Business

Report Confirms 482 Barrels Of Oil Spill In Bayelsa

Published

13 years ago

November 22, 2013

A Joint Investigation Visit Report (JIVR) has established that the cause of the oil spillage which ravaged the Ikarama Community in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State could be traced to sabotage by unknown persons.
The report stated that the spill impacted an area of 6400 square meters which stretched beyond the oil firm’s right of way into the adjoining land near the spill site.
It said that some 482 barrels of Shell’s Bonny Medium crude stream was discharged into the environment while 15 per cent of the volume might have evaporated.
The report further stated that Shell commenced the recovery of spilled oil on November 12, 2013 while clean up of the spill site would be completed in April 2014.
Last year alone, the Ikarama community suffered more than five incidents of oil spill from Okordia-Rumuekpe 14 inch crude delivery pipeline which impacted seriously on its environment.
The spill was reportedly caused by activities of oil thieves which left a hacksaw cut on the 14 crude pipeline.
Representatives of National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency, host communities, Bayelsa State Ministry of Environment, Department of Petroleum Resources and Police were signatory to the report.
However, Mr Washington Odoyibo, Public Relations Officer of Ikarama Community Development Committee said yesterday that the leak had been clamped.
He said that the spill had taken a negative toll on the farming and fishing vocations of his community and called on the oil firm and government to do something in order to reduce the sufferings of the people.

Business

NIWA Concessions Waterways Clean-Up to Indigenous Coy

Published

2 seconds ago

June 29, 2026

The Tide

Nigeria’s inland waterways Authority (NIWA) has concession, a multi sectorial indigenous Environmental company, Parts Central Limited to provide strategic oversight and implementation support for a comprehensive clean-up initiative designed to restore the nation’s waterways and to enhance their economic potential.

The project was initiated during the administration of the former Managing Director, National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Asiwaju Bola Oyebamiji, which represents a major step towards achieving a cleaner, safer, and more investment-friendly inland waterways ecosystem in Nigeria.

The initiative is expected to tackle the persistent problems of waste pollution, indiscriminate dumping of refuse, oil spillage and environmental degradation across Nigeria’s vast inland waterways through a structured and sustainable approach.

The project will deliberately identify major sources of pollution, facilitate systematic waste removal, and promote innovative waste-to-wealth solutions capable of creating employment opportunities for communities situated along the waterways.

Beyond environmental restoration, the project is designed to improve navigational safety by removing obstacles that hinder the smooth movement of vessels and other watercraft.

It is also expected to support the conservation of aquatic resources, strengthen the fisheries value chain, and contribute significantly to the realization of the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the Marine and Blue Economy sector.

As part of its broader objectives, the initiative seeks to reposition Nigeria’s inland waterways as attractive destinations for local and foreign investment by promoting environmental sustainability and enhancing the overall efficiency of water transportation.

Stakeholders believe that cleaner waterways will stimulate economic activities, encourage tourism, boost commerce, and unlock the enormous untapped potential within the nation’s blue economy.

Speaking on the project, Managing Director, Part central, Henry Olaoluwa Onifade, assured Nigerians that every aspect of the programme would be professionally executed to deliver lasting results.

He noted that the initiative marks a historic intervention in the management of Nigeria’s inland waterways and reaffirmed the commitment of the project team to ensuring transparency, sustainability, and measurable environmental impact.

Onifade called on government agencies, private sector operators, host communities, environmental groups, and all stakeholders within the maritime sector to support the initiative, stressing that collective participation would be crucial to its success.

He expressed confidence that with sustained collaboration, Nigeria would soon witness cleaner, safer, and more productive inland waterways, setting a new benchmark for environmental stewardship and waterway management in the country.

CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Navy Hands Over Five Suspected Stowaways to NIS

Published

4 minutes ago

June 29, 2026

The Tide

The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Beecroft has handed over five suspected stowaways to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)

The suspects were discovered aboard a merchant vessel, MT Chinafrie Happiness, in an attempted illegal voyage out of the country.

This was contained in a statement issued by Sub Lieutenant A.O. Ajayi, Naval Assistant to the Commander, NNS Beecroft.

The statement said the Handover is part of ongoing inter-agency collaboration aimed at strengthening maritime security, curbing illegal migration, and enhancing safety within Nigeria’s maritime environment.

According to the statement, the suspects were discovered on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, concealed inside the rudder compartment of the vessel while it was berthed at Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.

The five suspects were safely evacuated by Naval Personnel’s and taken to NNS Beecroft for preliminary investigation, profiling, and documentation before being transferred to immigration authorities for further action.

The statement gave their identity as Segun Samuel Boyewa (31), Kingsley Chukwu (43), Joseph Judge (33), Moses Aletor (24), and Abdullahi Danlami (31).

Preliminary findings indicated that the individuals allegedly boarded the vessel while it was docked at Tin Can Island Port with the intention of stowing away to India without valid travel documentation or authorisation.

The statement also noted that stowaway attempts pose significant risks to human life and maritime safety, as individuals often hide in hazardous compartments of vessels under extreme conditions that could lead to injury or death.

The Naval statement warned that illegal boarding of ships remains a serious maritime security challenge and called on parents, guardians, and community leaders to discourage youths from engaging in such dangerous and unlawful acts.

The statement reaffirmed the commitment of NNS Beecroft to sustained maritime security operations in line with the mission of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, aimed at maintaining a professional and effective naval force capable of safeguarding Nigeria’s maritime interests and supporting joint operations for national security.

Chinedu Wosu

Business

Lithium Prices Tumble As Traders Brace For CATL Supply Surge

Published

6 minutes ago

June 29, 2026

The Tide

Lithium carbonate futures in China fell ~10% over two trading sessions, dropping to a 10-week low of approximately 157,000 yuan ($23,175) per tonne on Tuesday following market speculation that China’s EV battery giant, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL), may soon restart its massive Jianxiawo mine. Reports from authorities in Jiangxi Province show that CATL’s Jianxiawo lithium mine in Yichun passed a preliminary land pre-review and site selection, with the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Natural Resources issuing a “Project Land Use Pre-Approval and Site Selection Opinion”, valid from June 17, 2026, through June 17, 2029.

The approval report has also extended losses for lithium miners, with Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) cratering 15.2% over the past 30 days; Sigma Lithium Corp. (NASDAQ:SGML) has lost 14.8%, Atlas Lithium Corp. (NASDAQ:ATLX) has declined 10.2%, Albemarle Corp. (NYSE:ALB) is down 14.8% while Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) has shed 5.6% over the timeframe.

Located in Jiangxi Province, China, the Jianxiawo mine is one of the largest hard-rock, lepidolite-hosted lithium deposits in the world. Lepidolite is a lithium-bearing mica mineral comparable to the more common spodumene, which is composed of lithium and aluminum silicate. While it yields less lithium per ton of raw ore compared to spodumene, the sheer scale of the Jianxiawo lithium deposits makes it a force to reckon with, with the mine capable of producing ~46,000 tons of lithium carbonate annually, roughly equivalent to 3% of the global lithium supply.

The pullback is a reversal from the early-year rally when lithium carbonate futures spiked past 200,000 yuan per tonne driven by supply disruptions as well as an unexpected surge in demand from the grid-scale energy storage sector.

Global supply of lithium carbonate took a hit after major mining operations, including the Jianxiawo mine, faced extended shutdowns and permit delays. Back in February, Zimbabwe’s government suspended the export of 14 critical metals, including lithium concentrates, indefinitely in a bid to curb leakages and force foreign operators (largely Chinese) to building local processing plants. Unlike the phased timeline originally planned for January 2027, this emergency directive took effect immediately and even applied to minerals in transit. Mining giants such as Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Sinomine must now build local processing infrastructure in Zimbabwe, including a $400-million plant by Prospect Lithium and a planned $500 million lithium sulfate plant. Chinese refineries which rely heavily on Zimbabwean spodumene were starved of supply, triggering a rise in lithium prices.

That said, a cross-section of Wall Street is warning that it’s still too early for lithium bears to do a victory lap, pointing out that the resumption of operations at the Jianxiawo mine still faces major regulatory hurdles and that the operation still requires a renewed mining permit, updated environmental impact reviews, and formal approval for a tailings storage facility.

The mine’s original permit has expired, forcing CATL to navigate China’s revised Mineral Resources Law, which now classifies lithium as a standalone strategic mineral. The tailings facility approval is, however, the most significant bottleneck. Because Jianxiawo extracts low-grade lepidolite ore, it produces millions of tons of waste/slag annually. Under China’s strict environmental oversight, building and approving the required large-scale tailings dam is generally a complex, time-consuming process.

“Though the exact purpose of the land use, remaining process, and timeline is yet to be confirmed, the market appeared to price in the resumption of Jianxiawo in the near term,” analysts at Citi said in a note, predicting a continuation of tight lithium supply-demand dynamics because of new battery capacity scheduled in the third quarter.

Several Wall Street analysts remain optimistic that the global lithium market is transitioning into a structural supply deficit starting in the current year following a prolonged period of oversupply and a price crash. According to a recent Fastmarkets analysis, the structural mismatch where demand outpaces newly added mine capacity is driving a notable market correction and a recovery in prices.

The analysts point out that battery energy storage (BESS) deployment has emerged as a major new structural demand pillar, with the massive growth projected for this market reducing the lithium market’s singular reliance on electric vehicle (EV) adoption cycles. Indeed, the global BESS market is expected to nearly triple to reach up to $150 billion by 2030, with global capacity forecast to multiply between 5 and 15 times by the end of the decade mainly powered by the AI boom. Meanwhile, slowing mine output is expected to be bullish for lithium prices after multiple miners cut production or abandoned planned projects in recent years amid a global lithium glut.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com