Oil & Energy
Total And Sustainable Dev Practice
Corporate relations responsibility is a core value to any successful business venture and to Total Exploration and Production Nigeria (TEPN) Limited, it is not just a responsibility but a commitment. This commitment has propelled the company’s core value in corporate social responsibility which basically include respect for the environment and the enhancement of social and economic well being of communities hosting its facilities. The company has made concerted efforts in putting in place structures and programmes for the improvement of the well being of its host communities.
Little wonder Total has been adjudged the best in the oil and gas industry in terms of its corporate social responsibility delivery to host communities which is hinged on the concept of sustainable development.
The concept stresses that when indigenous communities run majority of their programmes through institutions and enterprise set up by themselves and for themselves with Total as partners, high sustainability is maintained.
This, no doubt, has greatly paid off for the company as amidst the restiveness that other oil companies face, for Total upsstreams companies in the country, the relationships with all the communities that host its facilities have been robust and cardinal. They have operated in relative peace with all their neighbours and stakeholders. The acceptance by host communities and the perception of the Company as a role model in Corporate Social responsibility delivery by the larger society have placed the company in a good stead in the oil and gas industry. Only recently, the company’s sustainable development practice was stretched to those at the other end of society as in mates of charity homes in Port Harcourt were showered with gifts worth millions of Naira.
Among the homes visited were Home for the Elderly, Harbour Road, Motherless Babies Home Borokiri, Global Foundation for Orphaned Chilren, Ikwerre Road by Rumuokwuta and David Bassey Ikpama Home Eagle Island.
Items donated to these homes include food stuff, baby cots/Matrrases, branded wooden beds, baby changing station, provisions among others.
Presenting the items, the company’s Public Relation Manager, Port Harcourt district, Mr. Ikwazom Norbert said, “it is the tradition of Total to share the concerns of its host communities and especially during festive periods, we let every facet of society have a feel of Total’s presence”.
Responding to the gesture, Cliff Jarrell, the father of the family of almost 40 orphaned children (Global foundation for Orphaned Children) said “it is a huge help, you have taken a huge burden from me. I thank Total for being agent of mercy. An agent of change; an angel to the home. You will surely be rewarded”.
In the same vein, Mrs Barile Austine Nwakoh, Matron of the Port Harcourt Children’s Home said Nigeria would have being a much better place if we have more of the likes of Total, urging others to emulate the company.
Indeed, Nigeria, specifically the Niger Delta would have been a better place if we had many more companies like Total in existence companies that would put the people at the centre of policy formulation and implementation in the delivery of social programmes in their domains.
The practice, rather, industry-wide has been the usual appeasement of community leaders through payments and assistance which ended up not meeting the real needs of the people.
And sometimes, the appeasement ends up in the pockets of some priviledged few.
At other times when these companies go beyond payments and assiatnace to the provision of basic infrastructure which did not, emanate from community consultation, it could not be sustained as the stakeholders or communities were disconnected from such programmes.
No wonder most projects carried out by companies that took this approach end up either being abandoned or decadent due to lack of maintenance. The people become discontented and naturally results to resentment and aggression.
Total had a paradigm shift in its corporate social responsibility delivery to host communities since 2007 which has set it apart in the oil and gas industry. Total’s approach has not only been adjudged the industry bench mark but has made the company to have commensurate value for projects and programmes initiated; and the host communities derive full satisfaction.
Hear what Mr. Edem Etim Ebong, Chairman, Ibeno Youth Development Council said in an interview:
“Total has been one of the best oil and gas company Ibeno has associated with. It is the first oil company so far that will sit down with the community and discuss their developmental needs so as to have a framework of agreement on what is expected from each party … the relationship has taken off well and it is cordial”.
In demonstration of the company’s commitment to the educational development of its host communities, the company in collaboration with the consultancy division of Benviatto Schools Limited organised the 2011 Career Guidance and Counselling Programme for secondary Schools in its, OML 58 areas. The 2011 edition was the third in the series which had about 163 students drawn from eleven secondary schools in OML 58, NYSC members, teachers and community representatives’.
The company’s General Manager, Sustainable Development and Public Affairs, Mr. Vincent Nnadi represented by Anthony, Umesi, head, Educational Development said the programme is one of the compnay’s valued programme aimed at exposing students to various career.
By the programme students from the communities are exposed early in their lives to the variety of courses and professions available. They are placed in a vantage position to choose courses that they have aptitude in as it will be easier to excel and add more value to society in such chosen fields.
Also a limelight was thrown on the importance the company’s attaches to the health of indigenes of its host communities during the maiden edition of the training workshop for Traditional Birth Attendants in Akabuka. It was organised in collaboration with Partners on Health Resources and over 62 participants from OML 58 communities. The aim is to build the capacity of participants on effective maternity services and health care delivery.
Total is one company that is in the forefront in the implementation of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry local Content Development (NOGIC) Act. An Act that is geared towards the establishment of facilities in the country and ensuring they are patronised in a bid to bring Nigerians jobs back home for instance the Akpo Oil and Gas Deeproater Development Project (OML130) which delivered its first oil in 2009 had 7.85 million man-hours in local employment, 25,900 tonnes of steel in local fabrication and an overall Nigeria content value of 80 per cent.
The first Nigeria’s privately owned vessel, MV OSAYAME came into being through the support of Total.
One can therefore make bold to say that Total is one company that is committed to extending socio-economic benefits to all the areas where it operates.
Borrowing the words of Sir Winston Leonard Spencer – Churchill, “Courage is what it takes to stand up to speak and courage is what it takes to sit down and listen” Relationship can be marred or sustained through the courage to give and receive. And in every relationship there is time to give and a time to receive; a time to understand and to be understood. Therefore at every point, both ends have something to do which is usually a onerous task that takes courage to accomplish.
Total has performed its part of the pact creditably by paying the price to keep the relationship with host communities thereby getting a great value for both parties involved.
Price going to prove Warren Edward Buffet’s words that, “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get”.
Vivian-Peace Nwinaene
Oil & Energy
Savannah To Take Over Stubb Creek Field in Nigeria
Savannah Energy PLC has signed agreements to take over Sinopec International Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Nigeria Ltd. (SIPEC), the British company’s co-venturer in the Stubb Creek oil and gas field in Nigeria, for $61.5 million.
SIPEC owns a 49 percent interest in the proven onshore asset in the Akwa Ibom State, which sits on the southern coast of the Western African country.
Savannah affiliate Universal Energy Resources Ltd. operates Stubb Creek with a 51 percent interest.
London-based Savannah, in a Press Release, said it has now inked separate share purchase agreements (SPAs) with the Chinese and Nigerian owners of SIPEC—Sinopec International Petroleum Exploration and Production Corp. (SIPC) and Jagal Ventures Ltd., the completion of which will result in Savannah taking full ownership of Stubb Creek, SIPEC’s principal asset.
“The SIPC SPA will see Savannah Energy SC Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Savannah) acquire a 75 percent equity interest in SIPEC for cash consideration of US$52 million, payable on completion and subject to customary adjustments for a transaction of this nature from 1 September 2023.
“The Jagal SPA will see Savannah Energy SC Limited acquire a 25 percent equity interest in SIPEC for cash consideration of US$7.5 million (without adjustment), payable on completion, plus US$2 million in deferred cash consideration payable in eight equal quarterly installments post-completion”, it stated.
Savannah simultaneously released an independent analysis showing gross proven and probable (2P) oil and condensate reserves of 11.9 million stock tank barrels (MMstb), as well as a gross best contingent gas estimate (2C) of 515.3 billion cubic feet (Bcf), in Stubb Creek as of January
It also holds an 80 percent interest in Accugas Midstream Business, which owns and operates the Uquo central gas processing facility and 260-kilometer (161.6 miles) pipeline network. The processing facility has a declared capacity of 200 million cubic feet a day.
SIPEC meanwhile had an estimated 8.1 MMstb of 2P oil reserves and 227 Bcf of 2C gas as of yearend, while its oil production is estimated to average 1,400 barrels per day (Kbpd) this year.
“Savannah’s Reserve and Resource base will increase by approximately 46 MMboe [million barrels of oil equivalent] following completion of the SIPEC Acquisition.
“It is anticipated that, within 12 months following completion of the SIPEC Acquisition, Stubb Creek gross production should increase by approximately 2.7 Kbopd to approximately 4.7 Kbopd through implementation of a de-bottlenecking program”, it said.
Oil & Energy
NNPCL Lists Transparency, Accountability, Others, As Transformation Drivers
The Executive Vice President, Gas, Power and New Energy, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd, Olalekan Ogunleye, has identified transparency, accountability, research, technology and innovation as key drivers of the ongoing transformation in the company.
Ogunleye disclosed this while speaking during a Panel Session hosted by the NNPC Ltd at the ongoing 2024 CERAWeek Conference in Houston, the United States.
Ogunleye, whose session addressed the theme, “Africa’s Energy Future: Access, Investment & Sustainability”, said under the current leadership of Mr. Mele Kyari, the Company has institutionalized the use of modern technology to drive its operations, a development that has created tremendous value for the company in its quest to compete with its global peers.
He said with the coming of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in 2021, NNPC Ltd has today transformed into an integrated commercial entity that is focused on transparency and accountability, two core values that are vital towards the Company’s quest to float an Initial Public Offer (IPO) at the stock exchange.
“Over the last five years, the NNPC Ltd has been pushing the agenda of transparency, accountability and performance excellence. I am glad to say that we are setting very high standards, and this is a journey that we are all committed to going forward”, Ogunleye stated.
He further observed that transparency and accountability have a commercial component to them, because they can make any organisation attractive to its partners and potential investors.
He said currently, the NNPC Ltd is working assiduously to become IPO-ready, stressing that once that is done, the IPO would be phenomenal and successful.
Ogunleye, who described the future as exciting for the NNPC Ltd, said as the biggest energy company in Africa with the biggest resources and largest market, the Company remained committed to delivering value to its shareholders by relentlessly improving its processes in line with global best standards.
He said gas would continue to be an important resource for Africa because it is the surest tool for economic development and for delivering better living standards for the teeming population on the continent.
Ogunleye called on all gas players to sustain the advocacy for gas as a major energy source that will be utilised to develop the economic and industrial fortunes of the continent.
According to him, gas is a top priority for NNPC Ltd because the Company is at the forefront of Nigeria’s gas commercialization efforts and flare elimination.
“Gas has come to stay. It is going to be part of the energy mix for us in the long term. We shall continue to be at the forefront of accelerating gas development and commercialisation in Nigeria”, he added.
Oil & Energy
Africa’s Energy Leap From Fossil Fuels To Renewable Powerhouse
The African continent is at a critical turning point. The region’s energy demand is set to skyrocket, just as climate change is starting to impact local livelihoods in earnest.
African countries are among those most vulnerable to climate change despite having contributed the least to the climate crisis.
Faced by a sharp population growth, and a need to develop local and national economies, Africa also must simultaneously contend with the urgent imperative to keep emissions in check. It’s a tall order.
Indeed, Africa is a perfect example of what is known as the energy trilemma: the tricky problem of creating enough energy while also keeping that energy sustainable and affordable.
What makes Africa’s situation so unique and so dire is the intense scale of each of these trends. The continent has some of the most underdeveloped energy grids on the globe, and is also facing the biggest population boom anywhere on Earth.
Africa has the fastest growing population in the world, expected to double between now and 2050. This means that, by midcentury, a quarter of the global population will be in sub-Saharan Africa. This presents a massive energy and infrastructure gap in the coming decades.
Currently, about 600 million people across Africa completely lack access to electricity. Furthermore, for a great many of those who do have access, it is not reliable or stable, as power failures and rolling blackouts are a common occurrence.
Such intermittent electricity is common in urban areas, while in rural areas establishing any form of grid connectivity can present a major challenge.
African energy demand is expected to increase by a third over the next decade as sub-Saharan Africa grows, develops, and industrializses.
To meet this demand, power generation capacity will have to increase by a factor of 10 by 2065. But to advance toward such goals without breaking climate pledges and more generally counteracting global progress toward decarbonization, Africa has to “leapfrog” over what is normally the next phase of development in a poor nation’s economic journey.
Unlike other nations in history which have enriched themselves and developed their economy by burning massive amounts of cheap and abundant fossil fuels with abandon, countries developing now do not have the same option.
Luckily, Africa is a goldmine of potential renewable energy resources.
“The continent is extremely rich in natural gas (considered to be a stepping stone away from dirtier fossil fuels like coal and oil), as well as abundant sunshine, wind, and highly sought-after rare Earth minerals such as lithium and cobalt which are essential components of renewable technologies including photovoltaic solar panels and lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage”, Oilprice reported in July of 2023.
It’s just a matter of securing sufficient investment, fostering a supportive political environment, and establishing trans-national intra-African energy sharing agreements to be able to tap all of that green energy potential. If managed properly, clean energy could benefit the African economy enormously while helping to solve the riddle of the energy trilemma.
According to a new database of planned and installed renewable energy capacity across Africa, the continent is well on its way to achieving its ambitious energy “leapfrogging” goals.
In fact, figures show that if all planned additions are carried out without issue, some African nations could totally decarbonize by midcentury.
The Renewable Power Plant Database Africa, built by a renewable energy scientific modelling team from Rwanda and Germany, is the first comprehensive overview of renewable energy plants in Africa to include key details such as their geographic coordinates, construction status and capacity (in megawatts), allowing for more accurate and sophisticated modelling.
Such modelling shows that some of the countries with the most advanced renewable energy sectors and plans (such as Nigeria and Zimbabwe) already have enough clean energy projects lined up to conceivably transition away from fossil fuels as soon as 2050.
Furthermore, 76% of Africa’s electricity demand could be supplied by renewable sources by just 2040 in a scenario in which all clean energy plants in the pipeline are built as planned, and existing hydro-, solar and wind power plants are used to their full capacity.
This 76% would be composed of 82% hydropower, 11% solar power and 7% wind power.
However, the heavy dependence on hydropower in the short term is not a good long-term solution as periods of drought pose serious energy security risks.
“We conclude that combining the advantages of hydropower with wind and solar would be a more sustainable alternative to hydropower alone”, the Database team states, adding, “And that hybrid solutions would be the best option’.
Despite Africa’s many challenges, it stands to be one of the most important players in the global energy industry going forward. Its climatic and ecological characteristics and relatively low population density compared to other key regions gives it a major advantage as a hydro, wind, and solar powerhouse.
If built out according to plan, its clean energy output will be formidable. And as the continent develops, its massive workforce could make it a clean energy manufacturing source to reckon with.
Zaremba writes for oilprice.com concessional and semi-concessional.
By: Haley Zaremba
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