Quit notice on BUA refinery aims at drawing Management attention…..EPU, Stakeholders

By Assam Abia.

The Ekid People’s Union, EPU, in an exigency stakeholders meeting held at the palace of the Paramount Ruler of Eket, said the  purported quit notice said to have been issued to BUA Group, operators of BUA refinery by some youths in the community is to drew the attention of the investors to the true land owners, with a proviso that serious investors must deal with the host community or reconsider their investments. 

In a release signed by Dr Samuel Udonsak, EPU National President, Hon (Barr) Bassey Dan Abia, National Secretary, Chief Nduese Essien, for Eket LGA stakeholders, Elder Benjamin Udobia, for Esit Eket stakeholders, and Edidem E. C. D. Abia, Paramount Ruler of Eket, the Ekid people said that,  

“Ekid people, vested with the true, lawful, and legitimate historical factuality about the areas of land in question (Akoiyak), hereby endearingly invigorate all manners of investors (local and foreign), particularly BUA Group, Ibom Deep Seaport, to come and invest by, near, or within the confines of our coastality”

“Specifically, no form of threats, quit notice or acts of deterrence (if any) have been issued from any quarters to BUA Group or any other interested investors or developer except an advice to recognize the host community”,

“Ekid People’s claim to the land has merit, is bold and credible. We are therefore not afraid that in due course the ownership of the land would be decided in our favour. If investors are chased away, we would have cut our nose to spite our face. The Ekid people know more than this”,

“Ekid people are the most peace-loving coastal-line communities ever in human history”.

Further, the release stated that, “with confidence on available documentary reports, the Ekid people rely on historical facts and court judgments (from 1916 to date), unminding of varying, diversified statements of claims and counter-claims in respect of Stubbs Creek forest reserve known as “Akoiyak’.

“Ekid people hereby earnestly urge our visionary and far-sighted Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel to notice and stir up courage among investors to begin to embrace our areas of land as their industrial hub without fear of any threat from any quarter”.

The Ekid people urged indigenes and residents to continue to remain in peace, in order to attract investors and bring about industrial development while a lasting solution to all conflicting boundary concerns are being worked out. 

As if sounding a warning, the Ekid People’s Union called for a co-ordinated approach to information dissemination to the public, especially concerning Akoiyak and its associated boundaries and other sensitive matters in Ekid land. 

“EPU upholds with honour its leaders over the expression of interest, concerns, complaints, and several aggregate of compliments with a view to improve quality of life from various quarters on the development of Ekid Nation”

“We hereby earnestly supplicate our unallowed support to our Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel on his completion agenda and encourage him to leave an endearing legacy in Ekid land and Akwa Ibom State at large” the release stated, while congratulating him on his well deserved peace award for silent achievers, in Rwanda, as one of the outstandingly industrious individuals in Africa in 2021.

53 companies access Nigerian content development fund – Official

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) says 53 Nigerian companies have so far accessed loans under its Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF) scheme.

Mr Obinna Ofili, General Manager (GM), Nigerian Content Development Fund and Treasury Management, NCDMB, disclosed this at the 2021 Capacity Building Workshop for Media Stakeholders in Abuja.

The fund, which is being disbursed by NCDMB in partnership with the Bank of Industry (BOI) aims at increasing the capacities and capabilities of Nigerian companies in the oil and gas industry and also to grow Nigerian content in the industry.

Ofili, in a presentation noted that NCDMB was desirous of making a difference and deployed the Nigerian Content Development Fund (NCDF)  in line with the mandate of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act (NOGICD Act) 2010.

He stated that the Managed Fund scheme was introduced in 2017 with initial funding of $200 million but commenced fully in 2018.

The GM said the Fund size later increased to $300 million in 2020 (which translates to N123 billion at N410/$1).

He said the fund was being disbursed based on five Product Offerings, with each product having distinct features and single obligor limit.

He listed the products as Manufacturing Financing (maximum of $10 million);  Asset Acquisition Financing (maximum of $10 million); Contract Financing (maximum of $5 million); Community Contractor Finance (maximum of N20 million) and Refinancing (maximum of $10 million).

According to him,  applicable collateral for the loan comprised Bank Guarantee from an acceptable commercial bank to cover the loan amount.

He also added that the collateral might include a combination acceptable to BOI of legal mortgage covering twice the value of the loan and in an acceptable location, Treasury Bills, Federal Government bonds, tripartite domiciliation of Contract proceeds.

He added All Assets Debenture and stocks and shares of blue-chip companies.

Speaking on requirements, he said the company must operate in the upstream and midstream sector of oil and gas industry and must have a clear history and evidence of remittance of one per cent contract as stipulated in both NOGICD Act and the NCDF framework.

“Applicable interest rate is 8 per cent all-in per annum for all products except Community Contractors, which is pegged at 5 per cent all-in per annum.

“However, NCDMB slashed the rate to 6 per cent per annum as palliative to loan beneficiaries to overcome the challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and attendant economic melt-down.

“Maximum tenor of each facility is 5 years, with moratorium period of 12 months. However, NCDMB granted palliative tenor and moratorium extension of two years from April 2020 to March 2022.

“Credit risk is borne 100 per cent by BOI to ensure both prudent loan management and return of the lent funds, so that other qualifying stakeholders can benefit from financing their businesses under the Scheme.

“Loan is restricted to qualifying Oil & Gas activities while both NCDMB and BOI officials conduct routing monitoring of projects and activities financed with the loan finance.

“There is also regular annual external audit of the Fund.

“There is no bad loan under the scheme presently as all the loans are performing and meeting their obligation. Three companies have so far fully liquidated their loans,” he added.

He recalled that the success of the NCI Fund had birthed the Working Capital and Capacity Building Fund and the Women in Oil and Gas Fund.

He said both were domiciled with and managed by NEXIM Bank and having seed capital of $50 million and counterpart funding of additional $50 million in Naira.

The workshop has its theme as “Sustaining Nigerian Content amidst Shifting Energy Landscape: The Role of the Media”.

Court adjourns Nadabo Energy Boss’ alleged N761.6m oil fraud trial till Feb.17

The ongoing trial of Abubakar Ali Peters and his company, Nadabo Energy Limited, over a 21-count charge bordering on forgery and subsidy fraud to the tune of N761, 628,993.84 before Justice S.S. Ogunsanya of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos continued today, Thursday, December 16, 2021, with the cross-examination of the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa.

Abubakar and his company are being prosecuted by the EFCC, for offences bordering on obtaining money under false pretence, diversion of Federal Government funds and forgery to the tune of N761,628,993.84.

One of the counts reads: “Nadabo Energy Limited and Abubakar Ali Peters, on or about 26th day of September, 2011 in Lagos ,within the Ikeja judicial division , fraudulently obtained the sum of N761,628,993.84 from the Federal Government by falsely representing that the sum represented the subsidy accrued to Nadabo Energy Limited under the Petroleum Support Fund for the importation of 16,808,064 litres of Premium Motor Spirit  (PMS), which Nadabo Energy Limited purported to have purchased from Delano Petroleum Corporation Akara Tortola British Virgin Island, and transported the 16,808,064 litres through MT Gotland Carolina (mother vessel) and MT Sonia (daughter vessel) to Nigeria, whereas Nadabo Energy Limiter only imported 7,953,962 litres of PMS from Delany Petroleum Corporation Akara Tortola British Virgin Island and transported 7,953,962 litres of PMS through MT Gotland Carolina (mother vessel) and MT Songa (daughter vessel) to Nigeria.”

He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges when he was arraigned on October 7, 2015, thereby prompting the commencement of his trial. 

At the last sitting, on September 22, 2021, Bawa, who was led in evidence by prosecuting counsel, S.K. Atteh, as the second prosecution witness, told the Court that investigations by the EFCC into petitions received from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and some concerned Nigerians in 2015 alleging fraud in the subsidy regime uncovered forged documents allegedly used by the defendant to claim subsidy funds for 12,000MT of PMS, whereas only about 6,000 MT was imported by the defendant.

Bawa had told the Court that in 2015, the EFCC received a complaint from the then Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, alleging fraud in the importation of PMS by Nadabo, and equally received a petition from Falana & Falana Chambers dated 17th of January, 2012.

The petitions, which also included a complaint from a civil society group, he said, formed the bedrock of the investigation into Nadabo Energy Limited. 

At today’s proceedings, the defence team, led by E.O. Isiramen cross-examined the witness.

Under cross-examination, Bawa noted that the said complaints were in respect of all oil marketers who participated in the subsidy regime.

“So, technically the name of the defendant is mentioned. But even at that, we don’t even need a complaint before we can investigate him,” he said.

Bawa, during the cross-examination, further asserted that the defendant used forged documents to claim subsidy funds for products not supplied, many of which he highlighted in the course of the cross-examination. 

“The STS (ship-to-ship) documentation was found not to be genuine,” he added.

Bawa further told the Court that the defendant was “already doing restitution and we have recovered money from him, which is an admittance that he was wrongly paid”.

Following the request from the defence seeking an adjournment “to enable the defence procure documents to defend themselves,” Justice Ogunsanya adjourned till February 17 and 18, 2022 “in the interest of justice”.