Business
Hope Rises For FG’s N26trn Budget As Oil Price Jumps To $81.11

Barely a few days to the commencement of the 2024 fiscal year, hope appears rekindled in the revenue horizon as the price of Nigeria’s Bonny Light, rose to $81.11 per barrel, from $78 per barrel it closed last week, indicating an excess of $3.15 per barrel against the 2024 budget reference price of $77.96 per barrel.
The nation’s N26 trillion 2024 budget, benchmarked on $77.96 per barrel and 1.78 million barrels per day, bpd was threatened in the past two weeks when the oil price became unstable trending down to the budget benchmark price.
Price of Bonny Light rose to $81.11 per barrel on the Red Sea attacks that culminated in shipping disruptions, thus fuelling the speculation in favour of high prices.
However, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, indicated that oil output fell by 7.4 percent to 1.25 million barrels per day in the month of November 2023, compared to 1.35bpd in September 2023.
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This means the pressure point has shifted to output level as this may undermine the realization of the targeted revenue if it persists into 2024.
But the newly appointed board and management team for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL) has pledged to produce two million barrels of crude oil daily from 2024.
The Chairman of NNPCL, Pius Akinyelure, stated: “We have just concluded our inauguration ceremony by Mr President and we have assured him of our collective efforts to turn around the fortune of the Oil and Gas.
”And to make it a company that we will all be proud of and a company that will help sustain the economy and make sure we create some element of prosperity for Nigerians. He (President) has assured us of his support and on our own part too, we have given him our one 100 per cent assurance.
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“We will do the best we can to make sure that the key performance in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria probably will become number one in Africa and probably compete with the leading oil and gas industry around the world.
“It is not an easy task but we know we had the challenge of oil stealing, vandalisation of our pipelines. Our commitment is to produce at the rate of two million barrels per day anytime from next year’’.
On his part, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said that oil production in the country would surpass the 2024 budget target of 1.7 million barrels per day.
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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