News

NNPC Raises Fuel Import, As Kaduna, PH Refineries Remain Shut

Published

10 years ago

February 12, 2016

To close the gap created by the shutdown of Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has embarked on a massive importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
Also, major and independent petroleum marketers have continued to import PMS into the country despite the absence of subsidy in the 2016 budget.
The refineries were shut owing to crude supply challenges arising from recent attacks on vital oil pipelines.
The Kaduna Refinery was already producing 3.2 million litres of petrol as at December last year and would have saved about $5.33 million for the country when it is 90 per cent operational. And the Port Harcourt refinery was recording a daily PMS yield of over 4.1 million litres before the attack on the pipelines.
NNPC has, therefore, been responsible for 78 per cent of the total fuel consumed in the country, while the major and independent marketers fill the remaining 22 per cent approved by the Petroleum Product Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).
PPPRA had given NNPC 78 per cent of the allotment to import fuel while the private importers who hitherto shipped in over 60 per cent of the allocation are now left with about 22 per cent of the total allocation.
The fuel imports were approved for all the five major oil marketers and 15 independent marketers. The allocations to five members of Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) were cut by about 70 per cent, while the NNPC allocation was jerked up from 40 to 78 per cent.
Contrary to expectations that the reduction in import allocation to private marketers of petroleum products and the breaches in Bonny-Okrika crude supply line to the Port Harcourt Refinery and the Escravos-Warri crude supply line to the Kaduna Refinery would lead to fuel scarcity in the country, an investigation showed that the product is available all over the country.
Our correspondent reports that the availability of products all over the country though not being sold at the official price of N86.50k per litre as the price is higher in some states than the price approved by the Federal Government. It was learnt that though the Federal Government has approved a new petrol price, the average pump price is still well above N100 per litre.
Apart from Lagos and its environs where the product sells at the official price, a litre of fuel in Akwa Ibom, Imo, Anambra, Zamfara, Yobe, Kwara, Taraba and some other states is still as high as between N120 and N130.
Meanwhile, private petroleum product importers have continued to meet their 22 per cent allocation despite government’s silence on subsidy in 2016. Although they have always complained about the non-payment of subsidy arrears and difficulty in sourcing foreign exchange for fuel importation, an investigation by The Guardian revealed that the marketers have been importing fuel under the current circumstances.
Neither MOMAN nor Independent Petroleum Marketers (IPM) was willing to give reasons for the continued supply of PMS despite the uncertainty surrounding subsidy in 2016. But according to a marketer who spoke with newsmen, they have to continue to import to be in business as they are still making profit under the new pricing regime.
According to the source, with the landing cost of PMS put at N59.35 as at February 8, 2016, ex-depot price, N76.50; expected open market price, N73.65 and the regulated price put at N86.50, marketers can survive without subsidy.
“We have made a case to the Federal Government to support IPMAN in mobilising our foreign partners in importing petroleum products at no cost or without subsidies payment to government. We have done all our mathematics that through our new model of crude oil swap arrangement, we can wet the country with petrol and kerosene and still gain from the transactions,” the source said.
The marketer noted that if the government removed the fuel subsidy and regulated the price at which the major oil dealers sold to other independent marketers, this would bring down the price of a litre of PMS.
“The first thing the government should do is to remove the subsidy on fuel, because the so-called subsidy is going into some private pockets. Then, it should regulate the price at which major petroleum dealers should sell the product to other independent marketers,” he said.
The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, had affirmed government’s resolve to scrap oil subsidy because of an alleged fraud around it.
Kachikwu said the non-payment of subsidy would remain the same, as long as market trends allowed. The price modulation, according to the minister, is not an outright removal of petrol subsidy. He explained that a periodical review of the petroleum pricing template and a flexible management of the pricing system would be considered.
The price modulation, the government stressed, would be predicated on a N97 per litre projection, which would be a cap on the price of fuel with a gradual increase between the band of the current price of N87 and N97 until a fair price was reached in the pricing review.
There has been an argument whether government should continue to subsidise petrol in the country, with the organised labour insisting that government should continue to pay subsidy.
The President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Bobboi Kaiýgama, said since the price of crude oil in the international market had dropped drastically, there was the need for government to drastically reduce the price of fuel locally.
He advocated a stakeholders’ meeting to discuss the subsidy and why it has become impossible to refine and purchase fuel at N50 per litre.
But the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), described fuel subsidy, as a “major source of wastage of foreign exchange”, arguing that it would stop naturally with the privatisation of the oil and gas sector to promote emergence of private refineries.
The president of the association, Dr. Frank Udemba Jacobs, urged the government to revisit the issue of private refineries and carry out investigations into why those granted licences have not started operations.

News

Odu Urges Collaboration Among Stakeholders To Improve Health Service Delivery In Rivers

Published

13 hours ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Deputy Governor, Prof. Ngozi Odu, has called for renewed commitment, transparency, and collaboration among stakeholders in the health sector in the State.

The deputy governor particularly urged synergy between the Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme (RIVCHPP) and the Primary Health Care Management Board towards improved healthcare delivery in the State.

?Prof. Odu made this call during the 2026 First Quarter Review Meeting of the Task Force on Primary Health Care at the Government House, Port Harcourt, on Wednesday.

?She stressed the importance of honesty and urged all parties to be truthful and open in addressing challenges within the system.

?According to her, transparency remains critical to identifying and resolving underlying issues affecting healthcare delivery, noting that “if we are not truthful, we will not cure the disease, but merely cover it up.”

The deputy governor recounted a personal experience at a Primary Health Center where a patient, despite being duly registered under the RIVCIPP scheme with completed biometric capture, was still asked to make payment for services.

According to her, intervention by relevant authorities later confirmed the patient’s eligibility, exposing a communication gap between the scheme and healthcare providers.

Odu warned that such incidents could discourage community members from enrolling in the scheme, thereby undermining its objectives.

“When this happens, we are disenfranchising our people. The message that goes back to the community is that even when you register, you are still made to pay,” she stressed.

?While commending the leadership and staff of the Primary Health Care Management Board, Ministry of Health, Development Partners as well as other supporting units, for their efforts, ty deputy governor stressed that performance should not lead to complacency.

She urged stakeholders to continuously strive for improvement, raise standards, and leave lasting positive impacts within the system.

News

You Can Now Print Your Exam Slips, JAMB Tells 2026 UTME Candidates

Published

14 hours ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced the opening of examination slip printing for candidates registered for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

JAMB made the announcement yesterday, urging candidates to visit its website to download their slips ahead of the examination.

“Examination Slip Printing is now available. The slip contains details of the venue, date and time of your examination and gives you access to the examination hall,” the board said.

Candidates are to visit jamb.gov.ng and click on “2026 Slip Printing” to print their slips.

The development comes after JAMB dismissed a viral press release falsely claiming the examination had been postponed.

The board described the notice as “malicious and fake” and urged candidates to disregard it.

The 2026 UTME is scheduled to hold from Thursday, April 16, to Saturday, April 25, 2026.

The examination follows a mock test conducted on Saturday, March 28, which recorded technical difficulties at some Computer-Based Test centres.

Of the 224,597 candidates who registered for the mock, 152,586 sat for the test across 989 CBT centres nationwide.

JAMB said over 20 centres were delisted for technical inadequacies.

The board also warned candidates against fraudsters on WhatsApp claiming to facilitate score inflation, describing such claims as “false and criminal”, and threatening cancellation of registration or withholding of results for any candidate found involved.

Over two million candidates, according to JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, registered for this year’s UTME.

News

RSU Unveils Five-Year Strategic Dev Plan …Calls For Collective Commitment To Institutional Excellence

Published

14 hours ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

In a decisive step towards redefining its future, the Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, has formally unveiled its Third Five-Year (2026-2030) Strategic Development Plan.

The development plan is a comprehensive roadmap designed to strengthen the university’s position as a leading institution in Nigeria and beyond.

The unveiling took place during a high-level engagement with the Governing Council, Principal Officers and the university congregation, at the Convocation Arena, recently.

Delivering his remarks at the unveiling ceremony, the Pro-Chancellor of the university and Chairman of Council, Hon. Okey Wali, SAN, charged all members of the university community to align their activities with the strategic direction of the institution, emphasizing that the success of the plan depends on collective commitment.

He noted that the plan is not merely a document, but a working framework that requires discipline, accountability and unity of purpose.

According to the Pro-Chancellor, only through coordinated efforts from all stakeholders can the university fully realize its vision.

“I hereby invite the Visitor to the University, donor agencies, friends and well-wishers, and all stakeholders to support and fund the implementation of this strategic plan. We are confident that this plan will take RSU to greater heights in the comity of higher institutions,” he said.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. Isaac Zeb-Obipi, described the Strategic Development Plan as a document that would enhance the university’s corporate strengths, mitigate current weaknesses, leverage its corporate opportunities and address perceived existential threats.

“This Five-Year Strategic Plan sets out RSU’s goals, strategic objectives, expected outcomes and impact, including intervention strategies,” he said.

On his part, the Chairman of the Strategic Development Planning Committee, Prof. Emeritus Joseph A. Ajienka, noted that the 2026-2030 Strategic Development Plan represents a bold reaffirmation of the university’s founding ideals of excellence, creativity, innovation and inclusivity, aimed at positioning the institution to respond effectively to contemporary challenges in higher education.

Prof. Ajienka, who is also a member of the Governing Council, disclosed that the plan was developed through an extensive and inclusive consultative process, which he said reflects contributions from Faculties, Departments, Satellite Campuses and Administrative Units.

At its core, the plan seeks to advance the university’s vision of becoming a “unique and uncommon” institution that is structurally and philosophically oriented towards solving practical societal problems and ranking among the top ten universities in Nigeria.

The strategic framework identifies six key challenges confronting the university, including funding constraints, infrastructure deficits, limited research collaboration, and service delivery inefficiencies.

A statement by the university’s Acting Director, Corporate Affairs, Victor G. Banigo, further stated that the university has articulated four broad strategic goals supported by eight targeted objectives.

A central priority of the plan, according to him, is the strengthening of governance and administrative systems, alongside deliberate efforts to expand the university’s funding base. Others include enhanced alumni engagement, strategic partnerships and innovative fundraising initiatives aimed at ensuring long-term financial sustainability.

“Equally significant is the commitment to upgrading physical infrastructure across all campuses. Plans are underway to modernize lecture halls and laboratories, expand student accommodation, improve campus security and deploy advanced ICT systems to support teaching, learning and research.

“Recognizing that human capital is the backbone of institutional success, the university has placed strong emphasis on staff development, recruitment and productivity enhancement. Through targeted training programmes, mentorship initiatives and performance management systems, the plan aims to foster a highly skilled and motivated workforce.

“In addition, the university is poised to deepen its focus on research, innovation and entrepreneurship. By reviewing academic curricula, strengthening industry partnerships and establishing innovation incubation centers, Rivers State University seeks to translate research outputs into practical solutions that address societal needs and drive economic growth,” he said.

The PRO disclosed that the implementation of the strategic plan is projected at ?110 billion, reflecting the scale of transformation envisioned.

“While the university is committed to funding a significant portion internally, additional resources will be mobilized through government support, donor agencies, alumni contributions, and public-private partnerships.

“This multi-channel funding strategy aligns with the university’s broader goal of building a resilient and self-sustaining financial model capable of supporting long-term development,” he explained.

To ensure effective implementation, he said, “the plan incorporates a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework, complete with performance and impact indicators. A mid-term review is scheduled within the first two years to assess progress and make necessary adjustments.

“Furthermore, the establishment of a dedicated Strategic Planning Office will provide oversight, coordination and accountability in executing the plan across all units of the university.”

According to the statement, “As the university embarks on this transformative journey, the message from leadership is clear: the Strategic Development Plan is a collective mandate.

“For staff, students, alumni and stakeholders, it represents an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the growth and advancement of the institution. For the university, it is a pathway to consolidating its legacy while embracing innovation and global relevance.

“With a clear vision, defined priorities and a united community, Rivers State University stands poised to translate this strategic blueprint into measurable progress, advancing knowledge, empowering people and shaping the future of higher education in Nigeria.”