Energy
NDDC, Shell complete construction of Ogbia-Nembe road
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) have completed the construction of the 25.7-kilometre Ogbia-Nembe Road in Bayelsa State.
The road project is slated to be commissioned on Saturday, May 25, 2024.
Speaking during a joint inspection of the project by officials of the two organisations, the NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, described the multi-billion-naira project as a legacy and flag-ship of intervention in the Niger Delta region.
Ogbuku said that the “star project,” with seven bridges, 53 culverts and 4 spurs, linking 14 communities, was a good example of what could be achieved through collaboration of development agencies.
He declared, “The Ogbia-Nembe road as a model in partnership, with emphasis on quality job delivery. We have redefined our standards to globally acceptable best practice and we will henceforth compel our contractors to abide by them.”
The NDDC boss said that the NDDC would be banking on multinational corporations such as Shell, Chevron, and others to collaborate with the Commission in executing legacy projects, noting, “The oil giants have what it takes to provide funding, technical assistance, and expertise in environmental management, community development and corporate social responsibility.”
“The SPDC has shown that in addition to its statutory obligation to contribute to the funding of the NDDC, it is also necessary to work with the Commission on specific impactful projects. I am sure that other International Oil Companies, IOCs, will feel challenged to toe the line of Shell to provide quality infrastructure for the people of the Niger Delta.”
Ogbuku said that NDDC was already in discussion with Chevron on forging a partnership for the construction of the Warri-Omadino-Escravos Road, in Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State.
He observed that the project, when completed, would link Warri to Escravos which is the hub of oil and gas activities in Warri, which was very important to the economy of Delta State and Nigeria at large.
The SPDC Corporate Relations Manager, West, Chief Ucheoma Amechi, said that as a company that attaches importance to quality job delivery in the execution of development projects, Shell was satisfied with what has been achieved at the Ogbia-Nembe Road. He gave kudos to the NDDC for doing a good job in the execution of the signature project.
The NDDC Director, Environmental Protection and Control, Engr Onuoha Obeka noted that the road, which cut through swampy terrain, encountered many challenges.
He observed, “We are happy that in spite of the challenges, the project connecting about 14 communities in the Ogbia-Nembe axis of Bayelsa State, has been completed. These communities were hitherto, not accessible by road. This is the first connection between them and the upland and it will boost the socio-economic fortunes of the people.”
Obeka said that the project was an opportunity for the NDDC engineering crew to improve their skills.
He noted, “The challenges we met here were unique, building a road in the mangrove swamp. You will notice that both sides of the road are filled with water. The road was actually built on a sand embankment of 2.5 million cubic metres of sand.”
He explained: “The road traverses the communities of Opume, Emekalakala, Akipelai, Sabatoru, Obiama, Etiama, Igbeta-Ewoama, Agbakabiriyai, Ekese, Iwokiri, Otatubo, Basambiri and Nembe, the project comprises seven bridges and 53 culverts. It also comprises a main alignment of 19.7 kilometres, Opume spur of 1.45 kilometres, Emakalakala spur of 2.685 kilometres, Akipelai spur of 850 metres and Ogbolomabiri spur of 1.05 kilometres.
The Area Manager for SETRACO, Engr. Joseph Cosme, assured the joint inspection team that the Commission had completed all the minor repairs on the road in preparation for the commissioning ceremony.
Mr Tayo Aduloju, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), says with targeted approaches, Nigeria can still meet some of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicators.
Aduloju said this on Friday in Abuja, at a news conference to announce the Policy Innovation Center’s (PIC) annual Gender and Inclusion Summit.
According to him, though Nigeria is not on course to meet the SDGs target set for 2030, there are few indicators it can reach because as there are 17 SDGs with 169 targets and indicators.
“I would say right now we are not on course to reach anyone, but we can still achieve some milestone going forward.
“For example, we can turn around birth registration in 12 months; there are a few other indicators that I think Nigeria can reach.
“We have recommended a mother and child compact between the Federal Government and the Minister of Health and Social Welfare seems willing to push it.
“This is because we think that if we met those ones, some of the SDGs will be met automatically,” he added.
According to Aduloju, there is a parallel relationship between multi-dimensional poverty and gender inequality, with countries performing poorly on the Global Gender Report also exhibiting high severe multi-dimensional poverty.
He said that multi-dimensional poverty encompasses deprivations in health, education and living standards.
“The World Bank points out significant gender disparities in labour participation in Nigeria, with about 65.5 per cent of men participating compared to around 52.1 per cent of women.
“The National Bureau of Statistics indicates that about two-thirds of Nigerians are multi-dimensionally poor, lacking income and basic amenities like healthcare, education, and clean cooking fuels,” he said.
He added that conflict, climate change, inflation, and increasing food prices were among the pathways contributing to the rise in high food insecurity and malnutrition rates.
He, however, said that the solution remains a collective effort by all stakeholders to tackle the issues as it could no longer be achieved by government alone.
On her part, the Executive Director, PIC, Mrs Osasuyi Dirisu, said that Nigeria was facing unprecedented times owing to a weak and non-inclusive economy, volatile macro-economic environment, security challenges and weak economic competitiveness.
She, however, said that addressing poverty in Nigeria could not be business as usual.
“Ending poverty and reducing inequality are part of the SDGs and a wide range of approaches have been identified to reduce poverty and inequities.
“To design effective poverty reduction programs, it is important to understand pathways to poverty, evidence based approaches that work and linkages to multi-sectorial inequities.
“We need to identify what works for poverty reduction in Nigeria and sustain the commitment to poverty reduction by intentionally designing and implementing contextually relevant solutions driven by a policy enabling environment,” Dirisu said.
Speaking about the summit, she said that it would hold from Sept. 4 to Sept. 5 with “Reimagining Gender-Inclusive Pathways and Partnerships for Poverty Reduction” as theme.
She said that the summit was expected to explore the impacts of multi-dimensional deprivations on health, education, livelihood, and living standards.
Conceptualised in 2022, the summit is an annual event to provide an inclusive platform to explore transformative ways to advance gender equity, inclusion and gender-responsive governance in Africa.
The 2024 summit is expected to leverage the collective power of government, development partners, civil society, academia, and the private sector, highlighting the importance of strategic partnerships for inclusive development.
PIC, an initiative of NESG is an institutionalised behavioural initiative in Africa supporting the delivery of better policies and innovative solutions for social impact.
Chevron Nigeria Ltd. has restated commitment to its partnership with Nigeria in ensuring safe, reliable, and efficient operations in the country.
Chevron’s General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs, Mr Esimaje Brikinn, made this known in a statement on Friday.
Brikinn said also that the company remained committed to delivering affordable, reliable, ever cleaner energy supply that was critical to the development of the Nigerian economy.
“At Chevron, we believe oil and gas will remain a viable component of the energy mix.
“The company believes that the future of energy is lower carbon even as it continues to add incremental volumes to its oil production, and support gas development in a clean manner, “ he said.
The manager said that over the years, Chevron had encouraged the participation of Nigerian companies in the oil and gas industry.
He said that the company, working with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, continued to foster competence and competitiveness among Nigerian indigenous contractors and suppliers.
According to him, the company does this by adopting the participatory-partnership model.
“Chevron Nigeria believes that by investing in local communities, we can create a sustainable future for all.
“Our local content strategy is focused on three key pillars: capacity building (training, mentoring among others), local procurement, and social investment (community development projects mainly in health, education and economic development), “ he said.
Recently , the company was awarded the Best Exhibitor award at the 2024 edition of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Energy Week conferences and exhibition held on July 3 in Abuja.
Nigeria’s debt to petrol traders has surpassed $6 billion, doubling since early April, as the state oil firm, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), struggles to cover the gap between fixed pump prices and international fuel costs, according to six industry sources.
This is according to a report by Reuters on Thursday, which tracks data on international petrol prices.
Sources confirmed to the American media outlet that NNPC has capped the pump prices of petrol shortly after the removal of subsidy in May 29, 2023.
The cap on fuel prices has resulted in stability at the pump despite increases in international crude oil prices and the devaluation of the naira against the dollar.
This situation has led many to speculate that the government might have reinstated some form of petrol subsidy, given the discrepancy between market prices and the steady price of the commodity.
According to data from Reuters, NNPC began facing difficulties early this year when late gasoline payments exceeded $3 billion.
The company has yet to pay for some January imports, with traders stating that the late payments now amount to between $4 billion and $5 billion.
Under the terms of their contracts, NNPC is required to pay within 90 days of delivery.
“The only reason traders are putting up with it is the $250,000 a month (per cargo) for late payment compensation,” one industry source said.
At least two suppliers have already stopped participating in recent tenders after reaching their self-imposed debt exposure limits to Nigeria, the sources said.
This means they will not send more gasoline until they receive payments.
The tension to reconcile the international landing cost of petrol and the fixed price of N617 has deepened the debt of NNPC to the traders, the sources confirmed.
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