THE Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have released conflicting figures concerning the country’s crude oil production.

Standard Chartered Bank is set to take opportunities which will arise from the ongoing Nigeria banking sector reforms to consolidate its leading position in the industry.

Mr. Adebayo Adeleke, General Secretary, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN) has reacted on the plan by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to sell the five banks whose managing directors were sacked for alleged misuse of shareholders funds, saying it is illegal and unconstitutional.

Tripple Gee and Company Plc has announced a significant improvement in its bottom line, as its Profit after tax rose by 41.32 per cent in its 2009 financial year.

FRENCH giant Total and US oil services player Schlumberger’s facilities in Gabon were reportedly targeted in a riot sparked by the announcement of the results of the country’s presidential election.

THE total annual demand for clean products in Africa has been put at about 75 million metric tonnes with Nigeria accounting for almost a third, even as significant infrastructure requirements challenge the continent’s downstream operations, including refining, local shipping, storage, pipelines and haulage.

ATAMUNO Ajubo Atamunolowuari, the managing director and founder of Midis Energy Services Limited, a leading service provider in the upstream sector of the Nigerian oil and gas industry has been listed in the 2009 edition of the International Who’s Who Historical Society of professionals.

UMBRELLA body for senior staff in the nation’s petroleum sector, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), has the federal government full deregulation of the down stream sector of the petroleum industry, without putting in place necessary facilities to make it, warning that anything short of putting the facilities in place would spell doom for the nation.

NIGERIA’S Senate is working on legislation to create a sovereign wealth fund aimed at softening any impact falling oil prices may have on the Opec member’s economy, Finance Minister Mansur Muhtar said.

OANDO has announced a N3.8bn profit (near US $24 million) for the six_month period ending June 30, 2009, representing a 4% increase over the same period in 2008. Against the background of the global economic downturn, the profit underlines Oando’s resilience, and vindicates its diversification and growth strategy.

It is a welcome idea , provided the CBN in its investigation has discovered that the former management of these five banks were not capable to lead the bank to greater height. Our shareholders’ group is in support of the sale of the shares to be created following the bail out of N400 billion given to these banks. But if the move by the CBN is to sell the entire banks, that is, selling both existing shares and the new ones to be created to foreign investors, then we would resist it to the fullest.

Olive Microfinance Bank Limited has entered into a strategic partnership with Titanium Standard Resources in its pursuit of grassroots development, as it is committing about N20 million start-up loan to empower graduates of a vocational institute in the country.
The company also introduced a new product that is designed to cater for the needs of artisans and cooperative societies in the country.

The 3rd Enterprise Exhibition organised by the Bank of Industry (BOI) and Compass Consulting UK Ltd has been scheduled to take place from September 7 to 11, 2009 in Abuja and Lagos.

Investors’ woes were heightened last week, as the value of their investment in quoted securities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), dipped by N334.89 billion.

The global economy is emerging from a deep downturn but the recovery will be sluggish and unwinding stimulus measures too soon could derail an upswing, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Friday.Speaking at a Bundesbank conference in Berlin, Strauss-Kahn expressed concern about the risks of a rise in unemployment, which he said could lead to a decline in potential growth and social consequences he said were “even more worrisome”.”