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Tag: gas

  • Hike in prices of cooking gas, kerosene, threat to tree conservation- Climatologist

    A climatologist, Prof. Emmanuel Oladipo, has warned that the hike in the prices of gas and kerosene portends danger to the environment and human life.

    He gave the warning on Wednesday in Lagos in an interview with news.

    He said that natural disasters experienced globally necessitated pragmatic approach from both the government and citizens to protect the environment by paying attention to tree conservation.

    Oladipo, a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Senior Consultant, said that increase in the prices of these products would aggravate deforestation and increase greenhouse gas emissions into the environment.

    He said: “deforestation is when forest is being cut down on a massive scale without making proportionate effort at replanting.

    “Trees play critical role in supporting environmental equilibrium and human comfort because it absorbs carbon dioxide from the air, which is the main greenhouse gas.

    “Trees are also strategic in combating global warming, flood, check erosion and stem the tide of windstorm by serving as wind breakers in coastal areas.

    “By the time we destroy this important shield for cooking, then we are exposing ourselves to grave danger in the country.”

    According to Oladipo, deforestation will hinder Nigeria’s commitment to reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions unconditionally by 20 per cent and conditionally by 45 per cent in line with its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

    He said that Nigeria subscribed to NDCs when it signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

    He said that Nigeria had the highest rate of deforestation in the world having lost more than half of its primary forests.

    The climatologist urged the federal government to evolve pricing mechanism that would make cooking gas and kerosene affordable and available in the country.

    “It is quite unfortunate that in-spite the vast deposit of natural gas and crude oil in the country, many Nigerians cannot afford the price of cooking gas and kerosene.

    “If the government creates an approach that supplements the cost of these products, those in the rural areas will embrace the use of cooking gas.

    “It will also discourage all those that cut trees for charcoal production in Oyo North and Kaduna to desist from the practice,” he said.

    The price of cooking gas has recently increased from N3, 500 to N4, 500 for 12.5kg gas cylinder while a litre of kerosene jumped to N300 as against N150 of N130 previously.

    The situation had forced many Nigerians to resort to using firewood and charcoal for cooking.

     

    NAN

  • Power supply, gas our major challenges in 2016 – Lagos Water Corporation

    The Managing Director of Lagos Water Corporation (LWC), Mr Muminu Badmuson, on Tuesday identified power and gas as major challenges the corporation faced in water production and distribution in 2016.

    Badmus told the newsmen in Lagos that the incessant interruption in water supply in the state, especially the metropolis in 2016, was due to the challenges.

    “The power supply was erratic and the constant blowing of gas pipes in the Niger Delta made procurement of gas to the Independent Power Plants (IPP) attached to the major water works stations difficult.

    “The Corporation had to procure diesel generators to power the water works to make water supply possible in the metropolis.

    “The cost of diesel with the economic recession that is affecting the exchange rate is escalating by the day,’’ he said.

    Badmus said that in spite of the challenges, the corporation was able to ensure that potable water reached all its customers in the state.

    He said that the corporation would continue to plead with its customers to pay their water bills.

    “The water bill now does not cover the cost of producing and distributing water to houses, but it is helping with maintenance,’’ he said.

    Badmus said that the corporation had created regional centres as well as data control to make its bill payment easy for customers.

    He said that in 2017, the corporation would embark on construction of new water works stations to boost supply of potable water in the state.

    According to him, many Green field projects to be constructed with private sectors through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) modalities have been identified.

    Badmus said that the involvement of the private sector would help the corporation in its effort to provide adequate potable water to areas yet to benefit from its services.

     

     

    NAN

  • NNPC set to increase oil, gas reserves

    NNPC set to increase oil, gas reserves

    The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, has pledged to improve reserves and production capacity of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC).

    Dr. Baru made the pledge in a statement by Mr Ndu Ughamadu, NNPC Group Managing Director, Group Public Affairs Division, in Abuja on Thursday.

    Baru described NPDC, which is the corporation’s exploration and production subsidiary, as showing a conspicuously excellent growth in its proven reserves.

    He told Governor Godwin Obaseki during a courtesy visit in Benin, that he would expand NPDC footprints within the nation’s upstream sub-sector of the nation’s oil and gas industry.

    “As part of our 12 Business Focus Areas, we are dedicated to growing NPDC, thereby increasing our reserves portfolio.

    “We will not relent until NPDC exceeds its current position of being the 7th largest oil producer in Nigeria.

    “To achieve this, the NNPC would aggressively explore opportunities in other petroleum acreages in Nigeria and with particular interest in the Gulf of Guinea.’’

    According to him, NNPC is working hard to improve the portfolio of services rendered to the oil industry by its second Edo-based upstream outfit – the Integrated Data Services Company (IDSL).

    “The long term objective is for IDSL to be on its own so as to actualise its vision of becoming the ultimate centre for the provision of geophysical and petroleum engineering services in the industry,” he said.

    He lauded the state for remaining “relatively peaceful’’ with least incidents of pipeline vandalism and sabotage, compared to other areas in the Niger Delta.

    He assured Obaseki that the corporation would redouble its community engagement by championing more corporate social responsibility efforts within host communities in Edo.

    Governor Obaseki, who described NNPC as “very important to Edo State‘s economy”, also pledged to make the stste a hub for the corporation.

    He said the government was working hard to improve on its local security plans by encouraging community policing and intelligence gathering to safeguard oil and gas facilities in the state.

    Baru also paid homage to the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare, where he sought for the monarch’s support in the area of sensitising host communities to the advantages of protecting the nation’s oil and gas assets.