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[size=14pt]Steady electricity supply reduces operational cost of firms, families[/size]

Many businesses are now benefiting from the relative stable power supply in the country as the consumption of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), also known as diesel, has reduced considerably, BusinessDay investigations have shown. As expected, this is impacting positively on operational costs of many firms as well as the cost of running families who use diesel to power their generators.

[size=13pt]BusinessDay investigations revealed that some commercial enterprises are using about half the volume of AGO that they used some months ago before the improvement in power supply from Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).[/size]

Captains of industry and chief executives of companies who spoke to BusinessDay confirmed that they now have more hours of electricity supply, and were spending less on the purchase of diesel. Two chief executives of oil marketing companies told BusinessDay that as a result of the improvement in power supply, there was excess diesel supply, causing a drop in price from about N120 to about N106 per litre. John Osakwe, chief executive, Fab Enterprises Nigeria Limited, a fabrication company, said that in the last one month, the company had relied more on public power supply than generator and this has resulted in savings of at least 40 per cent of the cost when it ran full time on diesel.

“I just hope that the situation will improve further as time goes on. The company spends an average of N1.5 million per week but this has reduced to about N1.1 million since around mid-July”, he told BusinessDay.

The executive secretary of Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Olorunfemi Olawore, said that the current stability in electricity supply may be responsible for the reduction in the consumption of diesel. On whether the situation has impacted on the sale of generators, some of the officers of the big time sellers of generators said they are not authorized to comment on the market situation. But those who spoke on condition of anonymity told BusinessDay that they have not witnessed any difference in the market.

The Power generation from various electricity plants across the country has improved to about 3,804.3 megawatts recently, and this position has been maintained by the PHCN. Lagos alone gets about 1,012MW or an average of 928.3MW as a result of this improved generation. A breakdown of the capacity of the various plants indicates that Kainji has 170MW; Jebba, 415mw; Geregu, 76mw; Omoku , 27mw; Omotosho, 65.9mw; Olorunsogo , 85.7mw; Shiroro, 420mw; Egbin 711mw,Transamadi 212mw. Others are: A.E.S, 204.5mw; Sapele, 170mw; Ibom , 80mw; Okpai, 452mw; Afam vi, 456mw and Delta, 450mw. All the hydro power stations are working in full capacity, except Kainji. However, the thermal stations are working below their installed capacities.

Hussein Labo, the managing director of PHCN, attributed the improvement in generation to improved funding received from the government. Labo assured that the current level of generation would be sustained even after this raining season. According to him, a good number of transmission sub-stations across the country have been reinforced so that some of the bottlenecks created by transmission would be corrected.

Commenting on the development, Goody Duru, the managing director, Powtechnology, said that PHCN could sustain the current capacity beyond the rainy season as various maintenance works are going on at different stations.

[size=13pt]The right people are handling the maintenance work for the first time. The presidential Adivsory Committee is giving the power sector the necessary financial backing and had recommended to the Federal Government that as a short term measure, it should generate additional 1,311megawatts between now and December 2010 by fast-tracking the National Independent Power Projects (NIPPs) and rehabilitating the existing power plants.[/size]


http://www.businessdayonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13968:steady-electricity-supply-reduces-operational-cost-of-firms-families&catid=85:national&Itemid=340

[size=14pt]S/South, S/East agree on Jonathan •Forget 2011, support Jonathan, minister tells presidential aspirants[/size]


Friday, 20 August 2010

ELDERS and leaders of the South-East and the South-South geopolitical zones rose from a meeting in Abuja, on Thursday, with a resolve to work together for the election of President Goodluck Jonathan in next year's general election.

They argued that the support for the president became necessary because of the common issues that bound the zones together.

The groups said that they wanted to “give attention more to the issues that unite the people of the South-East and South-South geopolitical zones, who live contiguously than the issues that divide us because there is no ocean without debris.”

The meeting, which took place in the residence of elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, at Asokoro, Abuja, under the aegis, “South-South Elders and Leaders Forum and Representatives of the South-East,”came up with a communique in which the participants outlined their position.

In the communiqué, they resolved to “continue consultations at a wider forum to address, on a sustainable basis, issues of common interest to both geopolitical zones.

“Continue to work together to seek the support and endorsement of the entire South-East zone for the actualisation of President Goodluck Jonathan, GCFR, in the 2011 elections.

“Hold a meeting of the elders and leaders of the South-South and South-East geopolitical zones at a no distant date in the South-East, to discuss core issues such as marginalisation, loss of jobs, creation of states and the 2015 presidency.”

Among the participants at the meeting were former Minister of Education, Mrs Chinwe Obaje; ex-Military Administrator of Akwa Ibom State, Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga; former Minister of Health, Professor I. C. Madubuike; Mr Francis Orji; Dr Osita Ngwu; Senator Chris Ukpabi; Chief Richard Lamai; Professor B.I.C. Ijomah; Brigadier-General S.E. Oviawe; Chief Ayakeme Whiskey; Chief Willy Okeke and former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.

[size=14pt]Meanwhile, ahead of the 2011 general election, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed, has advised other presidential aspirants to drop their ambition and support President Jonathan to continue in office.[/size]

The minister said instead of the current upsurge in the number of presidential hopefuls across the country, there was the need for the aspirants to bury their differences, come together under one umbrella and form a formidable front to woo President Jonathan to declare his intention to run.

Mohammed, speaking at “Goodluck Nigeria” national summit, which was held in Abuja, said electing Jonathan as president in 2011 would ensure continuity, stability, growth and economic development of the country.

He said the commitment so far exhibited by the president, as well as the love and respect he had shown to all sections of the country, was enough to earn him the Yar’Adua/Goodluck continuity ticket in 2011.

He recalled that Jonathan had a wonderful relationship with the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and had, so far, shown utmost commitment to continue the good work started by the late president.

Insisting that the summit was a manifestation of genuine support by ordinary Nigerians to call on the president to contest, the minister described the ascension to power of Jonathan as divine and a fact that should be respected by all God-fearing people.

Earlier, the national coordinator of Goodluck Support Group, Alhaji Ahmed Ali Gulak, had disclosed that there were 1,027 support groups across the nation that were currently calling on the president to contest the 2011 election.

http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/front-page-news/9985-ssouth-seast-agree-on-jonathan-forget-2011-support-jonathan-minister-tells-presidential-aspirants

[size=14pt]Nigeria’s foreign reserves rise to $38.2bn[/size]

Written by Odidison Omankhanlen and Olatunde Sanni, with Agency Reports
[size=13pt]Thursday, 19 August 2010[/size]

THE nation’s foreign exchange reserves rose around three per cent to $38.2 billion by mid-August from $37.1 billion at the end of last month, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said on Wednesday.

Forex reserves stood at $43.3 billion a year earlier, but have fallen sharply since then due to demand pressure from importers and a reduction in accruals from oil export revenues.

The CBN has maintained that the present level could finance more than 17 months of import.

Only last week, the Federal Government distributed $4.7 billion in revenues and windfall oil savings to state and local governments for July, a massive disbursal which is likely to trigger a drop in bond yields and interbank rates next week.

The government shares its revenues among three tiers of government each month - federal, state and local - and tops the disbursal up with a withdrawal from its windfall oil savings if there is a shortfall.

Accountant-General, Ibrahim Dankwambo, said Nigeria had distributed N404.27 billion ($2.7 billion) in revenues and $2 billion from its crude oil savings for last month, making up one of the largest monthly disbursals ever.

Around 80 per cent of the liquidity in the country comes from public cash flows and the monthly allocations can trigger significant shifts in bond yields and interbank rates.

Among the major recipients of the monthly revenue distributions are the country’s 36 states.

Dankwambo said a further $1 billion had been withdrawn from the excess crude account, a pillar of IMF-backed reforms into which Nigeria saves oil revenues above the benchmark price, to be set aside for the creation of a sovereign wealth fund.

The withdrawal leaves just $460 million in the excess crude account, compared to around $20 billion in early 2007, the start of the current presidential term.

Finance Minister, Mr Olusegun Aganga, a former Goldman Sachs executive appointed in March, had said that he wanted a sovereign wealth fund to replace the excess crude account, which has no clear constitutional basis.

But the fund has not yet been created and it was unclear where the $1 billion would be held in the interim.

http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/front-page-news/9917-nigerias-foreign-reserves-rise-to-382bn

We had an overvalued currency in the 70s. Following the oil price crash in the late 70s and early 80s, the Naira had only one way to go, down. Those who blame IBB are clueless. This country was bankrupt when IBB took over and we had no choice but to devalue.

Stop getting emotional about exchange rate parity, which can be fixed with re-denomination anyway, the real issue is maintaining a sound economy and sometimes that can be done by encouraging a weaker currency, ask the Chinese.

u said it all. . .however. .its not just the people on here getting emotional about exchange rates. .

even our CBN governor was blaming IBB for introducing SAP the other day. . .which is kinda silly to me cause sanusi should know better

Bottom line there are lots of things I blame IBB for. . the needless killings and so on, .and his inability to drive an industrialization vision like suharto of indonesia

However Nigeria back then was living a lie. . .its like making the dollar 1 - 1 today and expecting chaos not to ensue

we were bankrupt like u said. . .importing all kinds of cheap goods cause of our artificially strong currency

it made no sense to manufacture anything in the country

so devaluation was the only option