Here's How Chocolate City Plans To Stay Relevant

Chocolate City Music, which recently underwent changes in its management structure as well as merged with MI’s Loopy Records, has announced plans for the future. 

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter

 at a press briefing on Wedesday, August 5, where rapper MI Abaga (the new CEO of Chocolate City) talked about the new structure and the label’s plan to throw its doors open to media players.
Under the new structure, MI succeeded Audu Maikori as CEO. Maikori is currently president while Ice Prince takes over MI’s previous role of vice-president.

On his new role, MI said: ‘It’s not been easy so far, I must say still. The evening I was announced as the new CEO, I had dinner with Audu and his wife and a friend of the family.  We just passed time and felicitated each other basically.
“The next morning at about 8AM I was up and started. Now, I’m not an early bird but when you’re in a position as this you have to live up to billing because there’s so much work out there to be done. You oversee the finances, the day-to-day running and more, so there’s really no free time.”
MI also lamented the tough terrain music labels face in Nigeria.
He said: “Labels are dying. You look out and 10 years ago up until today there’s no label you can say is fully functional as Chocolate City. You see, as a child, the papers I read are still there today. More people are coming on board the media business even, but record labels aren’t so. And truly music labels should be like that.”
He said as part of plans to maintain Chocolate City’s longevity, the label wished to partner with the media.
He said: “The exact reason behind this meet is to have us an avenue where we can forge a stronger relationship with the media sector. Don’t get this twisted, we are doing greatly already in terms of publicity and our relationship with every form of media out there today. But then again, we believe it can only get better hence our calling for this. So now you see that with this we can achieve a stronger partnership and synergize more.”
He said under the new Chocolate City, each artiste on the label is a brand and would be nurtured as such.
“With the Chocolate City and its future plans, every artiste under the label is a brand and will be guarded and nurtured judiciously, because we believe we have a strong partnership,” he said. “You can come in to my office and say ‘MI this is what I think of this artiste and this is what you guys can do to get things right, or get things working better and all of that.”
Chocolate City Music was founded in 2005 by Audu Maikori, Paul Okeugo and Yahaya Maikori.

Chidinma Opens Up On What She Will Look Out For In A Man

Petite singer and MTN Project fame winner, Chidinma is one of Nigeria’s most successful artists to have emerged under a reality show.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter

Chidinma Ekile

The songstress has also carved a niche for herself in the music industry, as she never fails with her hit singles and collaborations.

The “kedike” crooner is single and has come out to send a special message, to the many men crushing on her. In a brief chat with NET, Chidinma disclosed what she will look out for in a man.
She said, “first of all you need to be intelligent. An average girl will want to go for the looks, but for me intelligence is the first thing and every other thing can follow”.
Chidinma also revealed a time frame she would be settling down and praying she should get married before she clocks 30.

She said, “I’ll get married at any time God says, my mum married at the age of 19 and if I wasn’t doing music I’ll have been married too. For me I pray I get married before am 30 years old”.
Chidinma, was also mentioned as one of the three past participants in the Project Fame music reality TV Show as ambassadors of Telecom’s Company, MTN

@Johnicks_Studio Presents “RARE GENRE” Rap Contest

The Rare Genre Rap Contest by Benue based producer and music video cinematographer “Johnicks” hit the ground running few weeks ago. This is a follow up to the Free beat contest won by Meddy in 2014.
Johnicks resampled a beat from a traditional song from the Tiv speaking people of Benue State. Spiced up a little to enable hip hop delivery, Rappers are encouraged to jump on the beat and spit a few bars on it.
3 rappers are expected to emerge at the end of the contest.
The winners shall record a song and a hip hop music video in addition to radio hype on top radio stations in the middlebelt of Nigeria.
Stations billed to be part of the 3 months radio promotion include; radio benue, Joy FM, Raypower FM Jos, Harvest FM, Solid FM and online promo on 20 blogs across Nigeria.
The music video shall also enjoy rotation on Talents TV and entertainment television stations in Nigeria.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
1. Download the beat
2. If you are convinced you can murder the beat, contact 08067641893 via Whatsapp for registration details.

3. After you have successfully registered, record on the beat and send it to talentstelevision@gmail.com (recording is free for artistes who can make it to Johnicks Studiovilla, Makurdi)
4. All registered songs will be uploaded online for listening and voting.
5. 10 rappers will emerge from the voting and the Judges comprising of 5 outstanding radio OAPs and Djs will pick the 3 winners.

Nigerians On Their Way To ISIS Arrested In India

A huge drama was witnessed near the integrated checkpost (ICP) at Attari on the border between India and Pakistan when two Nigerian students from Delhi scaled a 20-foot-high grilled fence in a bid to illegally enter Pakistan in the morning of Friday, August 7.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter

Border security detains Nigerians for questioning. Photo: hindustantimes.com

The two Nigerians, who claimed to be cousins, were identified as Imran Kabir, 24, and Jamilu Sani, 25 years of age. They were arrested by Border Security Force (BSF) personnel after a hot chase.
“Both wanted to go to Pakistan for pursuing Islamic studies. Sani had a Nigerian passport, while Kabir didn’t. We recovered five printouts taken from Google maps of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq. They described Iraq as their final destination,” a BSF spokesperson said.
The duo got to the checkpost at about 5.50am in a stolen swift dzire taxi. The BSF said they had hired the taxi from Delhi and made off with it on reaching Amritsar when the driver, with whom they had a tiff on Thursday night over the fare, was asleep.
They parked the car close to the border and enquired about the route to Pakistan. They were told that the border was closed at that time, but rather than leaving, they waited near the car.
The BSF personnel, who are ever on high alert, got suspicious and approached them. The two Nigerians they panicked and sped away on the road.
The border guards personnel chased them, forcing the suspects to abandon the car. The duo managed to climb over the 20-foot-high grilled fence and jump onto the rail track.
“Once there, they thought they had entered Pakistani territory and started shouting ‘we are in Pakistan’. They didn’t know that they were still in India,” the BSF spokesperson said.
During interrogation one of the Nigerians claimed to be a student of Mahatma Gandhi Open University in Delhi and the other said he studied at Karnataka State Open University, also in Delhi.
“Both had come to India on student visa in 2014. They said they were headed for Afghanistan en route to Iraq, which was their final destination. They wanted to pursue Islamic studies in Pakistan before that,” the Indian authorities confirmed.

When searched, a copy of the Quran, mobile phones, a sum of 4,000 Naira recovered from them. However, no weapons were found.
The suspects would be handed over to the police after initial interrogation.
ISIS is not strange to Nigeria. About four months ago, Nigeria’s deadly terrorist group, Boko Haram, pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. 
Boko Haram appeared to have aligned its media production, social media and execution style videos with ISIS.
Some say the vow of alliance by the Nigerian terror sect to the Islamic State may be no more than a propaganda move.
Earlier this week, the militants put out a video that showed the beheading of a policeman. The method of the killings, and also the professional production value of the record, spookily reflected the work of the so-called Islamic State. Some experts fear that it could presage tighter links.
Peter Pham, director of the Africa programme at the Atlantic council think tank in Washington, said: “It’s something that has been developing over the course of at least nine months.
“Both groups need this right now. They need a propaganda coup to raise morale and attention because they are both suffering setbacks in their military campaigns.
“For Isis, it’s an opportunity to present themselves as ever-expanding, to enhance their aura of inevitability. It’s a propaganda victory. And for that, all you need is a small camera and an Internet connection.”
However, reports by NBC News states that American Intelligence officials believe racism will stop ISIS operating in Northern Africa and from teaming up with the Boko Haram sect. 
“The Arab world is incredibly racist. They don’t see black Africans as equivalent to them,”  a US intelligence official explained.
The official added that ISIS may show “affinity” with Nigeria’s insurgents, “but they stop short of allegiance.”
Naij.com

FASHION-Guides to The Perfect Blazer

• A blazer is a true gentlemanly piece of clothing. It is a wardrobe essential for the guys! It is so versatile. Whatever occasion; casual or formal, a blazer can be the perfect addition to pull any outfit together.

If you are yet to own one or you are planning to buy one, there are some factors you need to consider;
Blazers have different styles and different cuts, there’s the double breasted, single breasted,the padded shoulder, and non-padded blazer. The most popular is the standard double-breasted and the two-button blazer.


So for a casual look, the patch pockets and unstructured shoulders (those without pads) are best. And for a work outfit, structured shoulders, double-breasted blazers are perfect.

Then you have to consider the size and fit. It shouldn’t be too tight, neither should it be bogus.

The colors are very important too; standard colors like Gray and Navy are versatile, they’re safe and easy to pull off. Other colors you can go for are brown and tan, these are great for casual looks. You should also note that a suit jacket is very different from a blazer, so don’t even bother trying to compromise!

• WHAT DO YOU THINK?

10 Hottest Nigerian Celebrities with the Best Beard Game

There’s something about a beard that makes a man look more appealing and just all round sexier, don’t you agree? There’s a Lithuanian proverb “A man without a beard is like bread without a crust” and trust me I agree with that, and after this I have a feeling you will too. If you’re a facial hair fan then I have found the list for you! Here’s our selection of 10 Nigerian celebrities who have practically achieved bearded perfection.

1. Basket Mouth

2. Chin Okeke 

3. Praiz

4. Noble Igwe

5. Lynxx

6. Obi Somto

7. Olowu Bordia Adebola (illRymz)

8. Lanre Masha

9. Uti Nwachukwu

10. Timaya

Wonder how the guys on this list keep their beards looking so fresh and clean? All you need is proper Grooming!

• SHARE
• TWEET
• EMAIL

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Why Quality Of Husbands Will Be Scarce In Nigeria Soon – Catholic Women Group

The National President of the council of Catholic
organisation of Nigeria, Chief Felicia Onyeabo, has said
‘quality husbands’ will soon be hard to find in Nigeria.
Chief Felicia Onyeabo
Onyeabo said this due to the number of male dropouts in
schools which is on the increase every year in the last 10
years. Mrs Onyeabo said this at a press briefing to herald
the inauguration of a catholic school in Abuja last week. She
said:
“The future of this country is going to be very bleak for the
male-child. How many girls do you see hawking clothes? Go
to Onitsha, they are all men. We have looked round and
have come to see that there is a neglect of boys in
education. Who are the armed robbers on the streets? They
are mostly the boys. Let us concentrate on training boys.

The NCCWO feels that a vacuum is being created, and very
soon, we shall be faced with a situation where our educated
girl-child will not find a corresponding suitable boy-child to
marry. This is because more boys drop out of school,
apparently because the high rate of unemployed youth
discourages our young boys from appreciating the need to
be educated. The NCCWO also considers the fact that in the
near future, quality husbands will become extremely scarce,
with too many highly educated women looking for
husbands, and settling for anyhow husbands, just to get
married. The result of this type of situation is better
imagined and will not augur well for Nigerians,” she said.
Just recently, a congregation was in for a big surprise when
their priest, Rev. Juan Andres Quevedo-Bosch, 59, came out
as gay just before divorcing his wife and marrying a younger
man.  .

Naira Rises As Banks Reject Dollars

  The naira continues to rise against the US dollar this
week as Deposit Money Banks reject cash deposit of
foreign currencies, The Punch reports.
The source notes that the Nigeria’s currency had
appreciated against the dollar from 245 to 220 at the
parallel market last week after banks started denying their
customers opportunity to make cash deposits of dollar,
pound and euro into their domiciliary accounts.

On Sunday, an anonymous forex trader stated: “We expect
the naira to appreciate further this week at the parallel
market. Banks have flooded the market with dollars and
other foreign currencies. This is making the naira to
appreciate. There is still a huge stock of dollars out there
that the banks will be pushing into the parallel market this
week.”
Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe who is the president of Bureau De
Change Operators said that large amount of dollars in the
market would make the naira to appreciate further at the
parallel market this week.
Last week, Nigerian banks announced that they would no
longer collect cash deposits into domiciliary accounts.
Fidelity Bank Plc explained that the policy came from the
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and it was only a temporary
measure to curb speculative activities.
 Ladi Balogun, the CEO of First City Monument Bank also
stated: “Banks no longer accept dollar cash due to large
speculation on the currency. The lenders would continue to
receive dollar transfers from other banks.”
Godwin Emefiele, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
governor, announced that the naira was appropriately
priced at its current level of 197 to the dollar on the
interbank market.
Over the past year the naira lost about 15 % against the
dollar with an official devaluation in November.
It also should be noted that after the CBN limited importers’
access to dollars in order to save the external reserves the
currency had weakened on the parallel market, falling as
low as 245..

Corruption: Buhari descends on civil servants

By Clifford Ndujihe & Levinus Nwabughiogu

 Disturbed by the rot and thriving corruption in the
civil service, which has cost the country trillions of naira,
President Muhammadu Buhari has taken his anti-graft war
to the sector.
He has ordered that all outstanding audit queries which had
piled up over the years be resolved within the next 30 days.
Confirming the presidential directive, Senior Special
Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity, Malam
Garba Shehu, said the unanswered audit queries sounded
unsavoury to the President who, on hearing it, expressed his
displeasure.
An audit query is the request for an explanation by the
Auditor-General of the Federation over improprieties
discovered in the Accountant-General of the Federation’s
report. The report is done quarterly.
By law (Civil Services Re-organization Decree No. 43 of
1988), the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation
supervises the accounts of federal
and extra-ministerial department; collates, presents and
publishes statutory financial statements of account required
by the Minister of Finance; conducts routine and in-depth
inspection of the books of accounts of federal ministries and
extra-ministerial department to ensure compliance with
rules, regulations, policies, and internal audit guides;
investigates cases of fraud, loss of funds, assets and store
items and other financial malpractices in ministries/extra-
ministerial department; ensures revenue monitoring and
accounting; provides a system for the monitoring of the
accounts of all Ministries, Departments and Agencies and
ensures timely submission of all financial statements to the
Auditor-General of the Federation.
If the Auditor-General is dissatisfied with the reports, he
issues queries. Audit queries are also used to check fraud as
the ‘ghost workers’ phenomenon.
Over time, an avalanche of these queries have not been
answered, a development that has created a huge tunnel for
graft through unaccounted expenditures, misappropriation
and miscalculation of funds running into trillions of naira.
The measure is used to check unspent budgets, which are
expected to be returned to the treasury.
Following the disappointing manner the queries were
handled, President Buhari directed that any civil servant
who failed to answer audit queries within 24 hours,
henceforth, would face a disciplinary action.
These are part of the marching orders Buhari gave the
Auditor-General of the Federation, Vanguard gathered.
The orders followed the discovery of a plethora of
unanswered audit queries which spanned a long period of
time, running into years, under previous administrations.

Era of impunity is gone

Garba Shehu stated that President Buhari was irrevocably
committed to tackling administrative and bureaucratic
corruption head-on.
He said: “The era of impunity is gone. The President is taking
the war on corruption to the civil service. He is not happy
that standard operating procedures and financial
regulations are no longer being observed as they should.

“President Buhari will ensure that public officials and civil
servants in the service of the Federal Government pay a
heavy price from now on for violating financial regulations
or disregarding audit queries.”
He added that the President was determined to put an end
to the present situation in which, rather than respond to
legitimate audit queries, violators of financial regulations in
the Federal. Government resort to threatening, bribing or
mounting other forms of social pressures on auditors.
“On his watch, President Buhari wants to see firm action
against those who violate extant financial regulations, not
the prevarications and shenanigans that went on in the past
in the form of endless probes and public inquiries,”
the
Presidential spokesman said.
Probe Siemens, Halliburton, other scandals, Igbo leaders
urge Buhari
This came as Igbo leaders on the plank of Igbo Leaders of
Thought, ILT, led by Professor Ben Nwabueze (SAN) urged
President Buhari to extend his probe of past administrations
to 1999.
However, the call to extend the probe beyond the Dr
Goodluck Jonathan’s administration was opposed by former
Minister of State for Education, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi,
who argued that late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and
Jonathan should have probed the former President
Olusegun Obasanjo regime, if they had any issues with his
government.

Commending President Buhari over his anti-graft war and
calling on all Nigerians to support the crusade in the interest
of the country, the Igbo leaders, however, said that making
the probe extensive will lead to a “change that will endure.”
In a statement by Evangelist Elliot Uko, Deputy Secretary,
ILT, founder, Igbo Youth Movement, IYM, and Leader, South-
East Democratic Coalition, SEDC, the Igbo leaders said: ‘’The
promise of change to the ugly manner things have been
done in our country for decades, inspires hope among the
citizenry.
“Talk about probe, prosecution and the eventual return of
looted funds to the coffers of government is a wonderful,
exciting and a most welcome idea.
“President Buhari’s corrupt-free image goes a long way here
to inspire hope and confidence that this exercise will help
send the necessary signal to public officials, that the era of
mindless looting and siphoning of public funds is over.
“We support the probe, prosecution of looters and return of
all stolen common wealth of Nigerians over the years. We
also ask our countrymen to support this needful and timely
exercise.

“But we have two worries:
-Firstly, we plead that the exercise
be totally free of political vendetta as that would taint the
credibility of the whole exercise.
-Secondly, we wonder why
the exercise would be restricted only to the immediate past
regime. Does that mean that the notorious Siemens and
Halliburton bribery scandals have been rested forever?
“Are we saying that the glaring corrupt cases of 1999-2007
are closed cases? Is it morally right to target only the last
regime while exonerating the 1999-2007 sleaze-infested
regime? Will the deliberate isolation of the last regime alone
for probe not give the impression of a political vendetta?
Why is it so compelling to look away and leave out the
1999-2007 era?
“We conclude by pleading with our countrymen to support
the probe because corruption remains one of the four great
problems facing our country. Others are ethnicity and
nepotism, religious bigotry and the mother of all problems:
unjust political structure.
“It is important we thoughtfully appraise the impact of
singling out only one regime for probe and prosecution
while giving others a clean bill of health.
“The exercise must not be seen as political and divisive, as
the essence and noble goal will be lost. If the change we
profess is real, then false starts must be avoided.’’

Buhari has no business probing Obasanjo’s regime
—Gbagi

Opposing the extension of the probe to Obasanjo’s
administration, Gbagi said: “Whatever was done in 1999,
there was a president before this president. It was the duty
of Jonathan to have probed the government that he took
over from. Buhari has no business going to a government
which is not back-to-back with him. The Jonathan
administration is back-to-back with him.
“Whatever negativity there was with regards to the
Jonathan’s government will have effect on the Buhari
government. Buhari cannot be going to the 1999 regime.
What concerns him by law and every fact of life is the
Jonathan’s government.”
.

2face reveals his best Nigerian artist

Innocent Ujah Idibia known as 2face has revealed his best
artiste in Nigeria.The pop star and African queen crooner,
who is regarded as a legend in the industry took to his
Twitter handle to announce the artiste that he admired the
most in the country.
  “Wande Coal is my best Nigerian artist right now. That boy
good die, ”
 he posted on Twitter.

2Face is one of the most decorated and successful Afro pop
artists in Africa. He is also one of the most bankable artists
in Africa.
He has received one MTV Europe Music Award, one World
Music Award, five Headies Awards (Hip-hop award), four
Channel O Music Video Awards and one BET award for his
musical work, four MTV Africa Music Awards, one MOBO
award, one KORA award, and numerous additional
nominations.

Wande Coal, like most great musicians started singing in the
teenage choir at his church. He got his break in the Nigerian
entertainment industry as a dancer. He got signed to Mo’hits
records in 2006 and featured on D’banj’s Rundown/Funk you
up album on singles such as “Loke”, “tonosibe” and “why
me”.
   He released his debut album ‘Mushin to Mo’Hits which was
widely received across Nigeria, UK and the USA.
    Wande Coal has also recorded tracks with other Nigerian
artists including ikechukwu, Naeto C, Dr SID, D’Prince, Wizkid
and many more. In 2012, Wande Coal, Dr SID and D’Prince
signed on to Don Jazzy’s new Record Label Mavin Records
with the addition of Tiwa Savage from 323 entertainment
acting as the first lady of mavin records. Wande Coal left
Mavin Records in 2013. In October 2013, he released a
single called “Baby Face”.

Nigeria refineries low on Petrol production

By Clara Nwachukwu


Current data on refineries production in Nigeria indicate
that more heavy or fuel oils (low and high fuel oil/black oil)
are being produced from the four refineries than other high
demand products like premium motor spirit, PMS, otherwise
known as petrol. The revelation comes despite assurances
by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC,
which said last week that two of its refineries were working
between 60 and 80 percent of their installed capacities.

NNPC had promised that the four refineries would be re-
streamed by July end, when the turn around maintenance,
TAM, of the hitherto almost comatose refineries would have
been rounding up, thus, buoying high hopes for imminent
relief from products scarcity in the country.

Capacity utilisation
However, status of the refineries operations as at July 31,
2015, exclusively obtained by Sweetcrude, indicate that the
refineries cannot still meet the daily consumption
requirement of between 40 and 42 million litres/day for
petrol. For now, the Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC
2, is only able to produce about 39million litres of petrol, i.e.
38,906 x 1000 = 38.906 million compared with fuel oil, which
is in low demand of about 49 million litres.
This is because aside from the PHRC 2, the fluid cracking
catalytic units, FCCUs of the other refineries are still under
rehabilitation. But succour is expected from the Warri
Refining and Petrochemical Company, WRPC, once its FCCU
has been fully rehabilitated, to produce additional 30 million
plus litres, while capacity utilisation in the Kaduna Refining
and Petrochemical Company, KRPC, remains nil.
KPRC only produces automotive gas oil, AGO, also known as
diesel, and dual purpose kerosene, DPK, which can be used
as both aviation fuel/Jet-A1 and household kerosene, HHK
  Nigeria has four refineries with combined capacity of
445,000 barrels per day, bpd, comprising: PHRC 1 –
150,000bpd; PHRC 2 – 60,000bpd; KRPC – 110,000bpd; and
WRPC 125,000bpd.
But current status data put the Crude Distillation Unit,
CDU,capacity utilisation in the four refineries as, PHRC 2 re-
streamed on July 20th -60.40 percent; PHRC 1 under rehab –
nil; KPRC re-streamed July 30th – 64.4 percent; and WRPC –
62 percent.
Broken further production outputsfrom the refineries are

shown in the table above:

Explanatory notes:
-Catalytic Reforming Unit (CRU)
-Naphtha Hydro-treating Unit (NHU)
-Vapor Recovery Unit (VRU)
-Gas Processing Unit (GPU)
-NNPC pronouncements

But on July 29th the NNPC declared that “the Port Harcourt
and Warri refineries have been successfully re-streamed
after a nine-month phased rehabilitation exercise conducted
by its in-house engineers and technicians.”

The Corporation
in a statement revealed that both plants had commenced
preliminary production of petroleum products after
successful test-runs.
It added that while PHRC is ramping up its operation to
about 60 percent of its 210, 000 barrels per day name plate
capacity, while WRPC production is projected to hit 80
percent of its installed 125, 000 bpd capacity, even as the
FCCUs have not been re-streamed. The NNPC further said
the Port Harcourt Refinery is projected to boost the nation’s
local refining capacity with a product yield of 5million litres
of petrol per day while Warri Refinery would contribute 3.5
million litres of petrol to local refining capacity.
It is uncertain whether these outputs are based on actual or
projected efficiencies since the FCCUs in the two refineries
are still down and contrasts sharply with the production data
already provided.

FCC challenges
However, the NNPC spokesman, Mr. OhiAlegbe, who issued
the statement on the refineries capacity utilisation did not
speak about the type of products churned out or of FCCU
challenges, without which the refineries cannot function
effectively. But a top management source of the Pipelines
and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, the Corporation’s
marketing arm which evacuates products from the
refineries, noted that the effectiveness of the FCCU
determines the type and quantity of products produced.
He told Sweetcrude in confidence: “That the refinery is not
producing enough PMS for the market does not mean the
refinery is not working. What it simply means is that the
refinery is churning out more fuel oil, which is the residue
from crude, and which is not in high demand in Nigeria.
“What is responsible for this state is the efficiency of the
FCCU. If the FCCU is working, we will get higher yield of other
products like PMS and lesser fuel oil whether low or high,
and vice versa. So it means that the more efficient the FCCU,
the better the refinery output.”
He however noted that the efficiency of the refinery is not
static, as you will get different performance efficiency
depending on the effectiveness of the FCCU.
Refinery TAM
The turnaround maintenance for the refineries were
abandoned for decades, but since the democratic
dispensation in 1999, successive governments have tried to
overhaul the refineries to make them more efficient without
success because of their long years of abandonments, even
as fuel needs increased daily.
Later on, the TAM assumed political overtones, as
rehabilitation contracts were awarded to friends of the
government, which did not improve the status of the
refineries until the process was given up entirely in favour of
products importation. Importation meant more “jobs for
the boys” who metamorphosed into “cartels”, living large,
due tothe corruption associated with the management of the
subsidy regime, at the expense of other Nigerians that have
to queue for hours to get fuel products.
It was therefore with great expectations that at the twilight of
former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration,
Nigerians received the news that all the refineries will
undergo the required maintenance using local contractors,
to reduce costs from using the original equipment
manufacturers, OEMs.
TAM-Rehab
The NNPC has been very
evasive on the type of TAM
being carried out, or the
contractors handling the
projects. The closest
information on this was given
by the Managing Director,
KPRC, Mr. Saidu Mohammed,
who told Sweetcrude that what was happening in the
refineries was a TAM-rehabilitation, without giving further
details on the contractors handling them.
He said: “We are doing TAM (Turn Around Maintenance)-
Rehabilitation (TAM-Rehab) while the refinery is running. We
try as much as possible not to shut down the entire refinery
while this is going on.” Disclosing that the KPRC rehab will
last till March 2016, after 18 months process, Mohammed
however expressed confidence in the capacity of the local
contractors to execute the jobs.
According to him, “We are using purely Nigerian contractors.
Nigerian engineering contractors are very competent; sadly
many people don’t know that. They have the competence
and the capacity to do jobs. They can do everything on this
refinery.”
Providing insight into the rehabilitation exercise, the NNPC
in its statement said it had to adopt the phased
rehabilitation strategy after the Original Refinery Builders
(ORB) who were initially contacted for the project came up
with unfavorable terms.
“Though a decision was taken in 2011 to rehabilitate all the
refineries using the ORB of each of the refineries, we were
impelled to switch strategy after the ORBs declined
participation and nominated some partners in their stead
who came up with outrageously unfavorable terms.
“The nominated partners, as sole-bidders came up with
humongous price offers after two years of thorough and
exhaustive scope of work definition and price negotiations.
The proxies were also unwilling to provide post
rehabilitation performance guarantees.
“The phased rehabilitation strategy which entailed phased
and simultaneous rehabilitation of all the refineries using in-
house and locally available resources in line with the spirit
and letter of the Nigerian Content Law, also involved the use
of Original Equipment Manufacturer representatives to
effect major equipment overhaul and rehabilitation.”
The Corporation also claimed that the phased rehabilitation
programme which started in October 2014, after the
required funding stream was established created a 70
percent reduction in costs without giving full details. The
Corporation said that with the successful re-streaming of the
PHRC and WRPC, attention has now moved to the Kaduna
Refinery, which is billed to come on stream soon..

Nigeria refineries low on Petrol production

By Clara Nwachukwu


Current data on refineries production in Nigeria indicate
that more heavy or fuel oils (low and high fuel oil/black oil)
are being produced from the four refineries than other high
demand products like premium motor spirit, PMS, otherwise
known as petrol. The revelation comes despite assurances
by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC,
which said last week that two of its refineries were working
between 60 and 80 percent of their installed capacities.

NNPC had promised that the four refineries would be re-
streamed by July end, when the turn around maintenance,
TAM, of the hitherto almost comatose refineries would have
been rounding up, thus, buoying high hopes for imminent
relief from products scarcity in the country.

Capacity utilisation
However, status of the refineries operations as at July 31,
2015, exclusively obtained by Sweetcrude, indicate that the
refineries cannot still meet the daily consumption
requirement of between 40 and 42 million litres/day for
petrol. For now, the Port Harcourt Refining Company, PHRC
2, is only able to produce about 39million litres of petrol, i.e.
38,906 x 1000 = 38.906 million compared with fuel oil, which
is in low demand of about 49 million litres.
This is because aside from the PHRC 2, the fluid cracking
catalytic units, FCCUs of the other refineries are still under
rehabilitation. But succour is expected from the Warri
Refining and Petrochemical Company, WRPC, once its FCCU
has been fully rehabilitated, to produce additional 30 million
plus litres, while capacity utilisation in the Kaduna Refining
and Petrochemical Company, KRPC, remains nil.
KPRC only produces automotive gas oil, AGO, also known as
diesel, and dual purpose kerosene, DPK, which can be used
as both aviation fuel/Jet-A1 and household kerosene, HHK
  Nigeria has four refineries with combined capacity of
445,000 barrels per day, bpd, comprising: PHRC 1 –
150,000bpd; PHRC 2 – 60,000bpd; KRPC – 110,000bpd; and
WRPC 125,000bpd.
But current status data put the Crude Distillation Unit,
CDU,capacity utilisation in the four refineries as, PHRC 2 re-
streamed on July 20th -60.40 percent; PHRC 1 under rehab –
nil; KPRC re-streamed July 30th – 64.4 percent; and WRPC –
62 percent.
Broken further production outputsfrom the refineries are

shown in the table above:

Explanatory notes:
-Catalytic Reforming Unit (CRU)
-Naphtha Hydro-treating Unit (NHU)
-Vapor Recovery Unit (VRU)
-Gas Processing Unit (GPU)
-NNPC pronouncements

But on July 29th the NNPC declared that “the Port Harcourt
and Warri refineries have been successfully re-streamed
after a nine-month phased rehabilitation exercise conducted
by its in-house engineers and technicians.”

The Corporation
in a statement revealed that both plants had commenced
preliminary production of petroleum products after
successful test-runs.
It added that while PHRC is ramping up its operation to
about 60 percent of its 210, 000 barrels per day name plate
capacity, while WRPC production is projected to hit 80
percent of its installed 125, 000 bpd capacity, even as the
FCCUs have not been re-streamed. The NNPC further said
the Port Harcourt Refinery is projected to boost the nation’s
local refining capacity with a product yield of 5million litres
of petrol per day while Warri Refinery would contribute 3.5
million litres of petrol to local refining capacity.
It is uncertain whether these outputs are based on actual or
projected efficiencies since the FCCUs in the two refineries
are still down and contrasts sharply with the production data
already provided.

FCC challenges
However, the NNPC spokesman, Mr. OhiAlegbe, who issued
the statement on the refineries capacity utilisation did not
speak about the type of products churned out or of FCCU
challenges, without which the refineries cannot function
effectively. But a top management source of the Pipelines
and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, the Corporation’s
marketing arm which evacuates products from the
refineries, noted that the effectiveness of the FCCU
determines the type and quantity of products produced.
He told Sweetcrude in confidence: “That the refinery is not
producing enough PMS for the market does not mean the
refinery is not working. What it simply means is that the
refinery is churning out more fuel oil, which is the residue
from crude, and which is not in high demand in Nigeria.
“What is responsible for this state is the efficiency of the
FCCU. If the FCCU is working, we will get higher yield of other
products like PMS and lesser fuel oil whether low or high,
and vice versa. So it means that the more efficient the FCCU,
the better the refinery output.”
He however noted that the efficiency of the refinery is not
static, as you will get different performance efficiency
depending on the effectiveness of the FCCU.
Refinery TAM
The turnaround maintenance for the refineries were
abandoned for decades, but since the democratic
dispensation in 1999, successive governments have tried to
overhaul the refineries to make them more efficient without
success because of their long years of abandonments, even
as fuel needs increased daily.
Later on, the TAM assumed political overtones, as
rehabilitation contracts were awarded to friends of the
government, which did not improve the status of the
refineries until the process was given up entirely in favour of
products importation. Importation meant more “jobs for
the boys” who metamorphosed into “cartels”, living large,
due tothe corruption associated with the management of the
subsidy regime, at the expense of other Nigerians that have
to queue for hours to get fuel products.
It was therefore with great expectations that at the twilight of
former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration,
Nigerians received the news that all the refineries will
undergo the required maintenance using local contractors,
to reduce costs from using the original equipment
manufacturers, OEMs.
TAM-Rehab
The NNPC has been very
evasive on the type of TAM
being carried out, or the
contractors handling the
projects. The closest
information on this was given
by the Managing Director,
KPRC, Mr. Saidu Mohammed,
who told Sweetcrude that what was happening in the
refineries was a TAM-rehabilitation, without giving further
details on the contractors handling them.
He said: “We are doing TAM (Turn Around Maintenance)-
Rehabilitation (TAM-Rehab) while the refinery is running. We
try as much as possible not to shut down the entire refinery
while this is going on.” Disclosing that the KPRC rehab will
last till March 2016, after 18 months process, Mohammed
however expressed confidence in the capacity of the local
contractors to execute the jobs.
According to him, “We are using purely Nigerian contractors.
Nigerian engineering contractors are very competent; sadly
many people don’t know that. They have the competence
and the capacity to do jobs. They can do everything on this
refinery.”
Providing insight into the rehabilitation exercise, the NNPC
in its statement said it had to adopt the phased
rehabilitation strategy after the Original Refinery Builders
(ORB) who were initially contacted for the project came up
with unfavorable terms.
“Though a decision was taken in 2011 to rehabilitate all the
refineries using the ORB of each of the refineries, we were
impelled to switch strategy after the ORBs declined
participation and nominated some partners in their stead
who came up with outrageously unfavorable terms.
“The nominated partners, as sole-bidders came up with
humongous price offers after two years of thorough and
exhaustive scope of work definition and price negotiations.
The proxies were also unwilling to provide post
rehabilitation performance guarantees.
“The phased rehabilitation strategy which entailed phased
and simultaneous rehabilitation of all the refineries using in-
house and locally available resources in line with the spirit
and letter of the Nigerian Content Law, also involved the use
of Original Equipment Manufacturer representatives to
effect major equipment overhaul and rehabilitation.”
The Corporation also claimed that the phased rehabilitation
programme which started in October 2014, after the
required funding stream was established created a 70
percent reduction in costs without giving full details. The
Corporation said that with the successful re-streaming of the
PHRC and WRPC, attention has now moved to the Kaduna
Refinery, which is billed to come on stream soon..