Power supply drops to 2,500MW after militant attacks

The twin attacks, last week, on Chevron’s oil and gas facilities in the Escravos area of Delta State has resulted in a drop in power generation from about 3,600 megawatts (MW) to 2,500MW, translating to a loss of 900MW, it has been gathered.

The attacks, which also led to a slump in the country’s crude oil production to a 20-year low, disrupted Chevron’s gas supply to the domestic market, having stopped the delivery of natural gas to the Escravos Gas Plant (EGP), which processes gas for power generation and other end users.

it was gathered that this has wiped off a substantial part of an estimated two billion cubic feet of gas supplied daily to the domestic market for power generation and industrial uses.

Chevron confirmed that the first attack of last Wednesday night on its valve platform, affected the Okan offshore production platform, thus leading to the shutdown of the facility.

On Thursday night, a pipeline transporting crude oil to Warri and Kaduna refineries and a 16-inch gas line, owned by the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), the gas transporting arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), were blown up.

A Chevron source said yesterday that the attacks had hampered the company’s ability to evacuate gas from oil fields into the Escravos Gas Plant for processing.

“Gas from all the oil fields in the entire Escravos area is sent to the gas plant for processing. The plant currently process between 420 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) of gas and 590mmscf/d. The attacks have disrupted the evacuation of gas into the facility.

“As it is now, domestic gas from Delta State can only come from Utorogu, Ughelli, and Sapele plants for power generation. The ones at Utorogu and Ughelli belong to Shell,” he explained.

Chevron’s Escravos Gas Plant provides gas feedstock to power plants across the country through the Escravos-Lagos pipeline.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, also said yesterday that power generation had dropped to 2,500MW due to the attacks on the Chevron facilities.

According to him, power generation had averaged 3,600MW before the Wednesdayand Thursday attacks.

The drop to 3,600MW from about 5,000MW was blamed on the attack on the Forcados terminal pipeline last February. Repairs to that pipeline will be concluded next month, Fashola said.

He decried the spate of attacks on oil installations and their impact on the domestic economy.

“Which country has instances of vandalism on its oil installations like Nigeria? This is economic sabotage, but we will have to evolve a new strategy to deal with this problem. We shall attack it head on,” he said.

However, daily operational reports obtained from the Nigerian electricity system operator showed that generation as at 6 am yesterday was 2,474.10MW, down from the peak generation of 2,968.9MW recorded on Saturday.

The lowest generation on Saturday, according to the operational report, was 2,160.3MW.

The attacks have also pushed Nigeria’s crude oil production to the lowest in 20 years, as Chevron also shut down about 90,000 barrels a day of output following the impact on a joint-venture offshore platform that serves as a gathering point for production from several fields.

Even before that strike on Wednesday night, Nigerian oil production had fallen below 1.7 million barrels a day for the first time since 1994, according to data compiled byBloomberg.

The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, had confirmed that Nigeria would be producing 2.3 million barrels per day, up from 2.18 million bpd, but for the February attack on the Forcados pipeline.

Nigeria’s crude oil production had peaked at 2.6 million bpd in January 2013 before it was plagued by renewed militancy, oil theft and vandalism.

The significant drop in power generation, notwithstanding, electricity distribution companies (Discos) in the country are poised for a showdown with their historic debtors with the possibility of mass disconnections in the days ahead.

The Discos for months have been hamstrung by severe liquidity constraints arising from unpaid utility bills by residential, commercial, industrial and government establishments across the three tiers of government.

Military and security agencies are also guilty of huge indebtedness to the distribution companies.

The Executive Director, Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), the umbrella body of the 11 Discos, Mr. Sunday Oduntan, disclosed at the weekend that at the end of April, the total indebtedness of MDAs, military and security agencies inclusive, stood at approximately N93 billion.

The figure comprises N39.1 billion pre-privatisation of the electricity assets and N39.5billion post-privatisation, as well as an outstanding interest of N15 billion, which the Bulk Trader charges Discos for late payment of their energy bills arising from the non-settlement of utility bills.

A breakdown of this huge sum is as follows: Abuja DISCO – N18.6 billion; Eko DISCO – N8.6 billion; Kaduna – N8.2 billion; Enugu – N7.2 billion; Ibadan – N6.8 billion; Ikeja – N5.9 billion; Port Harcourt – N6.8 billion; Benin – N5.8 billion; Jos-N6.5 billion; Yola – N2.4 billion; and Kano – N1.2 billion.

Last October, the Discos together with the National Electricity Regulatory Agency (NERC), Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trader (NBET), and electricity generating firms met with Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, where a modality for the settlement of outstanding receivables from the government agencies was worked out.

Under the agreement, the federal government was to work on deducting the outstanding receivables for utility bills of approximately N71.6 billion from source.

Based on this agreement, NERC deducted the outstanding receivables of the government from the collection loss component of the sculpted tariff, resulting in the revenue shortfall, which the entire industry value chain is suffering from and has been exacerbated by the government not honouring its obligations to the electricity industry.

Oduntan noted that having been cash-strapped and further squeezed of working capital by the resistance that has greeted the new electricity tariff structure, the distribution companies’ predicament has been made more precarious by the refusal by these historic debtors, particularly the MDAs to pay for electricity consumed.

This, according to him, informed the decision of the Discos to publish through advertisements, the schedule of chronic debtors including the ultimatum within which they should pay up or face imminent mass disconnections.

Sources close to the Discos said they are determined to carry out the threat unless the issue is resolved by the authorities.

Some of the Discos that have started publishing the names of their historic debtors include Benin Disco.

Oduntan said ANED was still working with the Office of the Vice-President to resolve the issue in the interest of all stakeholders.

He disclosed that the Office of the Vice-President had come up with a new template which all Discos are expected to adopt and would state in clear terms what each ministry, department and agency owes to guide the vice-president’s office in the resolution of the debt crisis.

By last Friday, all the Discos had submitted their claims using the new template.

Oduntan said that although his association believes in the ability of the vice-president’s office to resolve this long drawn debt crisis, his members are very serious about their threat to embark on mass disconnections in the days ahead if the debtors refuse to honour their obligations.

source;today news

NNPC pays N69bn to Federation Account in March – Report

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has paid the sum of N69.544 billion into the Federation Account in March.

This was contained in the corporation’s monthly financial report for March released in Abuja.

It said the amount had brought the total amount paid to the Federation Account for Domestic Crude Oil and Gas and other receipts from April 2015 to March 2016 to N1.118 trillion.

It added that NNPC also recorded N107.826 billion revenue in the month of March against N104.804 in February.

It said the revenue rose marginally by 2.88 per cent, adding that the expenses of the corporation dipped by 12.92 per cent to N112.368 billion from N129, 034 billion recorded in previous month.

According to the report, the corporation also made a loss of N18.89 billion in the month under review.

It said the loss was an improvement from a deficit of N24.23 billion recorded in February.

A breakdown of the financial performance of its subsidiaries showed that the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, Integrated Data Services Limited and National Engineering and Technical Company Limited posted losses of N9.874 billion, N469 million and N69 million respectively. It reported that the Nigerian Gas Company recorded a profit of N5.155 billion.

“Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri refining companies recorded losses of N1.824 billion, N1.971 billion and N845 million, respectively, while the PPMC recorded a deficit of N923 million,” it added.

The report said that the deficit recorded by the NPDC in February and March 2016 were due to production shut-in occasioned by vandalism of Forcados Export Line.

This, it said, resulted to the loss of its entire revenue from crude oil sales of about N20 billion.

The report also put the combined value of output by the three refineries at import parity price in March 2016 at N22.93 billion, while the associated Crude plus freight cost was N20.02 billion.

It said this gave negative margin of N3.95 billion after considering overhead of N6.87 billion.

The report also said a total of N85.66 billion was collected as sales revenue from white products sold by PPMC in the month of March 2016 compared with N85.23 billion collected in the previous month.

It said: “Total revenues generated from the sales of white products for the period April 2015 to March 2016 stands at N775.90 billion where PMS contributed about 88.85 per cent of the revenues collected with a value of N689.41 billion.”

The NNPC recorded total export proceeds of $170.12 million in the month under review with crude oil export accounting for $98.31 million, while gas export accounted for $$71.81 million.

On dollar payments to Joint Venture Cash Call, it said total export proceeds of $141.87 million were recorded in March, 2016 consisting of crude oil receipt of $88.36 million.

It added that Liquefied Petroleum Gas and Escravos Gas to Liquid recorded proceed of $1.52 million and Miscellaneous receipts amounting to $51.99 million.

It said: “The drastic slump in total export receipt is largely due to shut in of about 300,000 barrel of oil per day (bopd) at Forcados Terminal following the force majeure declared by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) on 15th February, 2016.

“Hence, all un-lifted February and March cargoes were deferred until the repair is completed.”

Tiwa Savage Returns To Social Media, Thanks Fans For Praying For Her & Teebill

Tiwa savage our naija version of beyonce return to social media after a brief holiday from the backlash of marital brouhaha, this time she came to thank and appreciate her fans for their prayers and supports. well i wish them well, marriage is not a bed of roses, sometimes there are plenty thorns, but we have to endure and look for a way to dialogue. what god have joined together, let no man put asunder o, don baba and tuface pls take note and allow teebiiz enjoy his honeypot jare.

Nigerians Protest In Germany Over Fulani Herdsmen Attack In Enugu

Nigerians in Germany took to the streets over the weekend -to protest against the unlawful massacre of innocent civilians in Nimbo, Uzo-Uwani local government area of Enugu State by Fulani herdsmen. The Nigerian community in Germany also sympathized with the people of Enugu State of the great loss -as they urged the government to do something to prevent further attacks from the herdsmen.

Nigeria goes from powerhouse to pariah as 'hurricane' hits economy CNBC

Pop quiz: Which oil rich economy hammered by the global slump in crude is in the throes of a full-fledged economic crisis — complete with rationing, civil strife and runaway inflation stoked by a weak currency?

If you guessed Venezuela, you'd be wrong. Although the South American country teeters on the edge of collapse and fits the above scenario, those same circumstances actually apply to Nigeria. Once a powerhouse of West Africa's economy, the effects of slumping oil prices have converged with mounting security concerns and widespread energy shortages.

The OPEC country, which produces more than 2 million barrels of oil per day, is resorting to rationing crude: In order to fill their tanks, citizens must endure long lines overseen by authorities.

Nigeria "is caught in a macro hurricane," famed short seller James Chanos told the annual Sohn Investment Conference last week. With currency reserves running low, the country could have "a big problem" within a few years, he said. Calling the country "a borderline failed state," Chanos added that he was shorting South African assets, in part because of their exposure to Nigeria.

In the year that Nigerians elected a new president, oil prices collapsed by at least 30 percent. This week, Nigeria's stock market staged a relief rally after the closely watched MSCI Frontier Markets Index decided to keep the country in the benchmark, after warning last month that Nigeria was at risk of being booted from the index.

Still, the outlook for Africa's largest economy remains grim. The extremist group Boko Haram has created significant political and security challenges for the embattled government of Muhammadu Buhari, and raise risks that could hit oil production.

"Nigeria is in trouble," Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins, told CNBC in an interview. Amid double-digit inflation, Nigeria's foreign reserves are dwindling as the government races to shore up a swooning currency, the naira.

Using a purchasing power parity metric, Hanke estimates that the country's prices are surging by a whopping 46 percent, far above the official rate of between 11 and 13 percent.

Weak growth — Nigeria's economy expanded by less than 3 percent last year — has done little to curb soaring food prices, which have risen every month since December 2015.

Meanwhile, oil prices remain firmly under $50 per barrel, heightening the risk of what consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers noted in a 2015 report could become a "security shock," as weak growth feeds political instability. Currently, the country's 2016 budget assumes an oil price of $38 per barrel.

Razia Khan, chief economist for Africa at Standard Chartered, expects crude will rise later in the year, but growth is likely to remain muted. Khan noted that the International Monetary Fund "expects growth to decline even further in 2016, to 2.3 percent."

Oil gives Nigeria around 95 percent of its foreign earnings. Should crude remain at current levels, PwC expects growth to contract and oil revenues to dwindle to $20 billion. Meanwhile, the currency has already overshot PwC's worst-case forecast for this year, blowing past 320 to the U.S. dollar recently.

"The currency is junk and the government is incompetent and corrupt," said Johns Hopkins' Hanke. "The only sure-fire way to solve all these problems is for Nigeria to officially replace its junk currency."

Nigeria still has limited access to capital markets, and a $6 billion currency swap agreement with China may help contain the naira's losses. Yet with oil still hovering near historic lows, analysts are skeptical Nigeria will see a turnaround anytime soon.

"Following a tumultuous year for the naira in 2015 we believe the any recovery in the currency will have to be supported by a marked improvement in the crude oil price," Standard Chartered's Khan said, adding that oil would need to rise to near $55 to offset the effects of an "oversupplied market."

— CNBC's Dawn Giel contributed to this article.

Handless seven-year-old girl wins US handwriting contest

A seven-year-old student born without hands has won a US national handwriting contest.

Anaya Ellick from Chesapeake, Virginia, does not use prosthetics. To write, she stands to get the proper angle, holding a pencil between her arms.

Her principal, Tracy Cox from Greenbrier Christian Academy, describes her as an "inspiration".

"She does not let anything get in the way of doing what she has set out to do," says Ms Cox.

"She is a hard worker and has some of the best handwriting in her class."

The girl reportedly beat 50 other competitors to get the special-needs category prize at the National Handwriting Contest.

This category rewards students with an intellectual, physical, or developmental disability.

Competition director Kathleen Wright told ABC News that her "writing sample was comparable to someone who had hands".

This is what her winning entry looked like:

Sponsors of the contest Zaner-Bloser said they planned to award each student $1,000 (£690).

They tweeted a picture of the student, happily holding her trophy.

Having no hands was also not an obstacle to 30-year-old pilot Jessica Cox.

In 2013, we reported on her inspirational example. Also born without hands, she has been able to drive a car, fly a plane and play piano - all with her feet.

Thieves Caught And Paraded Unclad In Anambra State

Three theifs where caught today by security officials stealing a vehicle Battery in Anambra state

According to an Eye withness, He said this Thiefs has been terrorising residents of Odume Layout Obasi in Anambra State, They where specialized on stealing batteries from parked vehicles till they where eventually caught in action by security men of the street who made them to walk around the street Unclad..

I won’t apologize, Tompolo dares N-Delta Avengers

WARRI- FORMER militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, Sunday, said he had no apology to offer to the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, a new militant group, which, last Tuesday, issued him a three-day ultimatum to act contrite for allegedly denunciation of the group and its violent activities. The Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, apex Ijaw youth organization, in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Eric Omare, threw its weight behind Tompolo. It maintained that the militant group should not force him to support their destructive mission, just as the Centre for the Peace and Environmental Justice, CEPEJ, and Ijaw Peoples Development Initiative, IPDI, condemned the resort to violence by Niger Delta Avengers.

However, Itsekiri and Ijaw leaders, Chief Ayiri Emami and Johnny Michael, who spoke to our reporter on phone, fingered an ex-militant leader for the bombings, saying the militant group was acting his script. Tompolo, who also spoke exclusively to Vanguard through his Media Adviser and Consultant, Mr. Paul Bebenimibo: “He (Tompolo) will not apologize to them (Niger Delta Avengers). “If not for his present issues with the Federal Government, he (Tompolo) would have gone after them and exposed them because they seem to make things difficult for him, as the government is pointing fingers at him, but he cannot do anything in his present situation,” Bebenimibo said. He mentioned two prominent Itsekiri and Ijaw activists, both stalwarts of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Delta state, who he said, “are only looking for attention from the government, so they use the happenings to seek relevance from the government, they may be behind these guys.” The militant group in a statement by its spokesperson, Col. Mudoch Agbinibo, May 3, took umbrage at Tompolo’s green light to servicing companies to go about their normal operations, particularly repair of the Forcados Terminal 48-inch pipeline. It declared: “We hereby give you a three- day ultimatum to apologize to Niger Delta Avengers in the same national dailies as anything other than that will mean that we shall bring the war to your doorstep by blowing up all oil installations within your backyard (Gbaramatu Kingdom).” The group alleged that the former General Officer Commanding, GOC, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, had “taken side with the Federal government to fight the Niger Delta people.” Two days after the ultimatum, the militant group on Thursday, May 5, bombed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC crude and gas lines and Well D25 in Abiteye, a key gas well operated by Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL. Why we struck In a statement after the twin attacks, its spokesperson, Col Agbinibo asserted: “To keep to our promise, the three (3) days ultimatum given to Chief Government Ekpemupolo has elapsed and he fail to apologize to the Niger Delta Avengers, at 2200hours, Thursday, May 5, 2016, our strike team 4 hit the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) crude and gas lines.” “The Crude line feeds the Warri and Kaduna refineries respectively, while the gas line feeds the Lagos and Abuja electricity power supply. With this development, the Warri and Kaduna refineries will be sh”ut down and all cities that depend on the gas line for power will all be in total darkness like the creeks of the Niger Delta. “In same vein, the Niger Delta Avengers strike team 7 at same time 2200hours, Thursday, May 5, 2016, blew up Well D25 in Abiteye. A major gas well belonging to Chevron and also blow up major pipe lines to effectively put the Abiteye, Alero, Dibi, Otunana and Makaraba flow stations that feed the Chevron tank farm out of operation. As at now, Chevron operation in the Niger Delta is zero,” he said. The militant group boasted: “Located some 100meters away from the blasted Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipeline is a military houseboat stationed there to protect the oil pipelines. But, we want you public to know that despite the heavy present of military operatives our activities can’t be stop and it just waste of fund and time to let the Nigeria military protect oil installations.” Tompolo did the right thing- IYC IYC spokesperson, Mr. Eric Omare, however, told Vanguard: “The Ijaw Youth Council does not see the justification in the Niger Delta Avengers embarking on destruction of oil facilities because Tompolo denounced the group. I think Tompolo did the proper thing by coming out to inform the entire world that he was not part of the Niger Delta Avengers when there were insinuations to the effect that he was behind them.” “As with other cases of attack on oil facilities, the Niger Delta environment and people are the ultimate victim and would suffer from these latest attacks. The IYC believe that irrespective of the grievances, there are better ways of expressing them rather than contributing to the further destruction of the already massively degraded Niger Delta environment. On the fresh directive by President Muhammadu Buhari to security agencies to crush the militants, he asserted” While the IYC do not support the attacks on oil facilities, we hasten to add that it should not be used as a justification to attack innocent Niger Delta communities. “ He added: “The security agencies should go after the real culprits and not innocent communities and people in the Niger Delta region. From our experience, the security personnel in a bid to impress their superiors and justify the huge amount of money budgeted for the purpose always attack innocent communities and people.” “This must not be allowed to happen this time around. We would also advise the federal government to be prompt in directing security agencies to deal with insurgent groups all over the country, including the Fulani herdsmen, who have been killing innocent Nigerians just like they have just directed in respect of the Niger Delta Avengers,” Omare added. You’re causing more harm than good – CEPEJ National Coordinator of CEPEJ, Comrade Sheriff Mulade, in a statement, condemning the bombings by Niger Delta Avengers, said: “The deadly attacks have cut oil and gas production and caused attendant devastation of the environment.” It asked the militants to “lay down their arms as their activities were antithetical to the genuine agitation of the people and the overall development of the oil rich region.” The nongovernmental organization described those involved in the bombings as “unpatriotic elements from the region” and urged security operatives “to fish out and prosecute them to serve as deterrent to others.” CEPEJ stated: “The era of using arms struggle to demand for a fair deal for the region was over; dialogue and reaching out to other people across the political divides are the only viable means to resolve all conflicts. Bombings will not do the region any good rather it will only bring adverse effects to it.” The group reminded the militants of the 2009 military confrontation, which led to the destruction of some Ijaw communities, noting, “up till now, some of the villages are yet to be rebuilt and adequate compensation paid to the victims.” It, therefore, advised them to have a rethink, “as Ijaw people do not want to suffer the same fate again.” The Center expressed explicit confidence in the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to meet the yearnings of the Niger Delta people and pointed to the implementation of UNEP REPORT on Ogoni Land, and expressed the belief that the government would extend the remediation plan to other parts of the region. It called on the people of the region to throw their weights behind his government as he is poised to develop the region and give the people a sense of belonging. Stop bombing oil installations- IPDI Speaking through its national president, Comrade Austin Ozobo, the IPDI, yesterday, warned the Niger Delta Avengers to avoid oil installations to avoid further jeopardy to the nation’s economy. Faulting the recent attacks on major oil pipelines in the country, he warned: “Those threatening former agitator, High Chief Government Ekpemupolo and the nation’s economy should desist from it and that in no account for oil facilities be bombed.” He advised those complaining of marginalization of Niger Delta, particularly the Niger Delta and lay down their arms. His words: “Threatening Tompolo and bombing oil facilities and Tompolo is not a good step to begin a struggle in Niger Delta region and that NDA should cease further vandalization of oil installations in the region.” Popular Ijaw group, the Ijaw People’s Development Initiative,IPDI, has condemned attack on Chevron and NNPC oil pipelines at Abiteye and Makaraba in Delta State by Niger Delta Avengers NDA, warning that they should steer clear oil facilities in the nation as to avoid further jeopardy in the nation’s economy. N-Delta Avengers is non-existent – Ayiri Itsekiri leader and activist, Chief Ayiri Emami, however, took a different position. While he condemned the attacks by the so-called Niger-Delta Avengers, which he said does not exist, he said: “The attacks are just to create a platform for negotiation with President Muhammadu Buhari.” He asserted, “I know that Mr. President is intelligent enough not to fall for just gimmick. Some of us volunteered to cooperate with the security agencies free of charge to fish out the perpetrators of these bombings, but the Delta state government did not see reason with us. They held a state security meeting asking why security agencies are working with us.” “I want to say that it is the duty of the state government to fish out the perpetrators, people cannot be here in Delta state and say that they do not know those responsible. They know the person directing his boys to do and should bring them out. “They should not be saying that it is the All Progressives Congress, APC, people in the state that is causing it, it has nothing to do with APC,” he added. Stop jeopardizing Gbaramatu indigenes – Michael Ijaw leader, Chief Michael Johnny, who spoke in a similar vein, asserted: “There is nothing strange or new in what is happening. It is what we are already used to, but my worry is that these people should stop endangering the life of Gbaramatu people.” “The people causing this havoc are known, the security agencies should not compromise, they should have good intelligence information to identify them and bring them to book. I also want to say that they should stop calling the name of APC in this matter, APC is a progressive party, anybody who wants to join the party should do so, but they should stop blackmailing us,” he said. He said that many Gbaramatu leaders know those carrying out the bombings, but because of fear, they would not be able to speak out and urged the security agencies to do their work. Also reacting to the attacks, the Foundation for Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Crusade, FHRACC, said: “The ongoing oil war being perpetrated by some groups in the creeks of Niger Delta is not the best option for the region.” The National President, Alaowei Cleric, said in a statement” “We have passed the stage of destroying oil facilities to press home our demands especially now that the main actors of the emancipation struggle have accepted Presidential Amnesty. If anyone is not satisfied with the activities of the present government, he should register his grouse within the ambit of the law.” “ Destroying pipelines to draw government’s attention is not only cruel and barbaric, but it also lack intellectual reasoning. For such dastardly act to be carried out contemporaneously with the Amnesty Programme, it means the actors of these illegal acts did not know what is good for the region,” he asserted. According to him: “We are not unaware that those appointed to manage the Amnesty Programme have hijacked the programme, we still cannot find any reason for someone to indulge in such nefarious acts, using the unchecked corruption that has embroiled the programme as a bait to ferment mayhem on the nation economy.” “Those who have issues to contend with in the management of the Presidential Amnesty Programme should do so in accordance with the dictate of the law,” the group added. On President Buhari government’s inimical administrative policies against the Niger Delta region, he said: “We appeal to all aggrieved youth in the region to explore lawful means to prosecute their agenda. We know that the present government’s decision to scrap the Maritime University at Okerenkoko in Gbaramatu Kingdom in Delta State is provocative but we should tackle the government through intellectual militancy and not these crude methods.” “President Buhari should also have a rethink of his government’s decision to cancel the Maritime University at Okerenkoko in Gbaramatu Kingdom. That is a clear invitation to anarchy. What is happening in the region is a reflection of the embittered minds of the people whose region produced the bulk of wealth to the nation, but being treated below the belt by the government of the day. “As for those who are appointing accusing fingers at their perceived enemies, they should desist from such act. For the sake of our peaceful coexistence in the region, it is not the best to shift blame to the wrong persons, while the culprits are freely roaming around to continue their destructions. It will not do us any good if Niger Deltans engage each other in a fiasco instead of forming a common front to tackle our enemies,” Cleric said.

source: vanguard newspeper

Satellites to See Mercury Enter Spotlight on May 9

The 2016 Mercury transit (depicted conceptually here) will occur between about 7:12 a.m. and 2:42 p.m. EDT on May 9.

Credits: NASA

Although Mercury zooms around the sun every 88 days, Earth, the sun and Mercury rarely align. And because Mercury orbits in a plane that is tilted from Earth’s orbit, it usually moves above or below our line of sight to the sun. As a result, Mercury transits occur only about 13 times a century.

Transits provide a great opportunity to study the way planets and stars move in space – information that has been used throughout the ages to better understand the solar system and which still helps scientists today calibrate their instruments. Three of NASA's solar telescopes will watch the transit for just that reason.

The May 9 Mercury transit will occur between about 7:12 a.m. and 2:42 p.m. EDT. Mercury is too small to see without magnification, but it can be seen with a telescope or binoculars. These must be outfitted with a solar filter as you can't safely look at the sun directly.

“Astronomers get excited when any two things come close to each other in the heavens,” said Louis Mayo, program manager at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “This is a big deal for us.”

Mercury transits have been key to helping astronomers throughout history: In 1631, astronomers first observed a Mercury transit. Those observations allowed astronomers to measure the apparent size of Mercury’s disk, as well as help them estimate the distance from Earth to the sun.

“Back in 1631, astronomers were only doing visual observations on very small telescopes by today’s standards,” said Mayo.

Since then, technological advancements have allowed us to study the sun and planetary transits in greater detail. In return, transits allow us to test our spacecraft and instruments.

Scientists for the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, or SOHO (jointly operated by NASA and ESA, the European Space Agency), and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, will work in tandem to study the May 9 transit. The Hinode solar mission will also observe the event. Hinode is a collaboration between the space agencies of Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe led by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

SOHO launched in December 1995 with 12 instruments to study the sun from the deep solar core all the way out to the sun's effects on the rest of the solar system. Two of these instruments — the Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Telescope and the Michelson Doppler Imager — will be brought back into full operation to take measurements during the transit after five years of quiescence.

For one thing, the SOHO will measure the sun’s rotation axis using images captured by the spacecraft.

“Instruments on board SDO and SOHO use different spectral lines, different wavelengths and they have slightly different optical properties to study solar oscillations,” said SOHO Project Scientist Joseph Gurman. “Transit measurements will help us better determine the solar rotation axis.”

Such data is another piece of a long line of observations, which together help us understand how the sun changes over hours, days, years and decades.

“It used to be hard to observe transits,” Gurman said. “If you were in a place that had bad weather, for example, you missed your chance and had to wait for the next one. These instruments help us make our observations, despite any earthly obstacles.”

SDO will be able to use the transit to help with instrument alignment. Because scientists know so precisely where Mercury should be in relationship to the sun, they can use it as a marker to fine tune exactly how their instruments should be pointed.

The transit can also be used to help calibrate space instruments. The utter darkness of the planet provides an opportunity to study effects on the observations of stray light within the instrument. The backside of Mercury should appear black as it moves across the face of the sun. But because instruments scatter some light, Mercury will look slightly illuminated.

“It’s like getting a cataract — you see stars or halos around bright lights as though you are looking through a misty windshield,” said SDO Project Scientist Dean Pesnell. “We have the same problem with our instruments.”

Scientists run software on the images to try and mitigate the effect and check whether it can remove all of the scattered light.

For those of us down on the ground, it is worth trying to find a local astronomy club with a solar telescope to see if you can witness this rare event.  Alternatively, a near-live feed of SDO images will be available at www.nasa.gov/transit.

good news: MTN, 12 Telcos Faces N5m Fine Over Unsolicited SMS, Calls

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is set to address complaints of subscribers who have been inundated with unsolicited telemarketing, short message service (SMS) and voice calls by mobile network operators with a warning that it shall fine any operator found culpable with a fine N5 million and N500,000 daily as long as the contravention persists.
LEADERSHIP Sunday learnt that the Commission in a ‘New Direction,’ issued to 13 mobile operators by the legal and regulatory department of NCC, plans to sanction any network that refuses to implement it on or before June 30, 2016, the shortcode of 2442 for subscribers to opt-in to the “Do Not Disturb” (DND) database restricting unsolicited marketing messages.
NCC in a letter dated April 19, 2016 warned MTN, Airtel, Globacom, Etisalat, Smile, Natcoms (Ntel), Visafone, Starcomms, Multilinks, Gamjitel, Danjay Telecoms, Gicell Wireless Ltd and Megatech Engineering Ltd that they should implement the DND restricting telemarketing their MSISDNs including the use of web-based solutions as opt-out measures.
The regulator said it shall be mandatory for mobile operators to create sufficient awareness to its subscribers on the existence of the DND on their networks; that they shall also comply with the quarterly and reporting template prescribed by the NCC to ensure feedback and compliance.
NCC warned operators that generated SMS shall comply with the 8am to 8pm stipulation (12 hour period) for sending SMS to subscribers and that the opt-in process shall be free. It said operated generated SMS is excluded from the DND list in as much as such messages are in conformity with NCC’s directive on timing and regularity and do not constitute a nuisance to subscribers and the subscribers shall have right to partial or full DND implementation.
NCC said the ‘New Direction’ issued pursuant to Section 53 of the Nigerian Communications Act follows the inundation of complaints by subscribers to its office about menace of unsolicited text messages and voice calls from mobile operators which have impacted negatively on consumer quality service in the telecom industry.
NCC said it was aware through its monitoring activities that some operators have set up DND facility on their network but the awareness by subscribers of the facility is very minimal and unsatisfactory. The menace of unsolicited texts and calls led NCC a fortnight ago to regulate the Value Added Services (VAS) market with the issuance of draft regulation.
Meanwhile, Wireless Application Service Providers of Nigeria Ltd (WASPAN) said every month all operators shall broadcast how to get on the DND portal to their subscribers. At the end of each quarter, subscribers will be required to renew their DND status by sending ‘STOP’ to short codes on the network.

God you are wonderful, your word is a commanding law, pic where two bodies of water never mix with each other

The Mississippi River meets the Gulf of Mexico. The two bodies of water never mix with each other; allowing the Gulf of Mexico to retain its clear, blue color

SHELL EVACUATES STAFF FROM ITS MAJOR PRODUCTION FACILITIES FOLLOWING ATTACK BY ’NIGER DELTA AVENGERS’

The menace of Niger Delta Avengers, the newest militant group in the oil-rich region, has forced Royal Dutch Shell to evacuate most of
its staff from a production facility. The evacuation was carried out by three helicopters on Saturday. The exercise will continue on Sunday in the firm’s facilities across the Niger Delta region. Saturday’s evacuation saw 98 key personnel on board were overseen by helicopters from Eja OML 79, run by Royal Dutch Nigerian subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Development Corporation (SPDC), where production of 90k barrels of oil per day has been halted.
Sources said that a small group of staff has been left on the platform to carry out skeletal operations. The staff and facility are offered protection by two gunboats belonging to the military Joint Taskforce of the Federal Government. Close to Eja 79 is the Bonga Field, which has a larger production capacity and is operated by another Shell subsidiary, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO).
Sources said that some staff have been evacuated from Bonga while the wider security implication is being reviewed by the company. Since the Niger Delta Avengers began attacking oil facilities in the region, they have hit an oil platform Okan field facility run by Chevron, resulting in the loss of gas supplies to power plants across Nigeria.
It was reported on Friday that gas plants in Omotosho, Geregu, Ughelli, Olorunsogo and Egbin had to shut down as the main pipeline run by the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC) was blown up. While Chevron sources said they could fix their issue in two weeks, the NGC may not be able to restore its gas link for a while. The militants also blew up the oil pipeline that supplies crude to Warri and Kaduna refineries, therefore, crippling Nigeria’s ability to refine some four million gallons of gasoline per day.”

With Akwa Ibom hospital, no govt-sponsored foreign treatment for Nigerians from 2017 — Minister

The Federal Government says it will partner with the Akwa Ibom Government on the operations of Ibom Specialist Hospital, Uyo, to stop Nigerians from seeking medical treatment abroad.

The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, made this promise on Saturday in Uyo while inspecting facilities at the Akwa Ibom government’s owned Ibom Specialist Hospital.

Mr. Adewole noted that with facilities at Ibom Specialist Hospital, medical tourism abroad can be reversed.

“Visiting the hospital complex today is an eye opener, there is no such complex like this anywhere in Nigeria,” the minister said.

He announced that with the proposed partnership, no Nigerian would be allowed to go abroad for treatment on government sponsorship from Jan. 2017.

“We will partner to make sure that it works and reverses medical tourism. People from Ghana and Togo can come to Nigeria for medical treatment.

“We will start using this facility, with this facility, no Nigerian will be allowed to go abroad for treatment,” Mr. Adewole said.

The minister warned medical doctors to desist from running a syndicate of sending people abroad for treatment for pecuniary interest.

Mr. Adewole, however, said that individuals could go abroad on their own expenses if they so wish but not on government sponsorship.

The minister said the state owned Diagnostic Centre at Ikot Ekpene would be converted to Lassa Fever Diagnostic Centre.

He commended the state government for constructing the Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) at Ikot Ekpene to help reduce the pressure on the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH).

Earlier, the minister and his entourage had paid a courtesy visit on the state governor, Udom Emmanuel, at Government House.

The governor had appealed for assistance from the Federal Government to make the state a healthcare tourism destination in Nigeria.

Mr. Emmanuel said the state government had invested much in the health sector and would like the Federal Government to help boost the patronage of the Ibom Specialist Hospital.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that this was the maiden visit of the minister to Akwa Ibom since his appointment last October. (NAN)

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Kenneth okonkwo (ANDY) welcome a baby boy after 9 years of marriage with NO child.

It was celebration galore in the family of Nollywood first actor, Kenneth Okonkwo as his pretty wife Ifeoma delivered a baby boy at The University of Maryland, St. Joseph Medical Center, USA on the 6th of May, 2016, after almost 9 years of marriage.

According to Diamond Celebrities, the hardworking actor said in his own words, “God is a faithful God. He said we shall be fruitful and multiply, that there shall be none barren in our midst and He just fulfilled His words. To Him be all the glory in Jesus name”.

He thanked all those who stood by them and offered prayers to God on their behalf.

We join the family of Kenneth Okonkwo and other well wishers in welcoming the new baby and pray God’s blessings upon his life.

source: diamond-celebrity blog

FG rules out full implementation of 2016 budget

Olalekan Adetayo, Abuja

The Federal Government has ruled out the possibility of full implementation of the 2016 Appropriation Act signed by President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday.

The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udo Udoma, said this while briefing State House correspondents shortly after Buhari signed the budget at the President Villa, Abuja.

Udoma was joined at the briefing by the Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed.

The minister admitted that having been signed late into the year, it would be impossible to achieve full implementation of the budget even though that is the government’s aim.

“Our aim is 100 percent implementation because the budget is a law that must be implemented. But the reality is that we may not achieve this because we are starting late,” the minister said.

The minister also said the government would work hard to ensure that the National Assembly gets the 2017 budget proposal by October so that it could be passed before the end of the year.

This, he said, would afford the government the opportunity of implementing from January to December.

Details later….