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Solid Minerals

Ajaokuta reclaim: Finest intention, wrong direction (Part 2)

Published

8 years ago

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Our Reporters
President Yar’ Adua, the Mogaji Inuwa report
LAGOS-IN 2008, late President Umaru Yar’ Adua terminated the contract and ordered the arrest of Pramod Mittal for breach of contraction, debt, and rip-off of the Ajaokuta Steel and NIOMCO, Itakpe. GIHL left the country and took the case the Arbitration Court in London
Yar’ Adua led government inaugurated a five-man administrative panel of inquiry to probe the concession agreement it entered with GIHL on the Ajaokuta Steel Company and the sale of other related Steel companies.
 Minister of Mines and Steel Sarafa Tunji Isola inaugurated the Committee at the Conference Hall of the Ministry in Abuja. The panel was chaired by Magaji Inuwa, a former General Manager and Chief Executive of Ajaokuta Steel Company while other members include Ibrahim Gubio, a retired Police Commissioner, Emmanuel Nwodi Ekeh, Vincent Odafe while Kunle Bolajoko is to serve as Secretary to the Committee.
Ajaokuta-SteelThe report of the five-man panel submitted to the steel minister, Chief Tunji Sarafa Ishola, said GIHL failed to deliver on the terms of the concession agreement, instead it used the companies to secure loans without corresponding investments.
According to the committee, the N24 billion secured from Zenith, Ecobank, UBA, FBN, Oceanic, FCMB, Bank PHB and Sterling Bank went into private pockets.
The report expantiates: “As at November 15, 2007, the aggregate borrowings from the Nigerian banks is a little over N24billion. These borrowings are allegedly secured with the assets of Delta Steel Company. BPE confirmed that there have been no board approvals for any of these borrowings and for the assets of DSC to be used as collateral for ASCL and NIOMCO. The figure (N24billion) supplied by the finance director of the GIHL could be more considering the interest of about 14% per annum. One is therefore forced to ask what happened to the funds borrowed.”
The report further found innumerable cases of diversion of value from the ASCL to either DSL or outrightly sold abroad for cash. The bottomline, the panel said, is that ASCL is gradually being crippled while GIHL’s interest is being buoyed in Nigeria and overseas.
“On the resumption of GIHL management at the ASCL and NIOMCO, processed iron ore stored at ASCL were carted away to Warri and sold to interested groups overseas.”
Sales of the said processed iron ore had continued for a while before the Monitoring Committee assessed what was left at a little over $2, 077, 545, 00. GIHL paid about $1, 000, 000 and just a week into the life of this panel the processed iron ore should not have been sold in the first place. It is a vital raw material for production at ASCL.
“Mention has been made of the issue of Essential Premium Scraps needed by ASCL which Global carted away to DSC. These scraps are worth N203,371,260.27 at today’s prices. This money is yet to be paid to FGN. The scrap should not have been sold because ultimately ASCL will need to import similar premium scraps at a higher price sooner or later.”
The panel chaired by Magaji Inuwa called for a review of the approval given to GIHL by the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Development (NOTAP).
One of the ways the GIHL claims to have spent money on Ajaokuta is through technology transfer. GIHL said it has transferred US $17,356,896.02 using NOTAP approvals.
In order to ensure that it does not part with a penny on the Ajaokuta deal, GIHL, in concert with its Nigerian sponsors, came up with a report that put the value of the Ajaokuta Steel Company at a paltry $300 million.
The company also submitted a letter to BPE, another report that says it has spent the sum of $250 million on the Ajaokuta Steel Company since August 2004 when it took over the management of the Nigerian steel giant.
With the $250 million expenditure it submitted and which it claims to have spent, GIHL maintained it had already spent far more than it was expected to pay for the 60 percent share of the company it is targeting in the privatisation deal.
By its claim, GSHL would not only take Ajaokuta free of charge, it would also expect the government to make a refund of some millions of dollars to it, being the excess of what it claimed it had invested.
But the report deflated this claim by the Indian firm, saying “We requested for evidence of this massive investment but GIHL could not substantiate this except for a list of spare parts and consumables bought and cleared by DSC.”
Another startling revelation of the panel is that since GIHL took over the running of Ajaokuta Steel Company, it has not paid the salaries of workers regularly. This has led to several industrial disputes between the management and workers of the establishment.
GIHL owes both the Russian and Ukrainian experts working with them salary arrears for about a year.
Chairman of Nigeria Union of Mines Workers, NUMW, Mr. Ogboko Newlife informed Newsmen in a telephone that before late President Yar’Adua terminated GIHL contract, the company grounded NIOMCO, Itakpe, sold parts, owned workers 13 months salaries and left the country.
With the mounting evidence of debt, breach of contract, and degradation of NIOMCO, Itakpe, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi on Channels Television said Federal Government could not provide evidence against GIHL.
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Solid Minerals

FG Fingers Foreigners Sponsoring Banditry For Illegal Mining

Published

7 months ago

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October 1, 2023

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The Nigerian Government has threatened to come down heavily on foreigners sponsoring bandictory as a way of sustaining illegal mining activities in parts of the country.

The warning was handed down in Abuja by Minister, Solid Minerals Development, Dr Oladele Alake, while receiving a delegation of the Nigeria-China Chamber of Mines led by its National President, Dr. Olugbenga Ajala.

Details of these were contained in a statement released by Head, Press & PR, Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Alaba Balogun over the weekend.

The statement cited, Dr Alake, thus, “The government will come down firmly on these unscrupulous foreign operators sponsoring banditry to perpetrate illegal mining: let me use this medium to appeal through you to tell those sponsors to desist or face the full wrath of the law.”

According to Dr Alake, the Ministry is committed to establishing a multi-agency task force that will end the activities of illegal miners and their collaborators.

The Minster made it clear that the FG had given illegal miners a 30-day-ultimatum to legitimise their businesses, quit Nigeria or incur the wrath of the law.

According to him, this will help “to streamline and structure the Small-Scale Artisanal Miners for maximum yield to the Federal Government.”

The delegation paid a courtesy call on the Minsiter at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja.

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Energy

Fuel Scarcity: Govt Yet to Increase Pump Prices – NMDPRA

Published

1 year ago

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December 1, 2022

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A long queue at an NNPC fuel station

By Edozie Obasi-Eze

 

Amidst heightening uncertainties in the domestic petroleum products market characterised by scarcity and irregular pricing, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has declared that there’s no intention to review pump prices upwards.

This was contained in an advisory issued by General Manager, Corporate Communications, NMDPRA, Kimchi Apollo.

He stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) had imported PMS with current stock levels sufficient for 34 days.

In an attempt to address panic buying and speculations which have seen price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) oscillate between N180-N250 in the Lagos area, Apollo assured that there was enough quantity of the product in the country already.

He said, “Consequently, marketers and the general public are advised to avoid panic buying, diversion of products and hoarding.

“In keeping with the Authority’s responsibilities as outlined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Authority assures the public that it would continue to monitor the supply and distribution of petroleum products nationwide, especially during this holiday season.”

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Solid Minerals

DIVERSIFICATION: RMAFC inspects mining activities in Ondo

Published

2 years ago

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September 27, 2022

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The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) says it is verifying and reconciling revenue collections in the Solid Minerals Sector of the economy.

The Federal Commissioner, RMAFC, Chief Tokunbo Ajasin, stated this at a strategic meeting on the commission’s 2022 nationwide monitoring of revenue collections of the Nigerian mining sector in Akure on Monday at the state Ministry of Finance Conference Hall.

This is contained in a statement by Mr Banjo Egunjobi, the Head of Media Unit of the ministry.

Read also>>>Darkness Envelopes Nigeria as National Grid Collapses For 7th time in 2022

Ajasin said 25 enterprises exported minerals in 2019 with no record of royalty payment, while about N2.76 billion outstanding liabilities had been established against 2,119 mining companies nationwide.

He said that this arose from failure to pay the Annual Service Fees for their company titles.

According to the Federal Commissioner, the Commission is empowered to monitor all revenue accruals from the extractive industries to ensure prompt and accurate remittances to the Federation Accounts.

He added that the monitoring was a follow-up on the 2016 exercise to assess the challenges hindering optimum revenue collection from the sector.

Ajasin said the monitoring comprised revenue collections and the activities of miners in the state.

According to him, the major issues of concern to the Commission is the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparent Initiative NEITI 2020 report.

He added that the number of defaulting companies would be determined after engagements.

“There is also the issue of underpayment of royalty by 25 enterprises that exported minerals in 2019 with no record of royalty payments.

“These companies owe the government about N482 million in overdue royalty.

He said the 2,119 mining companies’ default nationwide arose from the failure to pay the annual service fees for their respective mineral titles.

Ajasin also said the Commission’s mandate in the extractive sector was to recover the established liabilities owed to the Federation Account.

He, therefore, urged participants to explore the opportunities in the state to harness the revenue potential in the Solid Minerals sector to boost Internally Generated Revenue.

The State Commissioner for Finance, Mr Wale Akinterinwa, stated that the process of allocating the 13 per cent derivation on crude oil paid to the states across the federation depended on the effective monitoring of revenue and the collection of established liabilities from mineral resources.

Akinterinwa noted that the cooperation given by the state Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Energy, Mines and Mineral Resources and others to enforce payment of the reported liabilities  would assist in fulfilling the objectives of the exercise and a means of engaging some Strategic Revenue Drive  for the state.

The commissioner said the present administration of Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu would do everything at its disposal to facilitate the collection of revenue as listed in the NEITI Audit Report 2022.

He, therefore, urged stakeholders to accord full cooperation to the RMAFC team and be committed to achieving the desired goal.

Also the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Rev. Jide Ekpobomini, said sourcing for a quick alternative to all income was necessary and could not be overemphasised.

He said government revenue inflows would  surely be boosted if the sector was vigorously harnessed.

Also his counterpart from Ministry of Energy, Mines and Mineral Resources, Mr Wemimo Ogunsanmi, said the state government had initiated a strategic mineral development plan to exploit the solid minerals sector, hence the establishment of the ministry.

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