodluck Jonathan, before announcing the new policy, had taken into consideration the current socio-economic conditions of the average Nigerian and will not want to come up with any policy that will inflict more hardship on them.

Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) Limited announced on Wednesday that it would commence its first industrial assembly of the Peugeot 301 in the country in its factory in Kaduna and also commission an automotive cluster park site on July 1, 2014.

Speaking at the 2nd Abuja International Automobile Exhibition (AIAE), the company's managing director, Ibrahim Boyi, who was represented by zonal sales manager, Abuja, Olayinka Seriki, said the move was part of efforts at supporting the new automotive policy of the federal government.

He said that the initiatives would enable the auto giant meet the huge demand for locally-manufactured vehicles and reclaim its number one spot in the country’s auto sector.

In his remarks, the director-general, National Automotive Council (NAC), Aminu Jalal, commended the organisers of the exhibition, MFV Nigeria.

"The exhibition is in line with government’s synergy of achieving sustainable auto sector development and growth using private sector participation as the focus around which the National Industrial Development Plan (NIDP) can be realised," he said.
Following the new auto policy, seven vehicle plants are currently actively involved in automobile production, while about 50 components and parts makers have also set up shop.

Super Eagles number one shot stopper, Vincent Enyeama, has been named French Ligue 1 player for the month of October.

The award is coming on the heels of Enyeama’s outstanding performances in the colours of Lille Olympique Sporting Club (Lille), helping the Great Danes claim three consecutive league games in the month.

With the addition of two other wins in November, they were able to climb to second place in the Ligue 1 table.

The Nigerian is also yet to concede across 675 minutes already in Lille.

The award will be presented to the 31-year old by the French National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) on Sunday when Lille takes on Toulouse.

Enyeama topped the poll at 71 percent of votes, beating Sweden and PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic who had only 19 percent, and his Uruguayan teammate Edinson Cavani on 10 percent.

The NOIPolls, on October 16, released results of its Food Security/Agricultural sector poll carried out in March 2013, in commemoration of the World Food Day.
The study was carried out to determine Food Security and Agricultural sector development in Nigeria.

According to the report released by the organisation, “The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN) announced at the beginning of year that the theme for the World Food Day in 2013 is ‘Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition’. According to the FAO, today almost 870 million people worldwide are chronically under-nourished. Unsustainable models of development are degrading the natural environment, threatening ecosystems and biodiversity that will be needed for future food supply.

“A food system is made up of the environment, people, institutions and processes by which agricultural products are produced, processed and brought to consumers. Every aspect of the food system has an effect on the final availability and accessibility of diverse, nutritious foods – and therefore on consumers’ ability to choose healthy diets.

Factors that constrain food supply and food demand invariably affect food security. Agriculture plays an obvious role in providing food and it is also an important source of income to purchase food particularly in rural Nigeria. Since agricultural policy issues and lack of policy implementation affect the food security situation in Nigeria, it is critical that ‘Government plays a more dedicated role in implementing policies that affect food insufficiency, food security and poverty alleviation’”.

Results from the study showed that the majority of the participants, including experts from the agricultural sector, believed that Nigeria had the resources to sufficiently feed its growing population. Experts in the sector, however, claimed that in order for the country to achieve this, certain policies would need to be properly implemented and maintained. 68 percent of the participants, as well as experts in the industry expressed their support towards existing reforms in the sector and acknowledged the efforts of the current Agriculture minister.

Participants in the poll were asked five questions:

1. To what extent do you agree or disagree that Nigeria has the ability to adequately feed her citizens?
Results showed that 90 percent (32% + 58%) of the participants agreed that Nigeria could adequately feed her citizens and seven percent (6% + 1%) disagreed.

2. What can be done to encourage more Nigerians to take up farming as a career?
Majority of the participants, with 40 percent, said that the agricultural sector needed to be supported (government support). 23 percent said farmers should be educated on modern farming techniques and technology and 21 percent said that mechanised farming needed to be promoted.

Experts opined that farming should be included in the education curriculum and introduced to children from a young age. The experts also said that an enabling environment for agri-business should be provided for it to thrive and also the provision of loans to encourage Nigerians to embrace agriculture. They also responded that in Nigeria, agriculture was seen as a job for old persons or those in rural areas but in developed nations, agriculture was viewed as a “big business.”

3. Which of the following programs currently being implemented to support the agricultural sector are you aware of?...

If there’s anything Smartphone users other than Blackberry in Nigeria have complains about, it’s most definitely the cost of internet subscription.

Users of Android and iOS Smartphones have decried the unavailability of data plans that meet their daily internet needs; as major telecommunication networks in the country have internet plans that seem to be convenient for Blackberry users only.

Unlike Blackberry users who pay a minimum of N1 000 to have access to unlimited data plan – or 3gigabyte of data depending on the network – users of other Smartphones have had to struggle with what was described as “peanut” data by an Android user.

Looking at internet data plans in the same price range as that of Blackberry users; little will one wonder why the hash tag #androidUsersDemandFairness, garnered momentum some weeks ago on social media. Android users took to twitter, to express their dissatisfaction concerning data plans made available by Telecoms providers.

For the price of N1 000, MTN offers 100MB with a bonus of 260MB; Glo – 260MB; Etisalat – 200MB; Airtel-200MB with 260MB bonus.

Data usage

Research by various groups has revealed that Blackberry smartphones use less data compared to others aforementioned.

According to a research by New Product Development (NPD) Group, iOS users burn an average of 1.12 gigabytes/month (over 37MB daily), while Android users consumed an average of 0.92 gigabytes monthly (over 30MB per day).

Also, a report released by the largest independent software provider in mobile optimization, Actix , stated that BlackBerry users consume about 50% less data than Android and iOS counterparts.

Going by the statistics, Smartphone users other than Blackberry will have to spend more if they are to keep up with the internet demands of their Smartphone.

Nuhu Muhammed, an Android user said; “I paid for 260MB but within two weeks, I got a message from Etisalat that the data bundle had been used up. This is a data plan that was supposed to last for a month”.

“I pay N2 000 for 500MB on Etisalat but I tend to use up my data before the end of every month. I always have to resubscribe ,“ – Ayo Oyediran, an iPhone user.

“I don’t know how my data gets used up. 500MB disappears within three weeks. I paid N2 000 for 500MB on my MTN, but how it got used up is what I don’t understand.” – Preciuos Emmanuel

They all called on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to intervene by giving Telecoms providers the mandate of regulating the prices of internet data plans.

“These plans are not good enough for us. I spend a lot on internet subscription, all because I need to get mail updates and be on par with happenings around me.

I believe the NCC can make these telecommunication networks regulate the way we are being charged for internet access,” Babayemi Oluwafemi said.

Besides all the complains and before the NCC springs into action, there are few ways to reduce data usage on your Smartphone. Well, I’ve done the honours of listing them below

Use data monitor apps- e.g Onavo:

Onavo is a clever free mobile application that compresses and tracks data usage. Features of this app include;

1)Getting alerts when an app is using a lot of data in the background
2)Block specific apps on 3G or shut off 3G data when they exceed their cap.
3)Limit data usage on certain apps to Wi-Fi only. e.g Updates

Disable Push content

This might not be an option for most people but it’s a good way of saving your data bundle. Android 4.0 users or higher can disable push content per-app through the Data Usage menu.

Just tap on an app in that menu, and then tap the View App Settings button. Those with an iOS device can find relevant options under Settings -> Notifications. Each individual app with notifications will be listed there.

Use Lightweight Browser

Default browsers on Smartphones are known for chunking up data as they load Web Pages with all contents including flash contents. It is advised to make use of lightweight browsers such as Chrome Beta or Opera Mini.

Caching pages

You can cache Web Pages while using Wi-Fi connection. This will reduce the time and data it will take to open the page when next you need to visit that particular website.