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Nigerian govt says its 4 moribund refineries to restart operations by 2024

Published

1 year ago

August 26, 2023

Nigeria’s new oil minister, Heineken Lokpobiri, has revealed that the country’s four oil refineries will resume operations by the end of next year.

Nigeria, a West African nation, is one of the world’s top oil producers, yet it does not refine crude oil domestically. The state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) operates four refineries: two in Port Harcourt (PHRC), one each in Kaduna (KRPC), and Warri (WRPC). Despite several efforts to revive the refineries, none of them has been operating at full capacity for years.

Lokpobiri inspected ongoing refurbishment at the two-unit 210,000 Port Harcourt refinery on Friday

“From what we have seen here today, Port Harcourt refinery will come on board by the end of the year,” he said, adding that two other facilities in Warri and Kaduna would start processing crude between the first quarter and end of 2024.

“Our objective… is to ensure that in the next few years, Nigeria stops fuel importation,” Lokpobiri said.

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote opened a 650,000 barrels per day (BPD) integrated, private refinery in May. At the time, Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the central bank, claimed that the refinery would generate 12,000 megawatts of electricity, create more than 135,000 permanent jobs, and save the nation between $25 billion and $30 billion in foreign exchange annually. Nigerians are still eagerly awaiting its commencement.

Related Topics:Featured Nigeria Refinery

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IMF, Egypt reach agreement for fourth review of Egypt’s $1.2 billion loan request

Published

1 day ago

December 26, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have reached a staff-level agreement over the fourth review of the Extended Fund Facility arrangement, which might lead to a $1.2 billion payout under the program.

In March, Egypt, struggling with rising inflation and cash shortages, consented to the $8 billion, 46-month facility. Its economic problems were made worse by a precipitous drop in Suez Canal revenue over the last year due to regional tensions.

Over the next two years, Egypt’s government has committed to raising its tax-to-revenue ratio by 2% of GDP, according to the IMF, emphasising removing exemptions rather than raising taxes.

According to a statement from the IMF, this would allow it to expand social expenditure to support vulnerable populations.

“While the authorities’ plans to streamline and simplify the tax system are commendable, further reforms will be needed to enhance domestic revenue mobilization efforts,” the statement said.

According to the IMF statement, Egypt had also committed to maintaining its commitment to a flexible currency rate and to taking more urgent action to guarantee that the private sector became the primary driver of development.

The IMF’s executive board still has to accept the fourth review’s staff-level agreement.

VenturesNow

Libya’s eastern govt accepts petrol subsidy elimination

Published

1 day ago

December 26, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In a recent statement, the eastern government of Libya claimed it had reached a consensus on a plan to eliminate gasoline subsidies and would draft a mechanism to carry out the accord.

Additional information on the idea was not released by the administration led by Osama Hamad, a challenger to the internationally acknowledged Tripoli-based government.

However, it is uncertain if Hamad’s government would be able to carry out the plan in the divided nation.

According to the Global Petrol Prices online tracker, a litre of gasoline costs just 0.150 Libyan dinars ($0.03) in OPEC member Libya, making it the second-cheapest in the world.

Following an uprising against former ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, smuggling networks have thrived in the ensuing political unrest and armed fighting. In 2014, conflicting eastern and western governments separated the nation.

A World Bank analysis estimates that the annual value of fuel smuggling from Libya is at least $5 billion.

In a meeting with Mari Barrasi, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Libya (CBL), located in Tripoli, and four members of the bank’s board of directors, Hamad in Benghazi supported the idea of removing subsidies.

The CBL’s Benghazi branch offices served as the venue for the conference.

The eastern parliament appointed Hamad in 2023 to succeed Abdulhamid Dbeibah, who had been put in position in 2021 under a U.N.-backed procedure that the parliament said had lost its legitimacy.

Dbeibah, who is located in Tripoli, stated in January that he will conduct a public poll on the topic of eliminating gasoline subsidies, but he hasn’t done anything about it since.

According to CBL figures, gasoline subsidies cost 12.8 billion Libyan dinars between January and November of this year. 4.8 Libyan dinars to $1 is the official exchange rate.