Presidency Orders Relocation Of $500m Port Project To Bayelsa

Firm faults directive

CITING presidential order, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has directed the management of LADOL Integrated Logistics to relocate its ongoing $500million fabrication and integrated yards project in Takwa Bay within Apapa pilotage area in Lagos State to Aggey, Bayelsa State.

But the company’s management described the directive as “shocking’’ and out of tone with the agreement it entered into with its technical partners and the federal government.

The one paragraph letter was dated April 27, 2015, and signed by NPA’s General Manager (Capital Project), A.R. Mohammed, on behalf of the Managing Director.

It was titled: “Re: Joint Venture Partnership with Samsung Heavy Industries for the USD$500 Million development of fabrication and integration yards for EGINA and Future Projects”.

The letter read: “Please, be informed that Mr President has via PRESS/S9/MT/212 of April 20, 2015 approved that the FPSO (Floating Production Storage & Offloading) project can be located at Agge, Bayelsa State when the facilities to handle such operations are developed. In addition, the project can be conveniently located at any dedicated Oil and Gas Terminal”.


Meanwhile, the President, according to NPA, has approved that henceforth; all oil and gas related cargoes must be handled only at the designated terminals in Onne, Warri and Calabar ports.

The directives signed on behalf of NPA Managing Director by General Manager (M&O), A.A. Goje, said: “In view of this, vessels coming to Nigeria with oil & gas related cargo excluding petroleum products are advised to first go to the appropriate NPA concessioned terminals to be cleared by customs and other relevant authorities, terminal operators, shipping lines among others”.

The directive also advised owners of such vessels to pay necessary dues/charges and obtain releases “before proceeding to locations for final discharge, including those meant for LADOL.

Reacting to the development, yesterday, the Managing Director of LADOL, Dr. Amy Jadesimi said the company was shocked by the development.

She explained that it would send wrong signals to private investors and foreign technical partners, pointing out that a lot of resources have been deployed to put the facilities in place.

The Reason Why That Your Tokunbo Car Keeps Overheating Here In Nigeria

Tropicalization ...Oh I love that word Tropicalization of cars The climate conditions vary severely across the globe and car manufacturers previously made cars for specific countries based on their climate conditions without realizing that with globalization the cars do get exported out from the country where it was originally meant for sale in. Cars made in Europe used to be designed for European climate which were cooler and dryer than sub tropical Asian countries where temperatures can exceed 40C and have humidity over 80%. The direct impact of exporting a car designed for the European climate to Asia meant that the cars were not able to function at its best. There were many examples of cases where the cars would over heat as the cooling system was not suitable for the sub tropical climate. The radiators were far too small and other components were not able to cope with the high humidity leading to premature failure. Some BMWs, Alfa Romeos and Audis that were imported to Asia from Germany or UK struggled to cope with the heat. Many of these cars could barely travel 100km across an Asian city without overheating. Some interior components also started to fade and peel off as the coatings and linings were meant for dry climate conditions. The car manufacturers only realized this in the late 1990s and started to do global scale testing during the development phase. The global testing meant that the cars would be sent to the Artic circle for extreme cold weather testing, Arizona desert for extreme heat testing and also to sub tropical countries like Thailand for high humidity testing. The car manufacturer will produce standard specification cars that will allow it to be sold globally and would not risk premature component failure. Till today some car companies still struggle to truly tropicalize their cars and do sufficient aging tests to handle humidity. Humidity is a silent killer as the moisture slowly creeps into the components and premature aging will appear within 3 years instead of the intended 5 years. Tropicalization is not just for car components but also tyres. Previously tyres from Europe struggled in extreme heat and humid conditions in Asia. Many started to blister after only 6 months of use. Now that thermostat might not be needed in Nigerian car,Till today some car companies still struggle to truly tropicalize their cars and do sufficient aging tests to handle humidity. Humidity is a silent killer as the moisture slowly creeps into the components and premature aging will appear within 3 years instead of the intended 5 years. Tropicalization is not just for car components but also tyres. Previously tyres from Europe struggled in extreme heat and humid conditions in Asia. Many started to blister after only 6 months of use. The question remains, is there real wisdom in buying a car that has been in use elsewhere, a place very different from here? Because, the cars that run there, similar though they look to the ones running here, are vastly different in very many ways, right down to the paintwork. We live in the tropics, while UK, Japan and Singapore lie outside the tropics, or towards the outer edges. Our weather patterns are different, as are our climates. The level of economic development also differs: you cannot compare Dubai’s infrastructure to ours. As such, their roads are different, as is the type of fuel they are supplied with by oil giants like Shell and BP. This means their cars are built to certain specifications: their engines are built to operate within certain atmospheric conditions, while burning certain types of fuel, their suspensions have been set up to withstand certain road conditions, and yes, even the paint has been applied with a certain intensity of sunlight in mind. What happens above Cancer and below Capricorn climatically is not the same as that within the two Tropics. Let us start with the weather/climate and its effect on engine design. Countries like Japan and UK, from which we get a good number of cars, experience snowy winters with temperatures dropping below 0°C, so their cars have to be made with extreme cold starts in mind. Our worst winter, if you could call it that, goes as far as fog appearing where it normally shouldn’t, with temperatures dipping to 6° in very extreme cases. Out there, 6° is the norm. As such, most cars from these regions come with the radiator filled with some ferruginous stuff that resembles premium petrol somewhat, or what we like to call super. It is red in color. The source of the rusty tinge is the presence of antifreeze, a chemical additive that prevents the water in the radiator from freezing during inclement weather. Nobody wants ice in their radiator, especially when facts like the anomalous expansion of water comes to mind: water, unlike other compounds and elements, expands when freezing, during the formation of ice. That ice could break your radiator or even worse crack your engine block if allowed to form. The antifreeze lowers the freezing point of that water to a level so low that the temperature range where it can now freeze is beyond reason. Our weather rarely, if ever, gets to freezing, so that is one property we do not need. But do not rush to drain your radiator claiming “I don’t need this stuff, water will do”. You still need the antifreeze. Not only does it make water hard to chill, it also has some antirust and anti-deposition properties. The liquid prevents the radiator and other iron-based channels that it goes through from rusting (iron + water= rust; this is chemistry that even the uneducated can claim knowledge of), and these channels include the water jackets around the engine block. It also prevents minerals in the water from depositing themselves and clogging up those channels with their scum, similar to what eating bad cholesterol does to your blood vessels, or from reacting with the metal components in the automobile’s cooling system. Sticking with the engine, there is the small matter of fuel grade. Developed countries run some fine lead-free high octane petrol (98 RON) and sulphur-less diesel. The jungle juice that we pour expensively into our tanks around here has a lower octane rating (92 RON), which means some high performance cars, particularly the turbocharged versions, will not last long locally. Ask a man who owns a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution car (Evo VII or earlier) what this means. It is only within the last decade that we switched to lead-free petrol and low-sulphur diesel. Fuel jetting, the means by which petrol/diesel is sprayed into the cylinders also differs slightly. Our warm weather means that the petrol in our tanks is less viscous than what the Brits experience during snow conditions. As such, the two different viscosities dictate that the fuel will not flow through the injectors at the same rate or be vaporized at the same rate either. Suspension settings are also made with predominant driving surfaces in mind. Belgian pavé requires soft, pliant suspensions, while mirror-smooth tarmac/cement could be handled with a slightly stiffer setting without necessitating a trip to the chiropractor. Adjusting a first-world car’s setup to handle third world conditions is called tropicalization, and it usually involves making the following changes:   Cooling system: this is mostly left untouched, though the thermostat in the engine bay could be set to activate the fans/water pumps at a lower temperature than that abroad seeing that we do not need a long warming up period after cold starts, and our warm weather means our engines heat up faster in use than in cold weather. A word of advice: when warming up your car in the morning, leaving the engine idling with the car stationary is not the best way to warm up, but at least it is better than revving the nuts off your car hoping to reach critical temperature faster. You will warm the engine faster like this, yes, but you are also ruining it because the oil/lubricant has not had a chance to circulate properly and thus smooth off the high-friction circumstances associated with high engine speeds. The best way to warm up your car would be to take off immediately after starting, keeping engine speed low (limit yourself to about 1800 rpm in a petrol engine car and 1200-1500 rpm in a diesel passenger car: we are speaking of diesels that are below 4.0 litre capacity and rev to 4500 rpm max. Heavy commercial diesels should be operated below 1300 rpm) This technique warms your engine faster, as well as warming up your transmission fluid, spreading the grease in the ball, universal and CV joints and warming up the tyres, thereby optimizing the overall performance of your car. More on this later. Engine: The vehicle engine is the one that receives the most attention when tropicalizing a car. Sometimes cylinder heads have to be replaced, thus changing the compression ratio of the car (lowering the compression ratio allows a car to run on “dirtier”, low-octane stuff). Turbocharged cars are all the more sensitive to the compression ratio adjustment due to the risk of pre-ignition and emissions control. The high temperatures associated with turbo applications easily cause pre-ignition, a situation where the fuel ignites before its exact moment is due. The hot, compressed air from the turbocharger causes this (Charles’ Law from Form One Chemistry). To counter this problem, turbocharged cars tend to deploy a bit more fuel from the injectors, to create a “wetter” intake charge (air-fuel mixture) that will not be easily lit up by the high temperatures of the forced induction. The downside of this is the vehicle has more emissions per kilometer than a naturally aspirated one, due to the richer mixture being burnt. Running a high-performance turbo engine (like the Evo cars) on low octane fuel causes even more complications: now the fuel won’t even burn fast enough in the engine and sometimes catches fire in the exhaust pipes while under power (and thus high engine revs). This is when a car is said to have a “miss”, characterized by a loud report, not unlike that of a non-repeating firearm, from the car’s exhaust. The best way out of this kind of fix is to change the compression ratio, thus limiting the car’s ultimate power figures and lowering the rev ceiling to allow for more efficient combustion. Along with replacing the cylinder heads comes remapping of the car’s ECU, what people call the computer box. The chip is flashed, or re-programmed to change things like the valve timing (variable) and fuel injection, thus catering for lower quality fuel. Valve lag and valve lead are changed to create an Atkin’s cycle-like situation where there is a short intake stroke, with long compression and power strokes. This lowers an engine’s overall abilities but ultimately allows it to run on porridge…almost. Fuel injection is also changed to change the spray angle, the injection periods, and injection times to compensate for the low octane fuel’s slower burning characteristics. Some changes might also involve the fuel filter, fitting a coarser one, but this is not common. Some manufacturers go about tropicalizing an engine in a funny way. When they come up with a more advanced (and thus more sensitive) engine for a new car but lack the infrastructure to support their new technology in the third world (mostly), what they do is sell their new model with the old engine instead of the improved unit. The existing material should cater for those “old” compost-burning engines as they have been, and in most cases the customer would be none the wiser. Others, like Peugeot, simply continue selling an out-dated, obsolete product long after it goes out of production in the rest of the world. The 504, for instance, was killed off in the early ‘80s worldwide, but production continued in Kenya and Nigeria (only two countries) until 2004. Exhaust system: this is no longer a problem, but before we had unleaded fuel, importing a car with a catalytic converter and feeding it petrol laden with the heavy metal fouled up the cat, clogging it and increased the back pressure from the exhaust system to the engine, thus impeding its performance. Now that we have unleaded, this is not too much of an issue. In the olden days, this problem was solved by simply removing the cat, but this is very illegal in some countries and harmful to the environment. The cat may also be fitted inside the exhaust back-box, which houses the silencer, so chucking it will make your car noisy (and here comes NEMA with their own interpretation of existing noise laws…) Suspension: let’s not pretend, up until recently, ours were not roads and highways to brag to anyone about. Poor finish, cliff-like edges and pot-holes that could swallow an entire Vitz characterized our national roadway grid, and you needed a car with tough suspension if you planned to own and drive your car longer than a few weeks. Foreign cars have slightly stiffer, lower-riding suspension systems, complete with low-profile tyres to improve their handling without compromising too much on comfort… their roads are good, so even a car with a suspension set on bed-rock, Fred Flintstone-style, will not break your back. The suspension components are also made from lighter material to reduce unsprung weight and improve steering response and overall handling. You try that here and your car will fall to pieces before you get through your third tankful of refined crude. Even with the improved (and still improving) road network, we still have sleeping policemen and rumble strips that could shatter your dental formula if engaged at speed. Sleeping policemen, by the way, are not the boys in blue snoozing; they are those fat, elongated bumps that don’t seem too bad, until you hit one at speed and ruin your car completely, after which you treat them with a little more respect. Cars meant for use in the harsh realities of the third world (and Australia) need heavy-duty suspensions, made from robust material to withstand the incessant pounding that come with driving over cheap-skate road surfaces. They also need to be set more pliable, with more travel, to increase the comfort level as you navigate through highway hell. Some cars have the ride height increased, to add to the ground clearance and thus allow the car to go over said speed humps and/or small rocks in your path. Low profile tyres are also given a wide berth: the fatter rubber/air mattress that is the tyre wall accords improved comfort and shock-absorbing when driving rough. Stiff settings, low ride height, low profile tyres and lightweight suspension materials are for performance driving anyway, which you cannot do when the road won’t allow, so we don’t need them. Adjusting the ride height, by the way, comes with widening the track to maintain stability which might have been sacrificed when making the car stand taller. Adding spacers between your mountings and the suspension components will just destabilize your car, a fact that you will discover when on two wheels through a corner and your passengers are cursing you in one last desperate breath before they die. Leave the ride height adjustments to the experts, or manufacturer. Paint: There is not much you can do about this except giving your car a new coat. Those flashy, pearlescent “wet” jobs that come with luxury models (especially Lexus) are meant for places where the sun does not burn too hard. Expose that fancy art to the equatorial sunshine and watch it degenerate into some matte, multi-shaded amalgam of ugliness; either that or it forms some unsightly pustules just beneath the surface that eventually burst, cracking the paint or even peeling it. Cars sold in such sunny places have their own available paint schemes that can withstand this kind of exposure, which means certain colors or shades available elsewhere cannot be sold locally. We are not through yet. Brace yourself, because next we discuss the socio-economic impact of the tokunbo market, and if it has reached the end of its usefulness, or if the local franchise holders should get with the program and open up their own grey import channel. The more reason I will buy  locally manufactured car...

A Forensic Analysis Of The Orubebe's Drama

There is something about actions, they can be chosen. There is something about actions taken, they birth reaction(s). There is something about reactions, they can't be chosen. In a simple language, why we can choose our action, we cannot choose the reaction.

In the history of Nigeria, it is certain that the 2015 General election would not be forgotten in a moment. While this assertion may be bought by every Nigerian, the reason may differ in the opinion of individuals. For the purpose of simplifying this analysis, individuals with a dogged determination to achieve their goals may see it as a year that unrelenting determination paid off for the retired General. For some, it was a year that paved way for the populace to speak through the ballot. In some quarters, it is the year of the emergence of their democratic hero- President Jonathan. For the last, reservations abound. I object to an attempt at making Jonathan a hero for the purpose of a soft landing. I don't know about America, but in Nigeria, no tenant becomes a hero by vacating the apartment at the expiration of his rent. However, it is a sheer waste of emotion to observe a minute of silence for a deceased whose penchant for noise while alive is insatiable.

Personally, I do not have anything against the person of President Jonathan. In fact, I like to see sons and daughters of fishermen, taxi drivers, petty traders and others on that divide of the struggle attaining the incredible heights. Nevertheless, I take offence when attaining that height drives them stupour. I also do not have anything for General Buhari, I only shared the sentiment that things must not continue in the Jonathan's way. I waited for a public event that would demand that I talk about the President of Nigeria for the whole of 2014, but I could not attend any that I was invited for. I was waiting to embarrass President Jonathan because he has embarrassed long-suffering Nigerians and Nigeria. I was waiting to be asked questions like 'who is the President of Nigeria?' or maybe to make a remark about the President of Nigeria. In my crazy moment, I would have replied that Nigeria do not have a President. To be diplomatic, but to the consternation of many, I would have replied that I do not know the President of Nigeria. I could say that anywhere, even on a quiz floor. I know nations with leaders and none is governed like ours. I do not know shadow leaders, I know leaders who are strong-willed to act irrespective of whose ox will be gored.

Like you, a couple of events that made the moment have been archived in a bid to take a hint from life. Beyond the happiness for Jonathan's loss and the fear of Buhari's possible 'tsunamic' approach to corruption, I have picked an event in the whole politicking drama- The Orubebe Saga. It does deserve a second examination after the whole dust has gone down.

Lately, I stopped concerning myself with what people do. I try to understand their reason(s) and purpose(s). In the beauty of the time-honoured aphorism in Yoruba, the myth of the dragonfly dancing on the water surface comes to mind. For the purpose of this forensic work, elder Orubebe is the dragonfly here. It is believed that attempts to allay the fear of stream goers by making the dragonfly vacate was futile. Then, after consulting the oracle, it dawned on the villagers that the dragonfly's dance of humour was not without the motivation of an unrelenting drummer deep down in the stream. In short, elder Orubebe's public display had the blessing of one or two political drummers. The question here- did elder Orubebe pause to consider his status before doing such a dirty act without gloves? I mean this is someone's father. He is someone's husband. He is an elder in a community, this is the 21st century, and we have the media everywhere!

In the execution of his assignment, elder Orubebe made a lot of inflammatory statements. To elder Orubebe, Jega was compromised, he was partial, he was used. All those did not really matter, especially when you are used to the types of statements made by Lagos bus conductors. The most sensitive statement and most crucial moment was when elder Orubebe requested Jega to 'go and reply him (Orubebe) from his office.' Jega could reply Orubebe, but it must not be from his office. Replying from his office would have been the electoral error of the millennium. Here is the reason, there is a possibility that if Jega had left the ICC for his office, the election would have been rendered inconclusive by machineries 'possibly' put in place. By then, Jega would be away from our curious glares. For 'security' purpose, he could have been prevented from continuing the process. In fact, it might take him till today to reply people like elder Orubebe because it is easy to wake a sleeping person but not a person feigning sleep.

Few days later, elder Orubebe discovered the damage his public conduct did to the Orubebe's family. He saw himself being celebrated as the celebrity of official irresponsibility. Then, he issued a statement that could best be described as a campaign after an election. In the statement, elder Orubebe massaged his own tiny ego. He reminded us of his role in the Niger-Delta peace discourse. He told those of us that are not aware, that he is an elder in his church. Then, someone beside me asked 'what more could rebrand elder Orubebe if he could forget his political status and religious one to disrupt a legal process?' For this phase, no matter what the revered elder did, the election saga would always come to mind when the name Orubebe is mentioned. Not many was there when he went to the creek, not many knew him as a minister, not many knew him as an elder in the church, but everybody is aware that he is deft at disrupting due processes and sitting on the floor.

Through Jega, the world has learnt that proper management of people won't always make an angry action trigger an outrageous reaction. For Jega, elder Orubebe's display was an avenue for him to exhibit his classy professorial and professional ethics. Indeed, Jega is an impressive revelation of the 21st century! Jega's composure was epic, it should be made a compulsory course in our educational institution. It made the voice of the town crier merely tangential to the process at hand.

His response was legendary and accurate. I cannot but admit that he is a different breed of Nigerian, far distinct from an ordinary one time-minister struggling for a summary show in the arena of relevance. The name Jega should become a word in every language which could be used to describe an exceptional display of intelligence and composure in the midst of troubles sponsored by the power that be.

I Haven’t Got Useful Tips From Jonathan – Buhari.

President-elect Muhammadu Buhari has accused the outgoing Goodluck Jonathan government of not giving him “tips” on how to kick-start his administration on May 29.

He spoke on Thursday when a committee from the Centre for Human Security of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, presented a five-point policy document to him at the Buhari Support Organisation office in Abuja.

Hours before the event which held behind closed doors, the All Progressives Congress, insisted that the Federal Government was not cooperating with the transition committee set up by the President-elect.

“Buhari regretted that the outgoing government that is supposed to give him tips on how to take off has done nothing so far,” Garba Shehu, the Director of Media and Publicity of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organisation, told journalists after the presentation by the committee.

Shehu added that the President-elect “thanked the Obasanjo initiative for the gesture, assuring the committee that his incoming administration will be needing advice as time goes on.”

Areas covered by committee in the document include the economy, security, power, education and infrastructure.

He said that Obasanjo had set up a think tank to carry out a study on the challenges facing the country in the five key areas.

The study, he added, was started four months ago “so that the outcome will be made available to the incoming administration after the election.”

He also revealed that Nigeria’s former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr. Christopher Kolade, who headed the power committee, gave various stages of the proposed power sector development plan to include short-term, medium-term, long-term solutions.

Under the short-term solution, the plan seeks to raise the country’s power generation to 10,000 MW within a very short period of time.

He added that the president-elect described the intervention of Obasanjo and his team as a great impetus for the incoming government.

The vice-chairman of the committee, who is a former Minister of Finance, Kalu Idika Kalu, said, “We have looked at education, security, economy, power and Infrastructure. Those are the areas we have made recommendations and which we hope the new administration would be able to work on.”

He further explained that the president-elect was very happy that they had been thinking about how to help him hit the ground running.

The Chairman of the centre’s governing board, Akin Mabogunje. who also spoke to journalists after the event, said the committee had been working on a number of critical issues for the development of the country.

According to him, a delegation of the committee members involved in the preparation of the policy document was sent to present the report to the President-elect.

Earlier on Thursday , the APC described as untrue, a statement credited to the spokesman for the Peoples Democratic Party, Oliseh Metuh, that the Jonathan administration was cooperating with the transition committee constituted by the President-elect.

It also described Metuh in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, as a man with “an incurable disdain for truth.”

The PDP spokesman had in the said statement accused the APC of raising a false alarm over happenings within the Jonathan and the Buhari transition committees.

However, Mohammed insisted that the uncooperative attitude of the Jonathan team had continued despite its public posturing.

The APC statement Read, “We say with all sense of responsibility that as of today, May 14, 2015, just about two weeks to the May 29 handover date, no shred of information as to the status of governance from any ministry, department or agency of government has been given to our transition committee.”

“If that qualifies, in Metuh’s lexicon, as cooperation, then there is a problem somewhere. We dare Metuh or anyone for that matter, to controvert the fact that not a line of handover note has been handed over to our transition committee.”

The APC also restated its earlier call to Metuh to urgently undertake a course on how to be an opposition party spokesman so that he would not talk or write himself into avoidable troubles in the days ahead.

It equally admonished him to always verify information available to him in order to separate rumours from facts.

The statement further read, “Metuh decided to put his foot in his mouth when he latched on to the statement made by our Transition Committee Chairman, forgetting that in making his statement, the chairman was only advising him against anything that would put the Federal Government in a bad light.

“A discerning party spokesman, rather than a rabble-rousing one, would have understood the elder statesman’s stand for what it is instead of using it as a peg to issue a needless, hollow statement that puts his party and government in a bad light.”

The APC said it had decided to allow bygones be bygones, but now that Metuh had stirred the hornet’s nest, it was time to put out the facts for Nigerians to judge.

It added, “What happened was that, following the request by our transition committee to meet with them, they invited us to what was the first formal meeting between both transition committees.

“But the meeting was a mere photo-op, as it yielded nothing concrete as far as handover notes are concerned.

“In fact, what we met at the so-called meeting was far worse than what we had thought. Whereas we had hoped to get their handover notes on May 14th (the date they had indicated to us informally), they told us point blank that the notes won’t be ready until May 24th.

“Because this date falls on a Sunday that means we won’t be getting the handover notes until May 25th, just four days before the May 29th handover date.

“How do they honestly expect us to peruse thousands of pages of handover notes, ask pertinent questions and seek necessary clarifications within four days? Because we want a smooth transition, we asked if we could meet with some of the ministers pending the release of the handover notes, but they said no.

“When one of their members even suggested that the whole process be fast-tracked, they did not budge.

“Despite this setback, we decided not to put the whole issue in the public domain, until the babbling Metuh decided to look for trouble, describing the deliberate stonewalling by the Jonathan Administration as cooperation.”

Source: Punchng

Patience Jonathan Floors Aisha Buhari's Sympathisers In Court

 

An Abuja High Court on Thursday threw out an application filed to stop Mrs. Patience Jonathan from holding an emergency meeting of African First Ladies Peace Mission (AFLPM) in Abuja today, May 15.


The trial judge, Justice Baba-Yusuf, yesterday refused to stop the meeting because the two affidavits filed by the plaintiffs were contradictory and incompetent.


The judge said the affidavits were contrary to Section 115 (3) (4) of the Evidence Act 2011.


The court also held that the plaintiffs slept on their right since the application was not presented timeously before the court.


The court noted that the plaintiffs became aware of the facts they deposed to in their affidavits since April 23, 2015 but did not bring the application until May to stop the event which was to hold today.


The court mentioned that by the nature of the event, dignitaries must have arrived the country from all parts of the continent and by its nature, enormous resources would have been put in to organise the event.
The motion to stop the event was moved yesterday and the court delivered its ruling on the same day since the court had no choice as the event was fixed for today.


The plaintiffs, who include Nana Module Onwodi, Ekemma Ugborough Arisa, Louisa Ono Eikhomun and Deborah Oboh claimed that the said emergency meeting called by Mrs. Jonathan was called in “bad faith” as it was aimed at scuttling any chance of Aisha Buhari becoming the President of AFLPM.


Other defendants in the matter include Juliet Mene, Juliet Pearce, Sonia Adolf and Kate Duru.


The plaintiffs had filed a writ of summons for themselves and on behalf of concerned Women for Peace and Development, seeking to stop the emergency meeting called by Jonathan aimed at picking a new President of AFLPM from among the other African first ladies to succeed her.


They explained that the defendant stepped into the shoes of President of AFLPM after Turai Yar’Adua stepped down following the death of her husband, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.


The plaintiffs claimed that the tenure of office of president of the mission is three years, which is expected to elapse in July 2015 and therefore any attempt for the defendant to convene a meeting to elect a new president would amount to shortchanging Mrs. Buhari who ought to get a chance by May 29, 2015 to participate and even contest the office of president in July, 2015.


They averred that “the defendant / respondent’s intention to hold an election on May 2015 is inimical to the progress and development of the country” as “not only shall we be affected as individuals but the entire nation will be affected as our position in the committee of African nation’s will be relegated”.


They further averred that”the other African nation’s who are members of the Mission have unanimously agreed that the summit and the election be held in July”


They submitted that Jonathan’s interest is “selfish and totally in bad faith” and urged the court to grant an order of interlocutory injunction restraining the defendant / Respondent from convening, hosting the said meeting for the purpose of the electing the President for the Mission or from taking any step that will prejudice or foist on the applicants and the court a fair accompli pending the hearing of the suit.

Justice Baba-Yusuf will entertain the interlocutory application today.

What General Buhari Must do to fix Power in Nigeria

By Babatunde Idrisu

As General Buhari assumes office as president of Nigeria on May 29, 2015, one of the biggest challenges his incoming government would face would be how to improve reliability and quality of electricity Supply in Nigeria. The World economic forum ranked Nigeria 141 out of 144 countries in its 2014 quality of electricity supply index [1]. Poor electricity supply has negative impacts on economic growth and Job creation. The quality of electricity supply has a positive correlation with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. The scatter plot below shows the relationship between the quality of electricity and the GDP per capita of 148 countries in 2013.


Figure 1: Relationship between Quality of electricity Supply and GDP

The plot shows that countries with greater quality of electricity supply generally have greater GDP per capita. The prospect of economic growth through the development of electricity infrastructure is a great incentive for Nigeria’s new government to find a solution to the power problem.

Currently , electricity generation stands between 2,500-3, 500 MW, grossly inadequate for a population of 170 million people. The unbundling of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and the privatisation of generation and distribution has not resulted in improved electricity supply. It has been a bumpy ride since the privatisation exercise as the industry still faces numerous challenges in the generation,transmission and distribution of electric power. This is in spite of the enormous investment by the current and previous governments.

I read the All Progressive Congress (APC) manifesto to find out their plans to improve the sector and address its many challenges but I did not find anything in terms of actual plans. The problems faced by the sector need a comprehensive, all encompassing approach, this is what informed this piece.

In the next few paragraphs, some of the challenges faced by the power sector will be outlined and solutions proffered.

Generation

Current State

The biggest problem facing electricity generation in Nigeria is the unavailability of gas for powering the power plants. The power sector has developed at a much faster rate than the gas sub-sector but most of the plants been built need to be powered by gas. Consequently, many power plants are inoperational or operating at below their capacities because of a lack of gas.

Nigeria has a gas reserve of 187 trillion cubic feet, the 7th largest in the world and a huge potential revenue earner for the country. However, the sector remains largely underdeveloped due to the lack of investment caused by the government controlled prices and a poor regulatory environment. As a result, most of the gas currently produced is flared resulting in the loss of billions of dollars. The poor gas infrastructure and constant pipeline vandalisation are the most important challenges faced by Generation companies (GENCOs). Reported cases of pipeline vandisation has been on the rise in recent years after falling consistently between 2006 and 2009. These vandalisatons affect crude oil, gas and other products and result in significant financial loses. The graph below show cases of pipeline vandalisation annually in Nigeria as reported by the NNPC Annual Statistical Bulletin.



Figure 2: Annual cases of Pipeline Vandalisation

In November 2014, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) signed an agreement with power and gas firms to release a sum of N213 billion over a period of 10 years at 10% interest rate to start the implementation of the Nigeria Electricity Market Stabilisation Facility (NEMSF)[2]. This loan was necessary because tariffs a re currently not profitable and too low to cover the cost of generating power. This facility would also to help the industry keep on track with the Multi – Year Tariff Order (MYTO) model for generation designed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).The MYTO is a model drawn up by the NERC to project electricity generation and cost of generation for the next few years.

The shortfall in electricity supply is usually compensated by diesel generators employed by companies and private individuals for their daily activities. The cost of generating power for many companies and individuals gulps a major part of their operating expenses and reduces their profit margins. This has a negative impact on economic and industrial growth as many small and medium enterprises find it difficult to cope with the high cost of private generation. As a result, many close shop or run at a smaller scale to minimise expenses.

Currently, most of the power generation come from Gas, Hydro and Oil. The chart below shows the distribution of electricity generation by fuel as estimated by the International Energy Agency in 2011. [3]



There is a need to improve this fuel mix and encourage investments into renewable, nuclear and other technologies to boost electricity generation across the country.

The demand for electricity is estimated to be about 12,800 MW [4] but as at the 13th of May, 2015, generation stood at 3,381.47 MW [5], more than three times less than what is required to meet the demand. There is a need for urgent and decisive intervention to change the situation.

Proffered Solutions

1. The gas problem

On February 1, 2015, the Transitional Electricity Market (TEM) took off as part of the continuous evolution of Nigeria electricity market. This move is projected to improve gas supply as gas will be supplied to GENCOs on a contractual basis and there will be legally binding consequences for defaults in gas supply. This is a good step but there is more that can be done to ensure that gas supply is regular and reliable.

There needs to be a critical look at the regulatory aspect of gas production and delivery. I believe that there has to be a separation of the regulatory, licencing and policy environments of petroleum and Gas. Currently, the Department of gas resources under the Federal ministry of petroleum resources is responsible for regulating the gas sector. I believe that the gas sector must be given its own priority separate from petroleum for it to thrive. The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) makes important recommendations about the gas sector that could significantly improve the situation. The creation of separate licencing and authorization for gas and the unbundling of the NNPC represent positive steps for the future of gas in Nigeria. The incoming government must push for the passage of the PIB to improve the current condition of the gas industry.

The need to promote investment and private participation in the development of gas facilities is imperative to boost the sector. Private investors are encouraged to invest by the prospect of high profitability and the incoming government can support this by making and supporting policies to restructure the industry and by the introduction incentives such as incentive pricing and tax credits. The government could also consider deregulating the gas market so that the free market determines the price of gas. This could have the impact of higher tariff rates but it would ensure the reliability of gas supply to power plants. The influx of investors into Nigeria’s gas industry could significantly boost Nigerian revenue earnings and create jobs for many Nigerians.

Another major area which must be tackled to improve gas supply is pipeline vandalism. There is a need to develop effective strategies to tackle pipeline vandalisation by all stake holders in the Gas industry. The government must empower security agencies with the tools, training and encouragement to fight vandalism effectively. There should be stiffer penalties for pipeline vandals because of the losses they inflict on electricity generation and its attendant effects on economic activities. The NNPC and gas companies must employ technology in the surveillance of pipelines so as to prevent pipeline vandalisation and help with early detection.

Also, Nigeria needs to take the issue of gas flaring more seriously. Nigeria recently shunned the World bank’s ‘Zero routine flaring by 2030’ summit. The summit was organised to get countries, oil companies and development institution to make a commitment to stop gas flaring by the year 2030. Nigeria is the second largest gas flaring country in the world, flaring 13 billion cubic metres (bcm) annually [6]. The incoming administration must take this seriously and work hard towards ending gas flaring so that Nigeria’s gas can be used for its economic benefit of Nigerians.

2. Decentralise Electricity generation by attracting investment in renewable energy

The government should introduce renewable energy policies that ensures that utilities obtain an increasing annual percentage of their power from renewable energy. They can achieve the requirement by buying renewable energy credits from private individuals and companies.This would serve as an incentive to promote small scale renewable energy units for homes and small businesses as well as encourage investment in utility level renewable energy technologies. Individuals would gain credits by feeding power into the grid, the number of credits obtained by power fed into the grid can be bought by Utilities to fulfill their obligations.

Tax rebates and low interest loans can be offered to support small renewable energy GENCOs. There are Feed in Tariff for renewable energy generators currently but more must be done to further the industry. A vibrant renewable energy industry would boost employment by providing jobs (both direct and indirect) and promote economic activities

Renewable technologies can be very important for remote areas with no connection to the grid as they can easily be deployed there with the right policies in place. For instance, Solar Photovotaics (PV) can be promoted in rural areas by giving subsidies or making credit facilities available to residents. The government must look into this as it could quickly boost electricity accessibility in the country.
Transmission

Current State

The transmission capacity in Nigeria today, is estimated to be about 7000 MW according to the Minister of state for Power [7]. In order to boost the reliability and economy of electric supply, there must be constant investment in transmission lines to meet up with growing demand. The Nigerian Minister of power estimated that an annual investment of $1 billion will be required to grow the national grid [8]. Currently, the system is plagued with high loses,vandalisation, low capacity, poor, inadequate and aging infrastructure and a lack of funding. The location of transmission lines can be quite contentious and could lead to lead to disputes with local communities.

The government-run Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) doubles as the system operator and the transmission service provider. This means that they develop the transmission grid and operate the whole system to ensure reliability and security (i.e resistance to shocks). There are 8 transmission regions in Nigeria: the Kaduna region, the Shiroro region, the Bauchi region, the Osogbo region, the Benin region, the Portharcourt region and the Lagos region. The TCN develops and maintains the facilities in each region. The transmission regions are shown below:


Figure 4: Transmission regions in Nigeria (Source: Transmission Commission of Nigeria (TCN))

Proffered Solutions

The major question with the transmission grid is: How does the government support the needed investment needed to build Nigeria’s transmission grid?

I believe that the best way to go about this is to grant private transmission companies (Transco), monopoly rights to transmission lines in each of the eight regions. The Trancos need to be properly regulated and given the incentive to build more lines. This has impacts on costs and tariffs, so it is important that the access costs to lines are regulated in such a way that the Trancos makes sufficient profits and reliability is assured.

Generating plants should also be installed in areas where there is less need for transmission. I believe that National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) plants should be located close to industries and commercial centers to power economic activities there.
Distribution

Current State

The world bank ranked Nigeria 187 out of 189 in the getting electricity category of its “ease of doing business’ survey of 2015 [9]. Nigeria is ranked 46th out of the 47 Sub-Saharan countries included in the survey. This means that the regulatory environment is not conducive for the starting and operation of a local business. For local businesses, electricity is very valuable and getting access to it is vital but the survey shows that it takes 9 steps , 257 days and 478% of income per capital to get connected in Lagos by the Eko distribution Company (Eko Disco).

The chart below shows the days for each of the 9 procedures and the cost as a percentage of income per capita to get connected in Lagos by the Eko Disco:



Figure 5: Getting Electricity in Lagos, days and cost (Source: World Bank, Doing Business 2015 report on Nigeria)

The time lag is not conducive to promote business operations. The Discos must increase efficiency in connecting business to electrical power. According to the survey, 120 days is taken between application and obtaining a clearance letter from the Disco. That is not acceptable for a country willing to grow its economy and create employment for its citizens. The business environment must be improved upon and made more conducive for entrepreneurs.

The Discos face challenges with customer relations (as a result of poor power supply), metering , poor and overloaded infrastructure, vandalisation, low tariffs, poor collection rate of tariffs and poor funding.

Proffered Solutions

The NERC must ensure the Discos fulfill their obligations to customers and make the necessary investment needed to improve their capacity so as to reduce the load on already existing equipment. The NERC must also ensure that the Discos respond more efficiently to applications for electricity connection by empowering the consumer to take action against the Discos for unexplained prolonged delays. The consumer’s rights must be protected at all times .

Conclusion

The Nigerian electricity sector is beset with many challenges and would present one of the biggest battles for the Buhari administration. I am convinced that some of these suggestions would improve the situation in the next years if taken on board.

What do you think? What must be done to improve Power in Nigeria?

Babatunde Idrisu has a masters in energy management and policy from the Pennsylvania State University and has conducted multiple research work on renewable energy, energy policy and electricity markets.

Email: Westafricanenergy@gmail.com

Twitter: @EnergyWA

President Jonathan's Plans After May 29 2015

*Says he’ll take a short rest outside Nigeria
*Adds: My very close aides did not vote



ABUJA — PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has told the National Working Committee, NWC, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that he would return stronger to help rebuild the party after taking a short break outside the country with his family.
The President urged the leadership, stakeholders, leaders, elders and members of the PDP to put behind them the defeat the party suffered during the March 28 presidential election where it lost to the All Progressives Congress, APC, after 16 years in power and build the party for future elections.
President Jonathan, who did not actually blame the leadership of the party for his loss at the election, was said to have heaped the blames on some of his very close aides, just as he told the NWC members that a Special Adviser from the North did not even vote on the day of Presidential election.

Vanguard gathered that President Jonathan, who thanked members of the NWC for their support, disclosed to them that soon after the May 29 handover of government, he would travel outside the country with his family, rest, recuperate and then come back to politics later, but not immediately.

President Jonathan who also warned the leadership of the party against apportioning blames asked them to ensure that the PDP does not disintegrate because of March and April elections.

PDP will bounce back

He said from all indications, the PDP would bounce back against the backdrop that there would be the problem of ego where three persons will be serving as Presidents of the country with only one elected.
The Wednesday meeting was held behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa with the aim of ending the lingering crisis in the party after the general elections where some PDP governors, party leaders, stakeholders and members have been calling for the sack of the present National Working Committee, NWC, under Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu.
The meeting, the first of its kind since the PDP lost the presidency after 16 years of leadership to the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, General Muhammadu Buhari, retd, was a postmortem on the election, to discuss the way forward for the party especially the move to heal the inflicted wounds, to restrategise as well as reposition the party.

It was also gathered that those present at the meeting used the opportunity to ruminate on the elections and the loss where they wished that the PDP would have won the election.

The ruling PDP, which controlled the Presidency, the Senate and the House of Representatives for 16 years since 1999, did not only suffer Presidential defeat, but it lost in its traditional states of Plateau; Niger; Kaduna; Benue; Bauchi and Jigawa.

PERSONAL ASSISTANT Job in a Leading Insurance Company via Stresert

• Our client is one of the leading insurance services organizations in Nigeria.
  

  
  

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 2 years
  • Location Lagos
  • Job Field Administration / Secretarial  
   
  Job Summary:
  The ideal candidate will carry out all forms of Personal/secretarial duties as well act as the first point of contact on behalf of the MD.
  
  Detailed Job Duties:
  
  • Carries out all secretarial and administrative duties e.g typing, scheduling appointment, take minutes of meetings, act as first point of call to supervisors, keep diaries of supervisors to-do’s etc.
  • Welcomes visitors by greeting them, in person or on the telephone; answering or referring inquiries.
  • Maintains a professional work environment and administrative support.
  • Schedule and maintain appointments diary.
  • Coordinate incoming and outgoing mails, packages, and deliveries.
  • Supply information regarding the organization, products, services and policies to clients on enquiry.
  • Deals with compliant tactfully, calmly and politely
  • Taking minutes of meeting, handling travel arrangement etc
  • Maintains continuity among team members by documenting and communicating actions, irregularities, and continuing needs.
  • Contributes to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.
  • Supply the MD adequate information and full support when the need arises.
  • Other important functions are Supervisor support, office harmony, crisis handling, office morale, customer service.
  • Any other personal/secretarial & administrative duties as assigned from time to time.
  REQUIRED SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES:
  
  • Listening and Communication skills
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Organizational skills
  • Computer/IT skills
  • Confidentiality skills
  • Prioriterizing skills priority
  • Flexibility/adaptability skills
  • Self-motivated & efficient
  • Calm under pressure & ability to think on the feet.
  • Customer service orientation
  EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENT:
  
  • Must be a graduate with background in social sciences or secretarial studies. ( BSc/HND)
  • Must have 2- 3 years cognate experience.
  Method of Application
  
  Qualified candidates with a minimum of 2 years experience should please forward passport picture and CV’s to ‘recruitment@stresertservices.com’ using ‘PA/SEC’ as subject of mail. Untitled /wrong applications will not be opened. Only applicants with passport pics and CV resident in Lagos will be contacted for an interview. Application closes 18th May, 2015.

Several Jobs at Cement Company of Nothern Nigeria

• Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc (CCNN), was founded by the Premier of the then Northern Region, Alhaji Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto. It was incorporated in 1962 and commenced production in 1967 with an initial installed capacity of 100,000 tons per annum at the Kalambaina plant.
  Applications are hereby invited from suitably qualified candidates to fill-in the following vacant positions that exist in the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc, Kalambaina Road, Sokoto.
  

  Confidential Secretary

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 6 years
  • Location Sokoto
  • Job Field Administration / Secretarial   Law / Legal  
   
  QUALIFICATION AND WORK EXPERIENCE:
  
  • Minimum of First Degree in Law or related field from a reputable tertiary institution
  • Minimum of Six (6) years experience as confidential secretary in a law firm or in corporate organization.
  • Lack of above can be compensated for by relevant experience.
  • Well developed interpersonal skills
  • Sufficient attention to details
  • Excellent business writing and communication skils
  • Fluent in hausa language
  DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
  
  • Reporting to the MD/CE
  • Maintains comprehensive calendar including scheduling of appointments. Travel meetings and conferences for and on behalf of the MD/CE and Company Secretary.
  • Work With Company Secretary in drafting and vetting legal documents
  • Handles all incoming and outgoing correspondence. prioritize in terms of urgency and redirect as necessary for the MD/CE and Company Secretary.
  • Assists with the preparation of meeting agendas. taking minutes. circulating minutes prepared and follow up on action points agreed at the meetings.
  • Maintains and updates information and data system as necessary within the MD/CE and Company Secretary office including hard copy files system and electronic files.
  • Manages the MD/CE and Company Secretary office by ensuring that relevant personnel keep every part including work tables. meeting room clean and safe at all times.
  • Performs other duties as assigned by the MD/CE and Company secretary from time to time.

  Electrical Engineer

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 6 years
  • Location Sokoto
  • Job Field Engineering / Technical  
   
  Location: Kalambaina Road, Sokoto
  Reporting to Chief Electrical Engineer
  
  Duties and Responsibilities
  
  • Analyze and review maintenance and production reports to highlight chronic, persistent electrical problem areas and direct corrective action to maximize efficiency and to minimize down time.
  • Coordinate preventive maintenance, repairs, servicing and replacements to maintain optimum performance.
  • Ensure electrical safety of the plants.
  • Troubleshooting, repairs and maintenance of electrical and electronic equipment.
  • Coordinate preventive maintenance, repairs, servicing and replacement to maintain optimum performance and ensure electrical installations safety of the plant
  • Provide required engineering to recommend and implement modifications to existing equipment, including scope, estimate, procurement, construction/installation, and start-up troubleshooting.
  • Perform ongoing analyses of equipment and component performance to improve reliability and productivity.
  • Participate in quality control of preventative maintenance and predictive maintenance programs to assure the highest quality maintenance of equipment.
  Qualification and Work Experience
  
  • Minimum of B. Engineering Degree or its equivalent in Electrical/Electronic Engineering.
  • Project Management, Professional Certificate will also be an added advantage
  • Candidate should have at least 6 years cognate experience in a Cement Manufacturing company.
  Competencies and Skills:
  
  • Must be a registered COREN member.
  • Must have general knowledge of industrial safety and be able and willing to work shift
  • Must be physically fit, agile and healthy
  • Complex in problem solving, critical thinker and active listener
  • Exceptional leadership skills & capabilities, communication and team work skills

  Production Engineer

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 6 years
  • Location Sokoto
  • Job Field Engineering / Technical  
   
  Duties and Responsibilities
  
  • Analyze all samples (in-process/finished) to ensure that parameters/values obtained are within company quality standards and SON specifications
  • Monitoring the specific power and fuel consumption on regular basis and making plan to achieve the target and daily production report
  • Preparation of production plan on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
  • lnventory Control of raw materials, intermediate and final products inside and outside the Plant area on a daily basis.
  • Trouble shooting the plant operation in co-ordination with the inter department personnel.
  • Planning of the yearly shutdown in terms of refractory (bricks and castables) in coordination with Maintenance.
  • Comply with quality targets in all productive process.
  • Monitoring the pollution control activities in coordination with Safety and Environment Section.
  • Propose improvements in the Productive Process in order to optimize costs.
  Qualification and Work Experience
  
  • Minimum of B.Engineering Degree or its equivalent in Process or Chemical Engineering.
  • Candidate should have at least 6 years cognate experience in a recognized Cement Manufacturing company.
  Competencies and Skills:
  
  • Must be a registered COREN member.
  • Must have general knowledge of Industrial safety and be able and willing to work shift
  • Must be physically fit, agile and healthy
  • Complex in problem solving, critical thinker and active listener
  • Exceptional leadership skills & capabilities, communication and team work skills

  Assistance Manager - Internal Audit

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND   MBA/MSc/MA  
  • Experience 5 years
  • Location Sokoto
  • Job Field Finance / Accounting / Audit  
   
  Location: Kalambaina Road, Sokoto
  Reporting to the Assistant Director Internal Audit
  
  Duties and Responsibilities
  
  • Auditing of financial transactions such as revenue, expenses, asset management, treasury and financial management, international operations, procurement and inventory management, remuneration and payroll, credit policy. etc.
  • Auditing of critical processes or/and departments such as energy optimization, technical production including downtime analysis, plant efficiency, quality control/laboratory, quarry operations, technical maintenance, procurement and inventory, finance, human resources, sales and marketing, order reserves, health, safety and environment, security, etc.
  • Investigating reported control lapses and suspected fraudulent/sharp practices across the company and recommend appropriate actions.
  • Write Mandatory Standard Audit Report for each completed internal audit or control assignment and coordinate necessary updates.
  • Periodically make proposals for the review of company's policies and procedures or for the introduction of new policies.
  • Ensure effective implementation of/compliance with the company's control policies and procedures in all areas (financial transactions, operational activities, marketing & sales and IT systems) in the departments, sections, all factory locations, offices, depots and warehouses.
  • Identify potential risk areas and internal control flaws during audits and make appropriate recommendations for corrective action.
  Qualification and Work Experience
  
  • Minimum of B.Sc Degree in Social Sciences or HND.
  • Must be a Chartered Accountant (ACCA, or ACA), ACCA Diploma in International Financial Reporting or Master's Degree may be an added advantage.
  • At least 5 years experience in Internal control, Audit or Finance in a reputable organization.
  • Knowledge and understanding of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
  • Internal Control/Internal Audit, Banking Operations and Cement Manufacturing Industry are essential
  Competencies and Skills
  
  • International Financial Reporting Standards Skills
  • Financial and Analytical Skills
  • Tax Planning and Compliance Skills
  • Control and Audit Skills
  • Report Writing, Verbal and written Communication Skills
  • Relationship Management Skills

  Mechanical Engineer

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 6 years
  • Location Sokoto
  • Job Field Engineering / Technical  
   
  Duties and Responsibilities
  
  • Coordinate the planned mechanical maintenance activities of production machines/equipment and follow up with the procurement team to achieve quick turnaround time of spare parts procurements.
  • Coordinate preventive maintenance, repairs servicing and replacement to maintain optimum performance and ensure mechanical safety of the plants.
  • Provide required engineering to recommend and implement modifications to existing equipment, including scope, estimate, procurement, construction/installation, and start-up troubleshooting.
  • Perform ongoing analyses of equipment and component performance to improve reliability and productivity.
  • Participate in quality control of preventative maintenance and predictive maintenance programs to assure the highest quality maintenance of equipment.
  • Implement and maintain programs such as root cause failure analysis, vibration analysis, and oil sampling.
  • Develop proposals and cost estimates for specific maintenance projects.
  • Monitor equipment repairs both in the plant and at vendor locations as to technical specifications, methodology condition, inspection, testing and acceptance of quality,
  • Maintains relationships with outside support organizations such as OEM, equipment suppliers, and contractors.
  Qualification and Work Experience
  
  • Minimum of B. Engineering Degree or its equivalent in Mechanical Engineering.
  • Proficiency/competency in using AutoCAD for design and modeling systems will be added advantage.
  • Project Management Professional Certificate will also be an added advantage
  • Candidate should have at least 6 years cognate experience in a recognized Cement Manufacturing company.
  Competencies and Skills
  
  • Reporting to Chief Mechanical Engineer
  • Must be a registered COREN member.
  • Must have general knowledge of industrial safety and be able and willing to work shift
  • Must be physically fit, agile and healthy.
  • Complex in problem solving, critical thinker and active listener.
  • Exceptional leadership skills & capabilities, communication and Learn work skills
  Method of Application
  
  All interested candidate should forward their Cv to altine.wali@sokotocement.com  on or before Friday 28,May 2015.you must indicate the position you are applying for as the subject of your mail or at the top of your cv for your application to b considered

New Vacancies with SABMiller

• SABMiller is in the beer and soft drinks business, bringing refreshment and sociability to millions of people all over the world who enjoy our drinks. Through our local businesses we work in a way that improves livelihoods and builds communities.
  
  We are passionate about brewing and have a long tradition of craftsmanship in making superb beer from high quality natural ingredients. We are local beer experts, producing more than 200 beers that are freshly brewed from locally-grown ingredients and only sold in their country of origin. We also brew internationally famous beers such as Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Pilsner Urquell, Miller Genuine Draft and Grolsch.  We produce our own soft drinks as well as beer and are one of the world’s largest bottlers of Coca-Cola drinks.
  

  Manufacturing Development Specialist

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND  
  • Experience 4 - 5 years
  • Location Anambra
  • Job Field Manufacturing  
   
  Description:
  
  • Lead resolution of technical and process problems, initiate/execute/closure of quality actions for equipment/process modifications.
  • Facilitate Plant Achievement of the Manufacturing Strategy and provide Leadership for the Manufacturing Way
  • Facilitate The Identification and Selection of Plant Improvement Projects
  • Facilitate The Implementation of Plant Improvement Projects
  • Demonstrate Knowledge of Financial Management
  • Demonstrate knowledge of Human Resources Management
  • Demonstrate Knowledge of Health, Safety, Environment and Risk in The Plant
  • Lead closure of process deviations, investigations, and corrective actions
  • Insure intradepartmental and cross-functional alignment of procedures and best practices
  • Identify corrective actions to prevent recurrent deviations.
  • Participate in cross-functional teams to solve production issues.
  • Serves as a change agent to challenge the existing processes in place. Uses data to communicate and support the opportunities that exist.
  • Interfaces with all supporting functions in the plants for the necessary support of the teams.
  • Responsible for developing and maintaining standards for key areas. This includes working with counterparts to ensure cohesive standards are maintained
  Requirements:
  
  • Min: Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Manufacturing Management or equivalents
  • Ideal: Engineer (Mechanical or Electrical),
  • 4-5 years in a supervisory (Team Leader)position in a Multi-shift production FMCG business environment
  • Demonstrated ability to facilitate groups and teams in multiple environments (learning, planning, problem-solving, etc.) and at multiple levels in the organization
  • Attention to details and high energy level (bias for action) while maintaining a “big picture’’ perspective and be results driven.
  • Independent judgment, influencing, consulting, and collaboration skills to work effectively at all levels in a matrix organization
  • Excellent written and oral communications skills with High level of computer and systems literacy
  • Prior responsibility for production (quality, cost, reliability) advantageous
  • Experience in training development, directly or as a subject-matter expert, and especially in Lean or other quality systems implementation; performance improvement experience a plus.
  • High emotional intelligence
  • Ability to be a leader with a desire to coach and develop other people
  Salary: Market Related
  Type: Permanent
  AA Position:No
  Work Level:Senior
  Branch: Anambra - Onitsha
  Method of Application
  
  To apply for this vacancy, click here

ICT Job with Dragnet Solutions Limited

• Dragnet Solutions Limited is a dynamic firm that specializes in the design, development and implementation of people screening solutions that can be deployed in a variety of uses covering both the workplace and the educational arena.
  
  We are currently recruiting an Application & Network Engineer
  

  Application & Network Engineer

  • Job TypeFull Time
  • QualificationBA/BSc/HND   MBA/MSc/MA  
  • Experience 2 years
  • Job Field Engineering / Technical   ICT / Computer  
   
  Key Responsibilities:
  
  • Supervise the projects and responsibilities of the Web and Software Developers.
  • Contribute to the design, development and upgrades of software and hardware
  • Contribute in making technology decisions that affect Software and Hardware Development
  • Manage and support web applications
  • As required, develop and implement application changes and updates
  • Monitor the company’s application on a daily basis to ensure high level application performance and integrity
  • Interface with software vendors and in-house application support team
  • Provide day-to-day administration of all applications
  • Review and test application development changes
  • Monitor and maintain computer systems and networks;
  • Providing support, including procedural documentation and relevant reports;
  • Working continuously on a task until completion (or referral to third parties, if appropriate);
  • undertaking data network fault investigations in local and wide area environments, using information from multiple sources
  • Reporting network operational status by gathering, prioritising information and managing projects;
  • Upgrading data network equipment to latest stable firmware releases;
  • Configuration of routing and switching equipment;
  • Configuration of hosted IP services;
  • Basic configuration of firewalls, and network security standardization.
  • Remote troubleshooting and fault finding if issues occur upon initial installation;
  • Capacity management and audit of IP addressing and hosted devices within data centres;
  Experience Required:
  
  • First degree/MSc. in Computer science/engineering, software engineering, electrical engineering
  • ASP.Net using C#, MVC - minimum of 2 years’ experience
  • ASP.Net Web Services, WCF Experience preferred
  • Network Hardware Configuration
  • Knowledge of TCP/IP, routing and switching.
  • CompTIA Network + Certification
  • CCNA, CCNP (added advantage).
  • Minimum of 2 years of advanced web development experience
  • Minimum of 2 years’ experience (PHP MySQL web development & management)
  • Experience in WordPress site  management
  • SQL Server 2012
  • LINQ, Entity Framework
  • JavaScript using patterns to consume and extend frameworks such as Prototype and jQuery
  • Basic UML creating documents including class diagram, use-case diagram, sequence diagram, state chart diagram, activity diagram, component diagram, deployment diagram
  • Experience dealing with Web Environments utilizing both .NET as well as 3rd Party technologies, CDNs, Cloud services etc.
  Skills Required:
  
  • ASP.NET C#, VB.NET MVC, C++, LINQ.
  • Use of Project management tools such as JIRA, GitHub.
  • In depth knowledge of LAN, WAN
  • MySQL, SQLite, MS SQL Database Management
  • Data warehousing and analytics
  • Network Troubleshooting
  • Networking Knowledge
  • Experience in web-based systems programming and development
  • Demonstrated experience in leading cross-functional project teams
  • Ability to adjust and set priorities to meet deadlines.
  • Ability to understand and analyse system problems in order to define and develop technology-based solutions
  • Good communicator, good verbal and written skills
  • Ability to juggle multiple simultaneous software development projects
  • Ability to provide technical team support
  • Keen desire to stay up-to-date with technology
  
  Method of Application
  
  Interested and suitably qualified candidates should click here to apply online.