Govt appoints four banks to administer N8.4b cabotage fund

FOUR banks have eventually emerged as primary lending institution under the country's $55 million (about N8.4 billion) Cabotage Vessels Financing Fund (CVFF). They are Diamond Bank, Fidelity Bank, Skye Bank and Equatorial Trust Bank.

They were selected from among 25 banks that applied to be primary lenders under the fund. But maritime watchers expressed shock that notable banks, especially those in the first generation of banks in Nigeria were not among those selected to manage the fund for the government.

But officials of the nation's apex maritime regulatory agency, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) told The Guardian at the weekend that the process of the selection was very transparent, adding that the four banks that were successful had, before long, established maritime desk besides the establishment of a good banking relationship with authority as required by the Cabotage Vessels Financing Fund guidelines

The Guardian reported exclusively few weeks ago that the names of the successful banks would soon be released by the government through NIMASA.

The banks were issued their certificate as primary lenders under the fund in Lagos at the weekend. They are now expected to commence the screening of applications from the shipping sector that had since applied for vessel financing loan under the fund.

According to the guidelines on the vessels financing fund, the banks would henceforth be responsible for the disbursement of the 50 per cent cost of the ship to be procured by successful applicants from the fund after ensuring that each of the applicants have the ability to contribute 15 per cent cost of the vessel to be acquired under the loan scheme. - Guardian

APMT acquires new mobile crane

APM Terminal is set to take delivery of a new Mobile Harbor Crane, to further boost efficiency and cargo handling operations at the container terminal within Apapa port complex.

The arrival of the new equipment will bring to three the number of LHM 500 cranes at the terminal, as two were acquired in 2008.

A statement by the company's Media Adviser, Mr. Bolaji Akinola, stated that the new crane, acquired at the cost of about $8 million is expected to arrive Nigeria in the first week of April this year.

According to Akinola, the new crane is fitted with the same twin lift spreader as the existing two currently in use at the terminal. The twin lift spreader allows the operator to lift two twenty feet containers back-to-back at the same time to ensure higher productivity.

"Liebherr LHM 500 cranes are absolutely phenomenal machines capable of assisting us achieve a very high turnover. The new crane is fitted with the latest technology; it has a camera mounted on the boom that faces down so that the operator sitting in the cabin can clearly see and monitor operations," he said.

APM Terminals Apapa Limited acquired new Rubber Tyred Gantry (RTG) cranes, which it introduced to port operations in Nigeria in March 2009. The cranes were purchased at a cost of more than $7 million while four STS cranes were acquired in the first half of 2008 at a cost of about $10 million.

The company recently installed and commissioned a N88 million crane simulator training facility at the terminal. The simulator is the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa. Guardian

 

Uncompleted plants, not gas supply, bane of low power generation - Barkindo

The group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mohammed Barkindo, yesterday sought to convince Nigerians and the business community that the Federal Government is serious about tackling the problems of the electricity sector as he offered explanation for the failure to attain the 6,000 megawatts target set for December 2007 despite spending over $2 billion.

The move follows a renewed pledge by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan to turn around the fortunes of the sector.

Barkindo told hordes of participants at a stakeholders’ conference on gas to power in Lagos, that as much as 400mmcf/ d of gas produced is left unused as the power stations that are supposed to use them are not yet completed. He explained that though there were constraints in gas supply to some of the thermal power stations ranging from pipeline vandalism to security problems, the major challenge to effective power generation in the country was the non-availability of power stations to use up the 400mmcf/d that is stranded across various gas projects in the country.

But some stakeholders spoken to at the conference dismissed Barkindo’s claims as belated and an excuse to continue to do nothing about the country’s current power problem. “He should be talking about the necessary steps to deregulate the electricity sector for efficiency and improvement on power supply”, says one oil industry manager attending the conference.

Barkindo had earlier given details of the stranded gas to include 100mmcf/d out of a total 240mmcf produced from the Shell Okoloma Gas Plant in Rivers State, 120mmcf/d from the Total-operated Obite Gas Plant also in Rivers State, 80mmcf/d from Shell-operated Gbaran-Ubie Gas Plant, and the 100mmcf/d from Exxon Mobil swapped with the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG).

He said the Obite Gas Plant and the Exxon Mobil/NLNG swapped gas project were ready to supply gas but awaiting the completion of the Omoku and Alaoji Power Plants, and the construction of evacuation line respectively. “Of the 240mmcf/d gas produced at the Okoloma Gas Plant, only 140mmcf/d is used for power generation at the Afam VI Power Plant operated by Shell, the remaining 100mmcf/d is stranded because Afam I to IV Power Plants that were supposed to use it are not functional,” Barkindo explained. He however said that there has been relative improvement in the gas supply to the power sector in the last few days. BusinessDay