Business

Gulf Of Mexico Disaster, Lesson For Nigeria – NNPC

Published

16 years ago

June 16, 2010

The Group General Manager of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, Engr. Austen Oniwon, has stated the preparedness of the corporation, along with its partners, to deal with oil spillage emergencies and reduce their impacts towards ensuring a balanced ecological condition in its areas of operation.

Oniwon made the remark on Friday at the World Environment Day celebration event organised by the Environment and Safety Department in the Engineering and Technology Division of the NNPC, which took place in Abuja.

He also said the current BP oil spillage brouhaha in the Gulf of Mexico putting a lot of pressure on off-shore oil exploration, adding that it was also an opportunity for the industry to learn to forestall such incidents in the future.

He stated that, “The incident that is happening in the Gulf of Mexico is a disaster, and it can happen anywhere in the world, including Nigeria. However, it is putting a lot of pressure on off-shore oil drilling.

“It is also a challenge mankind to find a solution to such failures in future; this is the first time a failure is occurring between the downward emission and the atmosphere. It also presents an opportunity for mankind to learn and improve in its handling of such matters.

“I am sure that lessons that will be learned from the mishap will go a long way to ensure that oil exploration is made much safer and ecologically friendly in the future. Every disaster gives another opportunity for humanity to learn and I can assure you that Nigeria, and more specifically the NNPC, would be learning a lot from this case in order to ensure that

Speaking further on the theme of the event, Biodiversity – Ecosystems Management and the Green Economy, Oniwon noted that the Corporation’s Ethanol development project, which would ensure cleaner energy options for consumers in the country, was still on course.

According to him, “NNPC is taking full advantages of all the opportunities to entrench green fuel and green energy delivery in the country. Primarily, we are a hydro-carbon company, but we believe that if coal can be made clean, then oil can even be made cleaner.

“This is because coal is the worst producer of carbon-dioxide that is ever seen, while hydrocarbon contains both hydrogen and carbon and the amount of carbon-dioxide that can be seen in hydrocarbon is not as harmful as in coal technology.”

The NNPC GMD further stressed that the corporation “is doing everything to ensure that the blending comes up in such a way to ensure that the ethanol mix to oil hydrocarbon becomes a better mix for us to have cleaner oil.

“Our ethanol development project is ongoing because our people in Exploration and Technology division are working extremely hard to make sure that we achieve our objective for cleaner energy in the nearest future.

He explained that the Ethanol initiative would involve further reduction of the amount of carbon-dioxide in the hydrocarbon oil by blending it with ethanol.

The GMD noted, however, that the initiative is not undertaken 100 percent by the Corporation but with the support and partnership of some private companies.

“The reason is because we do not believe in being the sole participants, and we think private companies should be a part of this project. Also, there are a lot of logistic issues that have to be resolved. For instance, ethanol that you mix with hydrocarbon is very hydroscopic; it absorbs a lot of water from the air, so we have to be put in place infrastructure that will convince most private companies to come in invest in the project; most of the blending outfits in the country do not have the infrastructure at all.

“When this is completed, we are going to bring in ethanol and make sure that we are able to use it in such a manner that will maximize the benefit for Nigerians. We are doing a lot in that aspect.”

Also speaking at the event, the General Executive Director, Engineering and Technology of the NNPC, Mr. Billy Agha reaffirmed the commitment of corporation to responsible environmental practices.

“As a recognized leader in the oil and gas industry, we also want to set the pace in promoting environmental awareness and protection. Over the years, we have demonstrated this commitment through our corporate social responsibility practices and day to day business operations.

“The NNPC as a national oil and gas company has embarked on global warming control measures such as striving with its joint venture (JV) partners to achieve gas flare-down in all the operations,” he added.

Agha noted that the corporation is targeting the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects by establishing CDM Working Groups that will project the NNPC into international Carbon Trading to reduce carbon emission.

“NNPC has also eliminated the application of Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) based materials in its operations in compliance with the requirements of the Montreal Protocol. Furthermore, many gas utilization projects are under construction or planned to recover and utilize associated gas from oil wells that was otherwise flared or vented,” he added.

Business

Boat Mishap Kills Pastor, Wife And Church Members In Brass Water

Published

3 days ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways

The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and members of his church were in a programme.

?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet to be recovered

as search party are still ongoing.

Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report, our Correspondent gathered that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.

The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit

The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s on the sad accident

By: CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Rivers Workers Seek Scrapping Of Contributory Pension Scheme

Published

3 days ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Council of Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.

Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently.

Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.

He noted that the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.

According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.

He also informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.

“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.

Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.

The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.

He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.

The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.

He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.

Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.

By: King Onunwor

Business

FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

Published

1 week ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.

Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.

“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.

The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.

According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.

Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.

He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.

“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.

He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.

“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.

Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.

“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.

“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.

She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.

Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).

“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.

“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.