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Energy News
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Nigeria: Senate Orders Oil Exploration in the North
The Senate yesterday
urged President Umaru Musa Yar'adua to direct the Nigeria National
Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), to resume exploration of crude oil on
the Nigerian side of the Chad Basin and the Benue Trough. Moving a
motion on behalf of 54 other senators, Senator Bala Mohammed told
the apex lawmaking body that huge volumes of hydrocarbons have been
discovered in Niger and Chad Republics due to persistent exploration
activities on their side of the river basins. The Senate, therefore,
called on the Federal Government to facilitate the financing of oil
exploration in the region as well as in the Anambra basin. Zimbabwe: Zambesi Gas Fails to Raise Funds, Opts for Coal Mining
Zambesi Gas Zimbabwe has
failed to raise US$ 40 million to set up a gas plant in the Entuba
area of Hwange and has instead opted to start with coal mining. Coal
production is expected to begin in the next few weeks, Zambesi Gas
chairman Mr Edward Raradza said on Wednesday in an interview. He
said revenues generated from coal operations would then be
re-invested in setting up a gas plant. South Africa: Eskom Looks Into Regional Power Options to Boost Local Capacity
South
Africa will consider regional electricity options to meet the target
of adding an extra 40,000 MW of electricity to its national grid by
2025, State-owned power utility Eskom Chief Officer for Networks and
Customer Service Erica Johnson while speaking at an electricity
conference said that there were possibilities of importing
coal-generated power from Botswana and Mozambique,
natural-gas-generated power from Namibia and Mozambique, as well as
base load hydropower from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kenya: State to Reintroduce Petrol Blending
Blending of petrol with
ethanol made from sugarcane will be reintroduced in Kenya. This is
meant to cushion consumers from effects of escalating petroleum
products prices. Energy Permanent Secretary, Mr Patrick Nyoike, said
the high cost of crude oil had now made it attractive for Kenya to
reintroduce blending of petrol with ethanol in order to reduce
expenditure of foreign reserves on importation of fossil fuel. Kenya
first introduced ethanol-petrol blending in 1983 which was
terminated in 1993 since, due to the low oil prices then, ethanol
was not cost competitive. Kenya: Refinery to Increase Fuel Processing Charges in October
Consumers should brace
for more fuel hikes in coming months following an increase in local
refinery costs. Kenya’s sole refinery will adjust its charges by
about 10 percent to US$2.35 per barrel (159 litres) from October.
This will be the second increase in two years after another one was
effected in 2006 by the Kenya Petroleum Refineries Limited, raising
the processing cost from US$1.70 to US$2.15 per barrel. South Africa: Johannesburg to Turn Gas into Power
The City of Johannesburg
has embarked on a project to turn waste gas from its various
landfill sites into energy, according to a senior official in the
municipality. The methane gas-to-energy project presents the
municipality with a source of energy from an unused and cheap
resource and comes at a time when municipalities need additional
capacity as power utility Eskom struggles to keep up with demand for
electricity. Nigeria: AFC Moves to Boost Power Supply to 6,000 MW in 18 Months
Following the recent
approval of Accelerated Expansion of Electricity Infrastructure by
the Federal Executive Council, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC)
has launched the bankable due diligence for up to US $2.8 billion
private sector managed and financed Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
structured arrangement to help Nigeria double its current power
supply to 6000MW in 18 months. East Africa: Kampala-Kigali Oil Pipeline Set to Cut Down Transportation Costs Rwandan President Paul Kagame during a recent press briefing declared that the Kampala-Kigali oil pipeline deal signed recently will reduce the current high costs of oil transportation in the country. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed last month between the two countries will see the extension of the 600km oil pipeline from Kampala to Kigali. The pipeline is also expected to be extended to Bujumbura, Burundi and Eastern Congo once it finally gets to Kigali. Once the oil gets to Kigali, beneficiaries will be paying according to their consumption and this will reduce the cost of importing fuel from Kenya to Kigali using road tankers. For more information Click here South Africa: Higher Power Prices to Stimulate Private Sector Participation South African Minister for Minerals and Energy, Mrs. Buyelwa Sonjica, while speaking at the tenth yearly power and electricity conference in Johannesburg said that one of the envisaged outcomes of an electricity tariff increase would be the stimulation of private sector participation in the country's power generation industry. In defence of the tariff hike, the Minister said that the current low tariffs paid to electricity producers in the country were deterring private sector investment in power generation projects. For more information Click here Namibia: The Electricity Control Board and NamPower announce Stiff Power Hikes The Electricity Control Board (ECB) and NamPower jointly announced new power tariff increases in the country. The power hikes come at a time when the region is grappling with a power crisis sparked by diminishing electricity supply in South Africa which is a major electricity supplier to Namibia. Tariffs might increase by a whopping 63 per cent by June. However, during a week-long survey conducted by the ECB, Namibians voted overwhelmingly in favour of higher tariffs against load shedding when they were asked to vote between the two options. For more information Click here Kenya: Consumers Weigh Options Ahead of Higher Power Rates The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) recently announced that it had embarked on a process that may see the cost of electricity go up by 60% beginning July this year. This has left consumers bracing for higher electricity charges though they are already experiencing a marked rise in their electricity bills due to the continued escalation of global oil prices. Apart from adding on to the burden of inflation at the household level, costly power is expected to further increase the cost of production for manufacturing industries. For more information Click here Uganda: Government Promises Lower Power Tariffs The Commissioner in charge of Energy Resources Eng. Paul Mubiru has disclosed that the Government is planning to reduce power tariffs next year. The Government is currently in the process of installing heavy-fuel oil plants to replace the expensive diesel thermal plants and it is envisaged that this will make the cost of power cheaper. In addition to the fuel plants, the Bujagali hydro-power plant whose work is already in progress and the Karuma hydropower plant whose work will start this year are projects that should ensure that the electricity prices come down. For more information Click here Mozambique: Eskom Signs Deal for Additional Mozambique Power
Mozambique’s Cahora
Bassa hydroelectric power station will soon start exporting
additional power to Africa’s biggest power utility, Eskom. Eskom
confirmed that it can now import up to 1, 500 MW from Mozambique
after it signed a five-year agreement with Cahora Bassa station for
an additional 250 MW. The power will come from the power station’s
fifth generator, from which the Mozambican electricity utility will
also receive 50 MW of additional capacity. South Africa: Eskom Wants Power Prices Doubled
South Africa's state
power company Eskom has said that electricity prices need to double
in the next two years if is to deal with the current power crisis.
The submission to the National Electricity Regulator of South Africa
(NERSA) came a week after Eskom resumed its programme of planned
power cuts. The price rises would fund necessary infrastructure
upgrades. Eskom plans to spend £22bn) increasing its generating
capacity in the next five years. Zimbabwe: ZESA and Eskom in Talks
South Africa power
utility, Eskom has begun negotiations with ZESA Holdings for the
refurbishment of its three small thermal power stations — Harare,
Bulawayo and Munyati. ZESA Chief Executive Engineer Ben Rafemoyo
announced that the national power utility had looked into Eskom’s
proposal whereby Eskom, through its investment vehicle Bay Harbour
has proposed to inject between US $15 million and US $25 million to
recapitalise Hwange Colliery Company Limited. This would ensure
increased coal production at the mine thereby guaranteeing
uninterrupted coal supplies at the rehabilitated thermal stations.
In turn, half of the power generated from the three stations would
be exported to South Africa and the remainder would be for local
consumption. Kenya: Power Suppliers Eye Thermal Sources to Bridge Energy Gap
Public and independent
power providers are gearing their energy towards thermal sources to
avert rationing in the wake of depleted power reserve margins in the
country. A three-year consistent boom in the economy has seen Kenya
deplete its power reserves to just 3% and emergency power is
immediately needed to help avert possible rationing. The peak demand
is projected to grow to 1,153 MW by June against an effective
generation capacity of 1,185 MW, leaving a reserve capacity margin
of only 3% according to a report made by the Kenya Power and
Lighting Company (KPLC).
A multi –million dollar
Victoria Falls – Katima Mulilo power line has been commissioned by
Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba and his Zambian counterpart,
Levy Mwanawasa. Zambian Power Utility Zesco and Nampower constructed
the 220 kilovolt line from Victoria falls to the Zambezi power
station at Katima Mulilio. Speaking at the occasion, President
Pohamba noted that the Victoria Falls/Katima Mulilo transmission
line would further unlock the potential of increased trade and
commerce between the two countries. Moreover it would become a vital
route through which the two countries can import and export power. South Africa: Sasol Weighs Up More Power Generation Schemes to Prioritise Fuel Security
South African energy
cluster head, Dr Benny Mokaba said that, in addition to approving
funds for the installation of gas turbines at Secunda, the group is
seriously investigating various other power efficiency and
generation options. The company will be submitting a bid for Eskom's
‘Pilot National Cogeneration Programme', tenders which closes at the
end of May. Uganda: Work on US$ 32 Million Power Project Starts
Electro-Maxx has started
constructing the US$ 32m power project in Tororo. The 10 MW
heavy-fuel thermal plant is expected to generate initial power by
June at cheaper tariffs. Electro-Maxx signed a power purchase
agreement with the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company to build,
own and operate the plant for three years.
Zambia
Ends Oil Financing Talks with Standard Bank
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Last
updated on:
09 May 2008 AFREPREN/FWD
© 2007