Nigeria, Morocco, others sign agreements on gas pipeline project

By Abubakar Yunusa Abuja

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) said it had signed four significant agreements related to the NigeriaMorocco gas pipeline project.

The NNPCL in a statement by Garba Deen Muhammad, the chief corporate communications officer of the company, said the four memoranda of understanding (MoU) were signed on Friday in Abuja as part of the NigeriaMorocco gas pipeline project.

It said these tripartite MOUs were signed between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and the Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines (ONHYM) of Morocco on one hand; then the Société Nationale des Opérations Pétrolières of Côte d’Ivoire (PETROCI), the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL), the Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures of Benin (SNHBenin), and the Société Nationale des Pétroles of the Republic of Guinea (SONAP) on the other hand.

NNPCL explained that these agreements were similar to those signed with ECOWAS on 15 September 2022, Mauritania and Senegal on 15 October 2022, and The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Ghana on 5 December 2022, reaffirming the commitment of the parties to this strategic project.

The NNPCL had last year signed agreements on the gas pipeline project with the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines of Morocco and the ECOWAS Commission.

The Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline was proposed in a December 2016 agreement between the NNPCL and the Moroccan Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines.

The Federal Executive Council in June last year authorised the NNPCL to enter into an agreement with ECOWAS for the construction of the pipeline.

The government says the gas pipeline, designed to be 7,000km long, will contribute to accelerating access to energy for all, improving the living conditions of the populations, integrating the economies of the sub-region, and mitigating desertification.

It will further achieve these goals through the provision of a sustainable and reliable gas supply that aligns with the continent’s new environmental commitments while providing Africa with a new economic, political, and strategic dimension.

Once completed, the project will enhance the monetisation of the natural gas resources of the affected African countries and also offer a new alternative export route to Europe.

“Today, another important milestone was achieved at the headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States as four significant Memoranda of Understanding related to the

Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline project were signed. Additionally, the project’s steering committee convened to discuss the progress of the project and its strategic direction,” NNPCL said Friday.

“The signings took place on the sidelines of the steering committee meeting of the Nigeria-Morocco Gas pipeline project, which was attended by representatives from ECOWAS and all the participating countries, including Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, GuineaBissau, The Gambia, Senegal, Mauritania, and Morocco,” the statement added.

In his remarks, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, thanked President

Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian government for entrusting the company with the strategic project as the national energy company.

“As a commercial enterprise, NNPCL sees this project as an opportunity to monetise Nigeria’s abundant hydrocarbon resources, by expanding access to energy to support economic growth, industrialization, and job creation across the African continent and beyond,” Mr Kyari said.

Also speaking, the Director General of ONHYM, Amina Benkhadra, said that the gathering represents a progressive step in ensuring social and economic development through energy security and accessibility geared towards attaining total development of Africa by Africans.

From Abubakar Yunusa

The executive management of Heritage Bank Plc has denied online reports of diversion of funds by a member of staff, describing the allegations as “wrong and defamatory”.

In a press statement shared with journalists the bank said “no funds were diverted by any member of staff”.

“These allegations are wrong and defamatory. These articles have used unrelated facts and conjecture to create a fictitious arrative,” the statement reads.

“Recently, Heritage Bank began implementation of its long-term sustainability plans premised on restructuring the bank, ensuring cost efficiency, management of its assets and resources towards restoring the financial institution.

“The reduction in the workforce, who were duly compensated in line with the bank’s policy, was necessary to improve our pace on the path of growth, in line with our turnaround targets, to be able to continue providing outstanding financial services to our customers.

“We remain focused and committed to collectively drive growth and deliver exceptional service to all. We will continue to work together to build a longterm sustainable future for our customers, employees and all our stakeholders.”

By Abubakar Yunusa Abuja

Tony Elumelu, chairman of the United Bank for Africa, has asked investors to invest in critical sectors of Africa, saying the era of “making policies for the continent from outside is gone”.

Elumelu, who is also the chairman of Transcorp Power Limited, spoke at the ongoing Vivatech conference in Paris.

He said investors must look beyond the challenges of Africa, focus on the economic potential and prosperity of the continent, and invest.

Speaking on the economic potential of Africa, Elumelu said the continent is a major region where there is evidence of investment.

“If you look at Africa from the point of view of investment, there is nowhere you make the kind of returns on investment that you make in Africa. I speak as someone who invests in Africa.

“In 2013, our group invested in the power sector. We invested in power generation. I don’t know anywhere in the world where you invest in power generation because it is highly capital intensive, and you break even and start making profit from year two to year three. It is only in Africa that this can happen.

“We do have a lot of opportunities and we also have challenges. But the challenges are not daunting. They are not the kind of things that will not want to make you invest in Africa.

“It’s about risk and returns. People should know that in Africa, we have challenges but we have more opportunities, more prosperity, and more progress than the challenges that we have on the continent. So, Africa is open for investment.”

On how investors can strategically leverage opportunities on the continent, Elumelu said “those who want to support Africa to develop in this 21st century, should rethink how to intervene in Africa”.

“Gone are the days of sitting outside of Africa and formulating policies and programmes that you think would be good for Africa,” he added.