BusinessDay 17 Apr 2018

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Tuesday 17 April 2018 20 BUSINESS DAY C002D5556 Energy Report Why moribund refineries should serve as centers for grooming future petroleum engineers KELECHI EWUZIE Rather than the Federal Government wasting huge financial resources on turn around maintenance of the three Nigeria refineries which are at best moribund, industry expert have called for them to be converted to training centers to churn out the desired human capital needed in preparation for refinery like Dangote in 2019. They are of the opinion that rather than wasting huge foreign resource to train Petroleum engineers in countries like India, the refineries can be put to good use that will benefit the country in the long run. Emmanuel Emielu, CEO, oil and gas Soft skills Limited Lagos in an interview with BusinessDay observes that Nigeria have big structures in Warri, Port Harcourt, Kaduna refineries that could be turned to a refinery training and operation ground for private operators like Dangote. Emielu said that the engineers that Dangote took abroad for training recently were train based on simulation which was more like a model environment, something that can be achieved in country with any of the three refineries. According to him, “Refinery training is classroom and workshop. We have classroom in the millions in Nigeria, what we don’t have is the workshop and what better workshop than to put people in the real environment with the actual equipment which our refineries can provide. He further said that by doing this, it represent a more innovative way of creating local employment, conserving foreign exchange and the Nigeria content in general. Speaking on the condition of the Nigeria refineries, he pointed out that we don’t have refineries. The existing ones are all moribund adding that the people working there are just marking time and collecting salaries. “They all form part of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation budgets (NNPC) which funds is part of the Federal budget. He said all these problems are laxity in the public sector which you won’t find in the private sector but as you know government drivers are different, public service drivers are different. On the ways to move the oil and gas sector forward, Emielu said if we can overcome the challenges of corruption and the government has the political will, gas has the potential to turn the economy around. As a matter of fact, there are threat to the demand for crude oil and global demand for gas because of things like electric vehicles and shale. According to him, “The greatest thing Nigeria could be doing to herself is using her resources to develop her citizens because I am sure that in a year or two, you will see people driving electric vehicles in Nigeria”. “When you consider Nigeria with over 200 million people, it is a huge market, so if we can use our resources to catalyse innovation, growth entrepreneurship, development, that will be super fantastic”. “There are so much potential for Nigeria if the right policy is in place to drive the gas master plan which is what the government is doing. I hope they are successful because we have heard all this before. The only thing left is to fill the gap between policy and implementation that we struggle with”, he said. NNPC to support local investors on technology advancement OLUSOLA BELLO The group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Maikanti Baru, has said that the corporation was committed to supporting local investors towards growing the engineering profession, even as he noted that this would in turn ensure technological advancement of the nation’s oil and gas industry. Baru disclosed this while speaking at the induction ceremony of the Group Managing Director of ARCO Group, Alfred Irabor Okoigun, with the Honourary Fellowship of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering (NAE), in Lagos. “NNPC will continue to support ARCO Group and many other indigenous companies alike so that your story and the story of others will continue to be savoured by generations yet unborn” Baru stated. Okoigun established ARCO Petrochemical Engineering Company Ltd in 1980 after a two-year stint as a Material Management Officer with NNPC’s Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Company (WRPC). The company has since grown over the last three decades to become a conglomerate that not only deals in engineering and maintenance, but has also diversified into marine logistics, maritime security, pipelines & facilities inspection, property development and consumer power generation. Congratulating Alfred on his fellowship by the nation’s foremost engineering academy, Baru said he was a leading example in the development and promotion of engineering education in the country. Maikanti Baru, group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, has commended the Nigerian Academy of Engineering for its leadership and promotion of policies relating to the general advancement and promotion of excellence in Science, Engineering, Technology and innovation for better economy and society. Joanna Maduka, the President of the Academy, in her address of welcome, said that it is the responsibility of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering to ensure the advancement of Engineering Education and Practice throughout the engineering family. She said this is achievable through continuous learning, advocacy and strategic collaboration with relevant professional associations and industry. The goal remains the significant improvement of the lives of our people and the state of our society, nation and humanity as a whole”. Maduka said further that part of the roles of the Academy is to facilitate information dissemination and exchange of ideas among ourselves and other professionals, act as advisers to both the government and private sector operators on engineering, technology and other related matters. Explaining the import of the induction of Okoigun as Honorary Fellow of the Academy, she said that only a total of four persons have been so honoured in a period of 21 years of the Academy’s existence. She added, “Those who had earned the honour in the past had demonstrated that they understood the role of engineering education and profession in the development of any nation and they had devoted their time, energy and goodwill towards the promotion of both in real terms in our country” She praised Okoigun for facilitating the establishment of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering and Arco Group Academia and Industry Linkage which will be devoted to finding engineering innovations that can be patented and that can attract funding for commercial scale production. Geopolitical risk sends oil price soaring Despite fears of a trade war sending global oil demand crashing, oil prices are set to see their largest weekly gain since July. Brent crude last week broke the $72 barrier for the first time since 2014 on the latest developments in Syria. President Donald Trump earlier last week threatened Russia with missile strikes after an alleged chemical attack that the U.S. and UK were quick to blame on the Syrian army following reports from rebel-held Douma. Despite some cooler heads noting that neither Washington nor Moscow really want to have a third world war on their hands, markets are more jittery than they have been for a long time, with the news from Syria overshadowing any other piece of news about the oil industry. In fact, as Commerzbank’s chief of commodities Eugen Weinberg noted, oil’s fundamentals do not justify such a price jump and yet prices are jumping as the world watches the Middle East yet again. But it would all be short-lived, as Trump appeared to back down on a Syria strike with a ‘maybe yes, maybe no’ qualification that eased tensions and pushed equities markets back into rally mode. Meanwhile, U.S. crude oil production rose further last week, hitting 10.525 million bpd, up from 10.46 million bpd a week earlier. This should have had a marked negative effect on prices, but it hasn’t because of the events in Syria, where Washington is effectively supporting the Jaish al-Islam (the Army of Islam) – a Saudi-backed rebel group that controlled Douma – the town where the alleged chemical attack occurred. It seems that the heatingup in Syria is exactly what Saudi Arabia needs to get oil prices closer to its target level of $80 a barrel, so we expect more saber-rattling over Syria, even if only to raise the specter of tensions in appearance to help boost oil prices. This is the price that the Kingdom needs to break even and stimulate interest in the initial public offering of Aramco. The IEA said in a new report that the U.S.-China trade war could result in lower oil demand. The agency kept its forecast of oil demand growth at 1.5 million barrels per day (mb/d) but noted that the trade war represented a serious “downward risk” to that projection. The IEA said a 1 percent decline in global GDP growth would translate into lower oil demand growth by 690,000 bpd. Meanwhile, the IEA said that OPEC has largely accomplished its goal of draining global inventories back to the five-year average. OPEC production fell by 200,000 bpd in March, on the back of declining output in Venezuela, Libya, Iraq, Angola and Saudi Arabia. The group’s production levels are now at a one-year low at 31.958 mb/d. Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said that OPEC would not sit by and allow an oil supply glut to return, although the cartel would also not let oil prices jump to “unreasonable levels.” Khalid al-Falih said he was content with the current state of the oil market, According to Reuters, “I think a lot of the glut has been cleared,” said Falih. When asked if $80 per barrel was an appropriate price for oil, al- When asked if $80 per barrel was an appropriate price for oil”, al-Falih said “There is no such thing as a target price by Saudi Arabia,” before adding that upstream investment is falling short of what might be needed in the future. “We’re seeing many regions declining. The only way to offset this is for the financial markets to start financing and funding upstream projects. I don’t know what the price that will provide that equilibrium is. All we know is in 2018 we’re still not seeing that.”
Tuesday 17 April 2018 BDTECH JUMOKE AKIYODE LAWANSON CRC Credit bureau introduces USSD code to check credit reports CRC Credit Bureau Limited has introduced a mobile credit check which enables customers to use a specific unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) code -*565*8# to access their credit reports. This innovative service, in partnership with MTN Nigeria, Nigeria lnterbank Settlement (NIBSS) and VAS2Nets, provides an alternative medium for individuals and merchants to have easy access to a summary of their credit reports via their mobile phones. CRC says the new development is in line its mission “to deliver innovative products and services that enable stakeholders to build credible profiles that enhance access to credit for strategic growth” and promote financial inclusion. Tunde Ahmed Popoola, managing director/CEO of the company, said, the new innovation which is introduced for the first time in Nigeria, is a quick and easy way for people to carry out credit checks on their mobile phones. A statement released by the company reveals that this service is currently available to MTN subscribers only. With Mobile credit checks your credit history is at your fingertips. Simply dial *565*8# on your mobile phone to get your credit report in an instant. “Effective financial and credit management requires a complete understanding of an individual’s overall financial and loan status by constantly monitoring the various accounts and balances. It also involves the ability to accurately assess and promptly address errors apparent. Consumers, now have the power in their hands to act swiftly and positively position themselves to improve access to finance and buy products on credit. Speaking further, Popoola said that registered merchants or business entities alike can also grow business volumes and increase sales revenues by instantly knowing which customers can enjoy consumer products to pay later by dialing *565*8*3# and reviewing their customers’ credit worthiness. This not only gives them a competitive advantage but also builds customer loyalty and retention. CRC Credit Bureau Limited currently warehouses credit transactions and payment histories of individuals and companies in Nigeria in excess of 15 million records provided by about 1,300 institutions. In addition to credit information, CRC also compiles public data, statutory and In association with Cloud-based toolset to enable over 30% Microfinance institutions, microfinance banks and Cooperative Societies in West Africa using Oradian’s cloud-based toolset have the potential to grow by more than 30 percent annually by becoming more efficient, Antonio Separovic, CEO, Oradian has said. Oradian, the core microfinance system that enables easy to use microfinance management and is built in the cloud to allow for easy accessibility has focused on growing financial institutions in Nigeria and West Africa since its establishment in 2012. Speaking to BusinessDay, Antonio Separovic, Co-founder/ CEO, Oradian, said that customers of Oradian continue to attest to cost benefits, ability to grow, know and control portfolio and serve more end customers with Oradian’s software solution. Separovic said “the core banking system solution includes integrated accounting, real time reporting, as well as an administrative console, so you don’t have to rely on IT services, you can actually have business analysts who will manage the software, as it can be accessed anywhere since its a cloud solution, even with low bandwidth.” During the networking dinner event organised by the company in Lagos on April 10, 2018, leaders of financial institutions, regulatory groups, financial inclusion experts and fintech JUMOKE AKIYODE LAWANSON providers networked to form strategic partnerships that will boost financial inclusion in Nigeria and West Africa at large. The event connected the private sector, public sector and financial services regulator. Attesting to the positive impact of Instafin utilisation in rural microfinance institutions, Florence Omofonmwam, head, LAPO Rural Development Initiative, said that through Oradian and its CBS Instafin, LAPO has been enabled to continuously open new branches, reach new clients and boost financial inclusion in Nigeria. “Oradian has helped us eradicate the cumbersome process of monitoring packs and client data management is now simpler and less stressful. With digitization, my team has less administrative work to do and they can spend more time in the field out of the office, finding new clients,’ Omofonmwam said. Antonio Separovic affirmed that their CBS Instafin enables financial institutions to eliminate manual, pen and paper processes and move to digitised operations. By reducing the time spent on administration through digitisation, financial institutions have more time to focus on their core competency: delivering financial services to clients in their communities. He added that as part of the process to minimise inefficiencies, Instafin reduces high operational costs through automatic reporting that replaces time-consuming month end reporting processes. The CEO highlighted several other tools for such digital transformation such as instafin messaging, automatic updates, Maximum Data Security, training and implementation – including data migration from their previous CBS or from spreadsheets. Onyeka Adibeli, Co-founder and Program Director for Africa, Oradian, said that financial institutions on the Instafin platform can offer time-based loans on a weekly, monthly or yearly basis. He added that the system is not customised but parameterised in a bid to ensure that every entity can configure their products to suit their clients. “Providing loans is the main service for many microfinance institutions and microfinance banks in West Africa. Clients don’t just come to the institution because they want to save, they are saving because they need a loan. And in anticipation and understanding this demand, we create the tools that financial institutions need to service their clients in the most efficient way”, he detailed. Oradian builds a cloud-based toolset that smart financial institutions plug into to access best practice and efficiency. Today, the company has over 60 financial institutions across seven countries including 20 in Nigeria using its toolset. identity information as well as dishonored cheque information of individuals and organisations. This enables banks and creditors generally to have access to accurate and comprehensive data which empowers them to make quick, fair, responsible and informed decisions with confidence. CRC says its objective is to improve access to credit for consumers and small businesses through credible information management which lenders can use to appraise credit applicants. Numerous institutions submit data to CRC and access her platform to take informed decisions. They include all banks in Nigeria, utility companies, insurance companies, cooperative societies, leasing and asset management companies, pharmaceuticals, retailers, auto dealers, human resource recruitment and real estate firms. BUSINESS DAY 21 Canon introduces the EOS 6D mark II to Nigerian market As part of its #Liveforthestory campaign in Nigeria, leaders in imaging and business solutions, Canon Central and North Africa have introduced the lightest digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera Canon EOS 6D Mark II, into the Nigerian market. Canon believes that the camera will help photographers unlock their full creative potential and explore all the different avenues of digital photography in a bid to reiterate Canon’s commitment to the “Shoot- Remember-Share” ecosystem which is tied to its consumer- bound range of products. The EOS 6D Mark II camera is designed for advanced-amateur photographers looking to improve their creative photography skills. The camera allows photographers to shoot with a Full-frame CMOS sensor DSLR camera to capture beautiful high-quality portraits and striking landscapes, even in low-light situations. Resistant to dust and moisture, the camera is also ideal for on-the-go shooting and gives users the power to approach their photography in new, exciting ways while maintaining reliable high performance to unleash their creative ambitions. The 6D Mark II is a lightweight, full-frame DSLR with a 26.2 Megapixel CMOS sensor, which offers users unrivalled image quality and improved performance. Its high dynamic range ensures exceptional exposure latitude allowing users to push their boundaries when shooting in bright light conditions. The improved ISO 40,000, expanding to ISO 102,400, allows flexibility so documentary photographers can snap scenes with the confidence that details will be retained even in the darkest nights. Combined with the latest DIGIC 7 processor EOS 6D Mark II’s technology creates high quality files straight from the camera Ṡpeaking about the new camera, Somesh Adukia, sales and marketing director B2C, Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA), said; “We are constantly working to better understand the sentiments of our customers in Nigeria and introducing cameras such as the EOS 6D Mark II enables us to better serve them. Our ‘closer to customers’ strategy has been one of the pillars of our growth in the African market and with the launch of this camera we aim to encourage our customers to tell more stories using imagery.”
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