Maritime accounts for 70% of global trade – FG

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Maritime sector is responsible for the transportation of about 70 per cent of globally-traded goods, the Federal Government has said.

It also said that the sector was a major contributor to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.

The Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, made the disclosure at the 2022 World Maritime Day in Lagos on Thursdayduring which he urged Nigeria to take advantage of the declaration by the International Maritime Organization to explore more partnerships.

Sambo said the country should demand an inclusive and fair distribution of global resources and deployment of relevant technology to aid decarbonization and control of marine plastic litter and befouling.

“No nation can afford to ignore a sector that employs millions of people globally, which is responsible for the transportation of at least 70 per cent of globally-traded goods, and is a major contributor to the GDP. It is therefore imperative that developing countries like Nigeria should take advantage of this declaration by the IMO to explore more partnerships, demand an inclusive and fair distribution of global resources and deployment of relevant technology to aid decarbonization, and control of marine plastic litter and befouling.”

Sambo also said that the need for new technology to drive the maritime sector had become imperative.

“The need for new technology to drive the maritime sector has not only become necessary but imperative. The experience of the Covid-19 pandemic which virtually shut down the global economy is indeed a wake-up call for the maritime community to adopt strategies, technologies and innovations that will surmount future challenges of similar magnitude.

“The choice of this theme by IMO therefore could not have come at a better time because life without an optimally-functional Maritime domain, even for a short space of time, would be disastrous in the socio-economic and security dimensions of human existence.”
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Power sector loses N420bn annual revenue – GenCos

The Executive Secretary of the Association of Power Generation Companies, Joy Ogaji, said on Thursday that the monthly shortfall in revenue remittances to the power sector stands at N35bn totaling N420bn annually.

Note that APGC is the umbrella body of Nigeria’s power generation companies. The Gencos produce electricity which the Transmission Company of Nigeria evacuates to the power distribution companies, known as DisCos, for onward distribution to end users.

Responding to a question raised in a forum on whether Nigeria should build more open cycle gas turbines or combined cycle gas turbines, Ogaji stated that Gencos were ready to construct this if there were enough funds.

Gas turbines, in this term, whether open or combined cycle, are basically machines used for generating electricity.

The APGC executive, however, noted that the power sector was currently suffering a shortfall of about N35bn monthly, indicating that the challenge of funding in the industry was still persistent.

In her response to enquiry, she said, “Most Gencos have this as part of their expansion plan.

“With a current market shortfall of about N35bn monthly, we are not walking our talk. Finance is the lifeblood.”

In his reaction to the conversation, the President, Nigeria Consumer Protection Network, who served in the National Technical Investigative Panel on Power System Collapses/System Stability and Reliability (June 2013), Kunle Olubiyo, asked if the N35bn was for market remittances.

He said the annual shortfalls in market remittances could be up to N420bn when N35bn was multiplied by 12.Responding to Olubiyo, the APGC executive said, “Absolutely.”

Asked whether the shortfall also included capacity payments, Ogaji replied in the negative, adding that it was just for energy.

“That is at quarter two. Quarter three may be interesting,” she stated.

She explained that power generation was a function of what the system operator required, as energy was instantaneous.

“The key thing is, there is no trading taking place in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI). What we have is something I don’t know the name yet, something close to Father Christmas,” Ogaji stated.

She further stated that the sector had forced Gencos to bother about how they would be paid after making power available.

“As a Genco, you look for foreign exchange to maintain your plant. You look for forex for O&M, and creditors on acquisition loan taken when naira to dollar was N157/$. You beg the TCN to dispatch you, then gas suppliers to give you gas and gas transporters to transport your gas.
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Francis Ogwo
The young and goal driven writer and cinematographer started his journalism as a print journalist in Kaduna in 2005 writing for Kaduna Chronicles Newspapers, Liberator Newspapers where he became the South Bureau Chief. In 2008, he moved into TV production with an employment into Siverbird Television and Rhythm Fm as a Correspondent. He got certified by Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria(ITPAN) in 2009. After five years of hardwork and training, he was employed as Associate Producer, Moments With Mo and subsequently Producer, Playground on HipTV. Francis currently majors in documentaries and high profile scripts for news and movies. He is currently a Senior Contents Producer at News Central TV

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