Business
China’s Imports From Nigeria Rise 22.5% In Q3’23 – Chinese Consul General

The People’s Republic of China imports from Nigeria rose by 25 percent in the third quarter of 2023.
This according to stakeholders is an indication of positive bilateral trade between both countries.
This came even as the Chinese Consul General in Lagos, Ms. Yan Yuqing, reinstated that China’s firmly supports African countries in exploring development paths, and cooperation in poverty reduction, and promotion of modernization of agriculture.
In a statement made available to Vanguard, Yuqing said: “China and Nigeria have built nice cooperation mechanism, broad cooperation platform, while practical cooperation in various fields are deepening and expanding.
Exciting results have been achieved in economic and trade cooperation.
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“In the first three quarters of 2023, China-Nigeria bilateral trade reached USD 17.25 billion, and China’s imports from Nigeria increased by 22.5 per cent.
“With the opening of Lekki Deep Sea Port and the first phase of Lagos Blue Line Light Railway constructed by Chinese enterprises, economic and social development in Nigeria is being promoted.”
She noted that the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Lagos, would like to extend sincere New Year wishes to friends from all walks of life in the consular area at this wonderful moment.
She said: “I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to you all for great contributions to the development of China-Africa, and China-Nigeria relations!
“2023 bears historical significance for the development of China-Africa relations, marking the 10th anniversary of President Xi Jinping’s proposal to promote the concept of building a Global Community of Shared Future, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and the principles guiding China’s Africa policy, including sincerity, real results, amity and good faith.
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“We work together with our African friends and draw strength from the China-Africa friendship and cooperation.
“Since 2013, China has helped construct more than 6,000 km of railways, 6,000km of roads and 80 large-scale power facilities in Africa. A series of landmark projects keep emerging one after another, such as the Mombasa–Nairobi Railway, Nigeria’s Lekki Deep Sea Port and the headquarters of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“Chinese enterprises have built more than half of the wireless stations and high-speed mobile broadband networks in Africa, laying more than 200,000 km of optical fiber and serving more than 900 million African people.
“China is Africa’s largest trading partner, contributing more than 20 percent to Africa’s economic growth, by 2022, China-Africa trade reached $282 billion, accounting for 20 percent of Africa’s total foreign trade.
“China’s FDI stock in Africa exceeds $47 billion, 1.8 times the 2013 figure.
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“China firmly supports African countries in exploring development paths suited to their own conditions, cooperates with African countries in poverty reduction, and promotes the modernization of African agriculture. China has built more than a dozen of Luban workshops in Africa, vigorously promoting the development and innovation of vocational education in Africa.
“China has built 25 economic and trade cooperation zones with Nigeria and other African countries to promote industrialization in Africa. China also supports Africa in implementing the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, works for a synergy between the BRI and Agenda 2063 of the African Union and the development strategies of various countries.
“These efforts bring us into a new phase of building a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future. 2023 is a year of in-depth development of China-Nigeria relationship.”
Business
Confusion Over Euro-Africa CCI’s $250m Investment In Edo

The $250m investment deal Governor Monday Okpebholo claimed to have secured during his recent trip to Scotland is generating ripples over capacity of the European African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EACCI) to make such a huge investment.
The EACCI, headed by a Drector General, Dr. Kingsley Obasohan, is not known to have made any prior investment in Edo State or any part of the country.
Obasohan, who attended the Edo State Global Investment Summit virtually, announced the $250m investment.
He said the investment would be made for a period of three years.
An online search was launched to unravel the EACCI as well as the man Obasohan.
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A number on the site was answered by a lady who claimed not to understand English language.
Several foreign partners were listed on the site as board members and advisory council.
Some closed associates of Obasohan said he would have to get clearance from the Board members before talking to journalists on the issue.
Spokesman for the Edo Peoples Democratic Party, Daniel Noah Osa-Ogbegi, said the party would hold Governor Okpebholo accountable to Edo people and demanded clarity on the $250m investment from Glasgow.
Osa-Ogbegi said the proposed investment has become a source of embarrassment to Edo people because of unfolding information about EACCI.
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He said the party would shine light on fiscal management practices that appeared to ignore transparency and responsibility.
Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Umar Musa Ikhilo, had earlier said those that attended the Glasgow summit were interested in keying into the SHINE agenda of Governor Okpebholo.
“One of the chambers of commerce that attended, the European African Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed an MoU with the Edo State Government to invest a sum of $250 million over the next three to five years.
“Last year, diaspora remittances were the second-highest source of foreign income in Nigeria after crude oil, over $20 billion, but only 2% of that went into investment. We are creating a vehicle to help convert more of that into direct investments.”
He added that a delegation from Scotland was expected to visit Edo State in the coming months to explore specific investment projects as a follow-up to the summit.
Business
Dangote Hits Out At PENGASSAN, Says Union ‘Serial Saboteurs, Serving Oligarchs’

The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has berated the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), accusing the union of decades-long sabotage of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and serving the interests of its leaders rather than ordinary Nigerians.
In a statement issued at the weekend, the refinery described PENGASSAN’s latest directive to cut crude oil and gas supplies to the facility as another act of economic sabotage designed to inflict untold hardship on Nigerians.
“Indeed, over time, the Association has consistently proved itself as serving interests other than those of Nigerians and Nigerian workers,” the statement declared.
Dangote recalled that in 2007, when the Federal Government sold its moribund Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries to Blue Star Consortium, led by the Dangote Group, for $750 million, it was PENGASSAN and its ally, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), that sabotaged the deal. “It is now obvious to everyone that the FGN’s decision at the time was the right one and that PENGASSAN and NUPENG ignominiously wrote their names on the wrong pages of history,” the company said.
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The refinery also faulted the union’s role in the much-publicised rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery, describing it as a “ruse” which PENGASSAN “knowingly celebrated despite being a scam on Nigerians.” The statement further accused the union of opposing amendments to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) that would have freed up federal liquidity and attracted private-sector funding into Nigeria’s upstream oil ventures.
Beyond policy obstruction, Dangote Refinery accused the association of mismanaging billions of naira in annual check-off dues to allegedly bankroll the “lavish lifestyles” of its leaders, without accountability to members. By contrast, the refinery highlighted its own record of economic contributions within a short period, citing road construction, worker training, the creation of thousands of Nigerian jobs, and a compensation structure that “outdistances the best in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.”
“The Dangote Group is the highest employer of labor in Nigeria and the highest contributor to the tax revenues of Nigeria and its sub-nationals. What comparable social responsibility has PENGASSAN, with its billions of Naira in annual check-off dues and subscriptions, lived up to?” the statement queried, challenging the union to publish its audited accounts for the past ten years. “Can it publish publicly its account for the last 10 years and list out its corporate responsibility activities within that timeframe?”
READ ALSO:Dangote Refinery Reduces Fuel Price Nationwide, Provides Update On Petrol Distribution
The refinery insisted that PENGASSAN’s recent directive to withdraw services and cut off essential fuel supplies, including but not limited to petrol, diesel, kerosene, cooking gas and aviation fuel was reckless, lawless and dangerous. It said the order is not about protecting Nigerian workers, but it is about a cabal of oligarchs weaponising hardship against over 230 million Nigerians.
“In the process, it (PENGASSAN) cares little if at all about the unbearable hardship and terror it would thereby inflict on all Nigerians, including but not limited to the provision of essential services in our hospitals and medical facilities, schools (nursery and right up to tertiary and research institutions), emergency services, communications facilities, transportation systems, etc,” it said.
Dangote Refinery called on the Federal Government and security agencies to step in immediately to protect the facility and the nation’s energy security, stressing that the union must not be allowed to “bully Nigerians into chaos and economic sabotage.”
According to Tribune Online, the federal government has announced readiness to broker peace between Dangote Refinery and PENGASSAN, inviting both to a meeting scheduled for Monday.
Business
Fuel Scarcity Looms As PENGASSAN Stops Gas, Crude Supply To Dangote Refinery

The industrial dispute between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria took a dramatic turn on Saturday as the union ordered seven branches to cut off crude oil and gas supplies to the $20bn facility.
In a letter dated September 26 and signed by its General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, the union accused the refinery’s management of sacking its members in retaliation for exercising their constitutional right to join the union.
The union’s move marks an escalation in the standoff, with PENGASSAN accusing the refinery of anti-labour practices and the unlawful sack of its members.
In the directive issued to its branch chairmen, PENGASSAN instructed its branch chairmen in key upstream and midstream oil companies, including TotalEnergies, Chevron, Seplat, Shell Nigeria Gas, Oando, and Nigerian Gas Infrastructure Company, to immediately cut off all crude oil and gas supplies to the refinery.
READ ALSO:NUPENG Accuses Dangote Of Breaching Agreement, Says Nationwide Strike Inevitable
The directive comes after PENGASSAN alleged that Nigerian workers were sacked by Dangote Refinery after joining the union, claiming that management also withdrew staff buses and denied entry to locals while allowing expatriates access.
The union threatened to picket the refinery if the situation was not addressed.
In a statement on Friday, the refinery clarified that only a small number of workers were affected by what it described as a reorganisation aimed at preventing acts of sabotage within the facility. It said over 3,000 Nigerians remain in employment, rejecting claims of mass layoffs.
Dangote maintained that the restructuring was necessary after what it described as recurring acts of sabotage in different units of the refinery, which posed serious risks to human lives and operations.
READ ALSO:Fuel Scarcity Imminent As NUPENG, Dangote Face-off Festers Business
As a result, PENGASSAN instructed its branches in TotalEnergies, Seplat, Chevron, Oando, Shell Nigeria Gas, Renaissance, and NGIC to cut gas supply to the refinery immediately.
The union described the move as “illegitimate” and accused the refinery of spreading misinformation instead of addressing the matter through dialogue.
“As you are aware, the Management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has disengaged our members in reaction to the exercise of their constitutional right to being unionized.
“They have gone further on a mission of misinformation and propaganda to justify this illegitimacy rather than engaging meaningfully with us to right the wrong.
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“Consequent to these, you are hereby directed to cut off gas supply to NGIC effective immediately. All crude oil supply valves to the Refinery should be shut. The loading operation for vessel headed there should be halted immediately,” the directive read.
The union further mandated the NGIC Chairman to ensure strict compliance with the order and told all branch chairmen to give regular updates on the action taken.
“NGIC Chairman, ensure that gas supply to the Refinery is cut off effective immediately. All chairmen on this summons are to report promptly the progress of the directive. Kindly accept the assurances of our highest esteem. Thank you,” the statement read.
Reaffirming its solidarity, PENGASSAN ended the directive with its slogan: “Injury to one! Injury to all!”
On Thursday, the company announced it would suspend petrol sales in naira from September 28 following the exhaustion of its crude-for-naira allocations.
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