Business
NNPCL commences sale of Utapate crude to international refiners
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) says it has commenced sales of its latest crude oil grade, the Utapate crude oil blend, to international refiners.
This is coming six months after it began exploration for it.
The Chief Corporate Communications Officer of NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye, in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, said that the development was a major boost for Nigeria’s crude oil production, revenue generation and economic growth efforts.
He stated that the new product was unveiled before a packed audience of European crude oil marketers at the ongoing Argus European Crude Conference taking place in London.
It would be recalled that in July 2024, the NNPCL and its partner, the Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company Limited, introduced the Utapate crude oil blend, following the lifting of the first cargo of 950,000 barrels, which headed for Spain.
Produced from the Utapate field in the Oil Mining Lease 13 in Akwa Ibom State, the Utapate crude oil blend is similar to the Nembe crude oil grade. It has a low sulphur content of 0.0655 per cent and a low carbon footprint due to flare gas elimination, fitting perfectly into the required specifications of major European buyers.
The Managing Director, NNPC E&P Limited, Nicholas Foucart, in his address, described the introduction of the Utapate crude oil blend into the market as a significant milestone for Nigeria’s crude oil export to the global energy market.
Foucart said, “Since we started producing the Utapate in May 2024, we have rapidly ramped up production to 40,000 barrels per day with minimum downtime. So far, we have exported five cargoes, largely to Spain and the East Coast of the United States; while two more additional cargoes have been secured for November and December 2024, representing a significant boost to Nigeria’s crude oil export to the global market.”
He added that since its introduction into the global market, the Utapate crude oil blend has enjoyed a positive response from the international crude oil market due to its highly attractive qualities.
Foucart said the OML 13, fully operated by NEPL and Natural Oilfield Services Limited, a subsidiary of SEEPCO Limited, has huge reserves of 330 million barrels of crude oil, 45 million barrels of condensate and 3.5 tcf of gas.
“We have several ongoing projects to increase our production from the current 40,000 bopd to 50,000 bopd by January 2025, and 60,000 bopd to 65,000 bopd by June 2025. Essentially, we are targeting opportunities to increase production to 80,000 bonds by the end of 2025,” Foucart noted.
He said the Utapate crude oil terminal is sustainable, affordable and fully compliant with the rigorous environmental regulations and sustainability principles, especially those aimed at reducing carbon emissions and other ecological effects.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of NNPC Trading Limited, Lawal Sade, said the pricing structure of the Utapate crude oil blend is similar to that of Amenam crude as it is a light, sweet crude which is highly sought after by refiners across the world due to its low sulphur content, efficient yield of high-value products, API gravity and other similarities.
He said in bringing the new crude oil blend to the global market, the NNPCL wanted to optimise value for both its producers and counterparties across the globe.
The Utapate field development plan, executed between 2013 and 2019, included converting wells and facilities from swamp or marine to land-based operations.
The entry of the Utapate crude oil blend into the market is coming barely a year after the NNPCL announced the launch of Nembe crude oil, produced by the NNPC/Aiteo operated OML 29 Joint Venture.
Multichoice has announced another increase in the prices of its DStv and GOtv packages, set to take effect from March 1, 2025.
The company revealed this in a statement to customers on Monday titled, “Price adjustment on DStv and GOtv packages” and signed by the CEO John Ugbe.
“Dear Customer, please note that effective 1 March 2025, there will be a price adjustment on all DStv packages.
“This is to enable us to continue to offer our customers world-class homegrown and international content, delivered through the best technology,” the statement read.
This latest adjustment comes nearly a year after the last price review.
According to the company, the new prices are as follows:
DStv Packages:
Compact: From N15,700 to N19,000
Compact Plus: From N24,500 to N30,000
Premium: From N29,500 to N44,500
GOtv Packages:
GOtv Value: From N3,600 to N3,900
GOtv Plus: From N4,850 to N5,800
GOtv Max: From N6,200 to N8,500
GOtv Supa: From N9,600 to N11,400
GOtv Supa Plus: From N13,500 to N16,800
Multichoice attributed the price increase to the rising cost of doing business in Nigeria.
The company cited factors such as currency depreciation and high inflation, which have significantly increased its operational expenses.
Nigerian businesses, while expressing optimism about the macroeconomic environment, have projected further depreciation of the naira this month and the first three months of 2025.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) disclosed this in its Business Expectation Survey Report for November 2024.
The report, however, noted that firms’ outlook on volume of business activities, financial conditions, access to credit, volume of total order and average capacity utilization, were pessimistic.
It stated: “The overall confidence index (CI) on the macroeconomy indicated that businesses were optimistic in November 2024.
“Businesses expect the Naira to depreciate in the current month, next month and next 3 months but appreciate in the next 6 months.
“The optimism on business outlook in the current month is driven by the opinion of respondents from all the sectors.
“The Construction Sector expressed optimism on own operations in the review month.
“The outlook of respondents on the volume of business activities, the volume of total order, financial conditions, and access to credit were negative in the review month.
“Volume of business activity respondents expressed optimism on volume of business activity for the next month and subsequent periods under review.”
The report also showed that businesses hope to employ more workers in the month of December 2024 with the Agriculture sector having the highest prospect for expansion.
Meanwhile, the CBN in its latest Consumer Expectation Survey Report said that consumers were pessimistic about the macro economy in November.
According to CBN report, households projected a rise in the cost of transportation, rent, car/vehicle, house purchase, and medical expenses this month.
The report showed that 61.1 per cent and 57.6 per cent of respondents perceived that prices of non-durable and durable household items, though high, will keep declining this month and next month respectively.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Friday, threatened to impose fines on banks hoarding cash.
It said that the ongoing cash scarcity at Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and over the counter being witnessed across the country was embarrassing and unacceptable.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, spoke at the annual Bankers’ Dinner organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.
There have been recent reports of cash shortages at banks, both at ATMs and over the counter.
Cardoso said: “We also recognise the ongoing challenges with cash availability at ATMs, which disproportionately affect ordinary Nigerians.
“To address this, we are conducting spot checks across deposit money banks, and we will impose penalties on underperforming institutions.
“Effective December 1, 2024, customers are encouraged to report any difficulties with withdrawing cash from bank branches or ATMs directly to the CBN through designated phone numbers and email addresses for their respective states.
“Guidelines will be distributed widely to raise public awareness. We will also urge full regulatory compliance by all stakeholders, including mobile money operators and POS agents, to promote digital transaction channels and improve service delivery.
“I repeat, financial institutions found engaging in malpractices or sabotage will face severe penalties.
“The CBN will continue to maintain a robust cash offering to meet the country’s needs, particularly during high-demand periods such as the festive season and year-end.”
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