Economy
Help Make Tenants Pay Electricity Bills, Nnaji Begs Aba Landlords
Aba Power Ltd. (APL), a subsidiary of Geometric Group, has appealed to Aba landlords to assist the company to ensure that their tenants pay electricity bills regilarly.
The Chief Operating Officer, Geometric Group, Prof. Berth Nnaji, made the appeal at a meeting with Aba Landlords in Ngwa Road on Thursday.
Report says that APL, an Electricity Distribution Company, took over power supply to Aba Ring-Fenced Area from Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) in February 2022.
The Aba Ring-Fenced Area consists of Osisioma, Isiala Ngwa North and South, Aba North and South, Obingwa, Ugwunagbo, Ukwa East and West Local Government Areas of Abia.
Nnaji said the company was owing its power suppliers N5.
2 billion because Aba residents were using electricity but refusing to pay.He said that after paying its engineers and staying in Court and incurring other expenses for nine years, the company paid EEDC $26 million instead of $11.8 million EEDC bought Aba area.
He said that the company had spent so much money, hence urged residents to assist it by paying their bills to enable them to get better service.
He said that APL did not reduce the power they were buying from Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) but that the NDPHC cut its supply to APL because of debts.
Nnaji said that the Geometric electricity generating turbines in Osisioma, the company’s headquarters, would start firing in June or July 2023.
According to him, this will help to stabilise power supply in Aba.
He said that Geometric Power, the generating arm of the business, was expected to spend $2.2 million on 30 million standard cubic meters of gas monthly.
Nnaji, therefore, urged residents to support his company’s effort to stabilise power supply in the comnercial city with timely payment of their bills.
Responding, the President-General, Aba Landlords Development Association, Chief Alphonsus Udeigbo, demanded that residents should be billed according to the energy consumed and not by estimation.
Udeigbo also requested that residents be given prepaid meters in order to reduce the challenge of payment defaults.
“When you do these things, the business will be easier for you and Aba residents,” he said.(NAN)
Economy
Investors Gain N183bn on NGX
The Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) continued its bullish trend on Wednesday, gaining N183 billion.
Accordingly, the market capitalisation, which opened at N59.532 trillion, gained N184 billion or 0.31 per cent to close at N59.715 trillion.
The All-Share Index also added 0.31 per cent or 303 points, to settle at 98,509.
68, against 98,206. 97 recorded on Tuesday.Consequently, the Year-To-Date (YTD) return increased to 31.
74 per cent.Gains in Aradel Holdings, Zenith Bank, United Bank For Africa(UBA), Oando Plc, Nigerian Breweries among other advanced equities drove the market performance up.
Market breadth closed positive with 34 gainers and 17 losers.
On the gainers’ chart, Africa Prudential, Conoil and RT Briscoe led by 10 per cent each to close at N14.30, N352 and N2.42 per share, respectively.
Golden Guinea Breweries followed by 9.95 per cent to close at N7.18, while NEM Insurance rose by 9.74 per cent to close at N10.70 per share.
On the other hand, Julius Berger led the losers’ chart by 10 per cent to close at N155.25, Secure Electronic Technology Plc trailed by 9.52 per cent to close at 57k per share.
Multiverse lost 7.63 per cent to close at N5.45, Haldane McCall dropped 6.07 per cent to close at N4.95 and Honeywell Flour shed 5.62 per cent to close at N4.70 per share.
Analysis of the market activities showed trade turnover settled lower relative to the previous session, with the value of transactions down by 49.44 per cent.
A total of 320.10 million shares valued at N6.48 billion were exchanged in 7,943 deals, compared with 939.41 million shares valued at N12.81billion traded in 9,098 deals posted in the previous session.
Meanwhile, ETranzact led the activity chart in volume with 70.27 million shares, while Aradel led in value of deals worth N1.22 billion.(NAN)
Economy
Yuan Weakens to 7.1870 Against Dollar
The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the Yuan, weakened 22 pips to 7.1870 against the dollar on Monday.This is according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.In China’s spot foreign exchange market, the Yuan is allowed to rise or fall by two per cent from the central parity rate each trading day.
The central parity rate of the Yuan against the dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day. (Xinhua/NAN)Economy
Bring Kaduna Refinery Back into Operation, Youth Group Urges NNPCL
Arewa Youths Initiative for Energy Reforms (AYIFER), has urged Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) to do everything possible to bring Kaduna Refinery back into operation.
National Coordinator of the group, Mr Bashir Al’Amin, stated this in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja.
Al’Amin specifically called on the Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari, to do all within his powers to rejuvenate the refinery and bring it up to global standard.
He said that having delivered the Port Harcourt refinery, coupled with the establishment of Dangote Refinery in Lagos, attention should be shifted to Kaduna refinery for easy spread of petroleum products.
“We are calling on Malam Mele Kyari to expedite action on Kaduna refinery so we can be at par with other regions in the country.
“We equally beg the NNPCL to do professional work in rehabilitating the old refinery and deliver a standard and functional petrochemical refinery and not a blending plant.
“Kyari should resist any temptation that could make him do something that can jeopardise his good image,” he said.
Al’Amin said that since the extinction of groundnut pyramid and textiles in Kano State as well as PAN in Kaduna State and with the Kaduna refinery getting moribund, a lot of youths had lost their jobs.
According to him, all their hopes in the north are tied to the legacy refinery, expressing the hope that God would use Kyari to deliver it well and on time.
He said that the group was solidly behind NNPCL in prayer and would be ready to celebrate the company if its expectations were met. (NAN)