Business
Fuel Scarcity: Apprehension grips Nigerians as MTN, Airtel issues 24 hours shutdown ultimatum
…Banks and domestic airline activities disrupted
By Yemie ADEOYE
LAGOS-THE lingering petrol scarcity in Nigeria which is swiftly grinding the economy to a halt seems about to take a new dimension as major mobile telecoms operators in the country have announced a shutdown of operations in 24 hours if the situation is not reversed.
Their counterparts in the banking and aviation sectors have also commenced major disruption of activities due to lack of requisite fuel to power their operations.
Several Nigerians took to the social media over the weekend to express their apprehension over news making the rounds that MTN and Airtel, two major telecoms operators in the country have started notifying their subscribers of the imminent shutdown within the next 24 hours if the fuel situation remains the same.
Reacting to the lingering fuel crises, Airtel said yesterday that the situation was impacting negatively on its commitments to delivering quality services and seamless telephony experience to Nigerians.
“We are currently doing everything within our means, as well as going the extra mile, to ensure that all our base stations and switches are up and running.
“It is sad to note that it is becoming increasingly difficult to replenish current stock of diesel due to the lingering scarcity of the products.
“We are also concerned that, if the situation persists, it may have adverse effects on our network, impacting both voice and data services.
“Airtel, therefore, wishes to assure all customers that we will continue working with all our partners and stakeholders to mitigate any negative impact, as we remain committed to our promise of providing exceptional services just as we seek the cooperation and understanding of all while apologising for any inconvenience at this time.”
Similarly, MTN, Nigeria’s largest mobile telecoms provider has warned that its network faces imminent shutdown due to fuel shortages that have crippled the nation.
“If diesel supplies are not received within the next 24 hours, the network will be seriously degraded and customers will feel the impact,” it added on its Twitter account, @MTNNG, at the weekend.
“Diesel generators power most of MTN’s base stations and switches across the country, but fuel supplies are running low,”
Some Nigerians who responded to our enquiry opined that for the telecoms industry to shutdown would result in dire consequences for the already suffering masses.
Jerry Inyang, a Lagos based lawyer noted on his twitter handle that with the shutdown of every other means of living, the only practical aid that helps people get by in this emergency situation is mobile telephony. “The moment this subscribers shutdown it’s going to be horrendous for millions of Nigerians. Don’t forget that between MTN and Airtel alone they control about 80 million subscribers and this could lead to further discomfort as people will no longer be able to communicate especially during emergencies and that could lead to frustration and chaos.
Already Arik Air and Aero Contractors two leading Airline companies in the country disrupted flight activities for several of their passengers over the weekend as several of their scheduled flights from various airports in the country were suspended, while there are strong indications that their other counterparts have started canceling and suspending flights accordingly due to lack of Jet Fuel.
The Banking sector is not left out as not a few banks have had reason to alert their customer of an imminent shutdown in the next couple of days.
GT Bank, a leading commercial bank in the country has already notified its staff and customers of a 1p.m closure in all its branches with effect from Monday due to fuel scarcity.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Nupeng, Lagos state chapter has placed the blame of the scarcity at the doorstep of the marketers noting that they appear to have products in their various tank farms, but have suspended loading, hence tanker drivers are unable to load. Tokunbo Korodo, Chairman, Lagos state chapter confirmed this during an interview early Monday morning.
He noted that Nupeng members are not on strike except the NNPC chapter of the union and that their reason was quite different from the ongoing national crises. He affirmed that any marketer who opens its depot would have trucks trooping in with the willingness and readiness to load products.
He also chided Mr. Ifeanyi Ubah for not releasing products before this time, claiming he may have done that for political reasons, as the products capital oil is distributing belongs to the federal government. He assured Nigerians that a major stakeholders meeting has been scheduled for Monday in Abuja with the intentions of finding a lasting solution to the lingering fuel crises.
. . . Tinubu Lauds NNPC Ltd, Partners Over Three Commissioned Gas Projects
In line with its renewed hope agenda, the Federal Government has reiterated determination to utilize Nigeria’s abundant gas resources towards revamping her industrial growth and kick-starting economic prosperity.
Biztellers reports that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu made the assertion while commissioning three critical gas infrastructure projects executed by the NNPC Limited and its partners in Ohaji-Egbema, in Imo State and Kwale, in Delta States, on Wednesday.
The three projects commissioned include the expansion of the AHL Gas Processing Plant, the ANOH Gas Processing Plant and the 23.3km ANOH to Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) Custody Transfer Metering Station Gas Pipeline Projects.
He said, “It is pleasing that approximately, 500MMscf of gas in aggregate would be supplied to the domestic market from these two Gas Processing Plants, which represents over 25% incremental growth in gas supply.
“In practical terms, this translates into more gas to the Power Sector, Gas-Based Industries, and other critical segments of the economy.”
The President pointed out that from the onset, his administration was clear of its intention to leverage on the virtually unlimited capacity of gas to deepen domestic gas utilization, increase national power generation capacity, revitalize industries, and create multiple job opportunities for economic growth.
He said aside the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Initiative which is aimed at moving Nigerians away from petrol and diesel as vehicular combustion fuel, significant progress has also been recorded in incentivizing gas development through Presidential Executive Orders.
While congratulating the projects partners (NNPC Limited, Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Limited (SEEPCO) and Seplat Energy for the successful implementation of the three projects, Tinubu particularly charged the NNPC Limited to, as the national energy company of choice, sustain its relentless efforts and record more successes in the energy sector for the benefit of all Nigerians.
President Tinubu described the commissioning as a highly significant milestone for Nigeria as it demonstrates his administration’s efforts to accelerate the development of critical gas infrastructure geared at enhancing the supply of energy to boost industrial growth and create employment opportunities.
He said the projects were fully in line with the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas initiative, and his administration’s quest to grow value from the Nation’s abundant gas assets while concurrently eliminating gas flaring and accelerating industrialization.
“I wish to assure the citizenry that these are just the beginning, as the federal government is stepping up its coordination of other landmark projects and initiatives that will ensure the earliest realization of gas fueled prosperity in our country.
“Consequently, I wish to assure investors in the energy space that this is an investment enabling government and we will not relent in facilitating the ease of doing business,” the President noted.
Earlier in his address, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo highlighted the efforts of his ministry to continue to champion the utilisation of gas as a transition fuel as Nigeria moves towards achieving clean energy efficiency and security by 2060.
Ekpo commended the President for his leadership and support towards the success of the three projects.
In his remarks, the GCEO NNPC, Mele Kyari described the commissioning as a demonstration of Mr. President’s commitment and support to grow the domestic utilization of natural gas for power generation, as feedstock for gas-based industries and overall rapid industrialization of Nigeria on the back of the enormous gas resources in the country.
Kyari assured that as part of its mandate, NNPC Ltd remains committed to maintaining energy security by executing more strategic gas projects for the benefit of Nigeria.
The Nigerian Government has listed her April 2024 Savings Bonds worth N4.214 billion on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) platform.
This was disclosed in the market bulletin signed by the Head, Issuers Regulation Department of NGX, Godstime Iwenekhai.
According to the bulletin, “Trading License Holders are hereby notified that the April 2024 Issue of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) Savings Bonds was listed on Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on May 13, 2024.”
Details of the Bonds include FGS April 2026, 1.228 million units valued at N1.228 billion at a coupon rate of 17.046%, while FGS April 2027, 2.986 million units amounted to N2.986 billion at a coupon rate of 18.046%.
The bonds are backed by the full faith and credit of the FGN and charged upon the general assets of Nigeria, according to the debt office.
FGN Savings Bond is issued monthly in tenors of two and three years with quarterly payment of coupons (interest) at a rate predetermined and published by the DMO every month.
The retail savings bond product was introduced by the DMO on behalf of the FGN in 2017 to democratise its activities in the bond market by making it easily accessible to Nigerians to ensure continuous development of the domestic market and bridge infrastructure deficit which has been a constraint to economic growth.
Nigeria’s inflation rate surged to 33.69% in April 2024, up from 33.20% in March, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, released Wednesday, shows a 0.49 percentage point rise within a month.
Year-on-year, the inflation rate has surged by 11.47 percentage points, compared to 22.22% in April 2023, highlighting the ongoing economic challenges and rising costs for consumers.
The report reads “In April 2024, the headline inflation rate increased to 33.69% relative to the March 2024 head line inflation rate which was 33.20%.
“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 11.47% points higher compared to the rate recorded in April 2023, which was 22.22%.
This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in the month of April 2024 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e., April 2023).
“Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in April 2024 was 2.29%, which was 0.73% lower than the rate recorded in March 2024 (3.02%).
“This means that in the month of April 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is less than the rate of in crease in the average price level in March 2024.”
Prices of food and basic commodities have surged dramatically in recent weeks, as Nigerians grapple with a soaring cost of living and one of the nation’s most severe economic crises.
The crisis has been intensified by the government’s removal of petrol subsidies and the unification of forex windows.
The naira, which had appreciated against the dollar in April, has since plummeted from about N1,100/$1 to roughly N1,500/$1.
Following the latest inflation report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is anticipated to review the country’s interest rate, currently set at 24.75%.
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