Labour

Fidelity Bank boosts homemade products

ANDREW OJIEZEL

NIGERIANS were surprised to note that in a system, where many banks were wobbling and struggling to survive the current bank reconsolidation, Fidelity Bank Plc, true to its promise of supporting critical sectors of the Nigerian economy, last week, was able to add another mile to its journey of helping to industrialise the country by singlehandedly financing the first multinational dollar can manufacturing plant in Africa.
Speaking at the launch, President Goodluck Jonathan, who commissioned the GZI Can manufacturing company, commended the management Fidelity and GZI for the joint efforts in establishing such a manufacturing outfit. “I am very happy not only because this company but because will directly or indirectly create more jobs for Nigerians.”

Unions warn against adulterated kerosene

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CHARACTERISTICS of some dubious and get rich quick businessmen and women to make quick money at the detriment of lives of innocent Nigerians and in apparent bid to forestall another wide fire outbreak, petroleum tanker drivers, under the aegis of National Union National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), in Delta and Edo State, last week, cried out against adulterated kerosene being circulated in the markets in Delta and Edo States.

SSAEAC, NUEE still battle ready

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THOUGH the strike has been called off, after the payment of the N57 billion to the workers in the electricity sector, under the aegis of Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC) and National Union of Electricity Workers of Nigeria (NUEE), by the Federal Government,
Nigerian are demanding to know what will be the next line of action, following the alleged plan by the Federal Government to embark on privatisation of the company.

Speaking in Lagos last week, President Goodluck Jonathan said “as part of the efforts to reposition the sector, President Jonathan revealed that he would, on Monday next week, send to the National Assembly for approval, the names of his nominees for Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

My appraisal of the sector over the past few years has revealed that the factors that impede electricity service delivery in Nigeria include absence of a sustained and deliberate deployed long-term development strategy; under-exploitation of our abundant energy endowment; and the absence of adequate and non-implementation of reform.
In order to fast-track the resolution of all critical issues pertaining to power sector reform and achieving stability in electricity supply, I constituted Presidential Action Committee (PAC), the Presidential Task Force on Power (PTFP). The primary objective was to eliminate bureaucratic red tape while exhibiting responsibility.

He said that “in drawing up this road map, we have identified tariff as the critical factor in resolving the entire value chain of supply of electricity. The idea is to ensure that the relevant agencies achieve a tariff structure that will give incentives to investors.”
President Jonathan recalled that he had declared on a number of occasions that on the attainment of stability in the sector, government would disengage from generation and distribution of electricity in the country and encourage private sector participation in these areas.
“Therefore, as articulated in the ESPR Act, the private sector will be responsible for generation and distribution while government will still own the transmission grid but with private sector management,” he said.

He further noted that government was in the process of commissioning Independent Power Producers, International Oil Companies (IOCs) and companies that have captive production of electricity to produce at least 5, 000mw of new capacity, saying “these plants will begin production in 2012 and 2013.”

He added: “In the interim, government has devised a plan to fast-track the full implementation of installed capacities at various Federal Government power plants across the nation through rehabilitation over the next one year.”
The president outlined specific plans by government in the next few years for power generation, Fuel-to-Power, National Integrated Power Project (NIPP), Transmission, Distribution, Tariff, and PHCN workers.

On generation, he said plan for exploitation of hydro sources had already advanced, saying “coal will also be fully exploited over the next few years to install power plants in such places as Gombe, Enugu, and Benue. However, the largest source of fuel-to-fuel power will come from natural gas.
“It is the intention of the Federal Government to exploit this asset to its fullest by converting flared gas assets to domestic application for power and harnessing non-associated gas for power generation.”

He said the Federal Government would engage companies that had requisite installed capacities to expand production capacities and sell electricity to the national grid and this concept will generate over 5, 000mw within the next three years.

Again, stakeholders protest Lekki-Epe Expressway tollgate

ANDREW OJIEZEL

IT is no longer news that Lagos State Government, erected tollgate for collection of tolls, at the Epe-Lekki axis, but the news is that people, mostly residents, who the project was meant for, have vowed to resist that toll collection, even as they staged protest against the arrival of Governor Babatunde Fashola and his entourage that came to commission the Lekki Free Zone projects.

Just as the state Governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) commissioned the landmark one-stop-shop and administrative complex at the Lekki Free Zone, saying that the prosperity of the Lekki Free Zone and the Lekki-Epe area is tied to the success of the tolled Lekki expressway.

The governor, who perhaps was reacting to the protesters, appealed to them to cooperate with the concessionaire and take full advantage of the committee set up to review areas of difficulty.

NUEE rejects talks with Nnaji Committee

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VEXED by the move by Federal Government to dragged them into another round of negation when the first negotiation has not been fully implemented, the workers of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) have refused to hold talks with Professor Barth Nnaji Committee on power based on pending labour issues, especially the casualisation of 10, 000 workers in the organisation and the payment of balance of the 150 per cent wage increase.

Labour

Fidelity Bank boosts homemade products

Unions warn against adulterated kerosene

SSAEAC, NUEE still battle ready

Again, stakeholders protest Lekki-Epe Expressway tollgate

NUEE rejects talks with Nnaji Committee

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