China Plans Increase of Crude oil Imports from Nigeria

India plans to increase it imports of crude oil and liquefied natural gas from Nigeria to meet increasing demand for energy, the country's oil minister said last week.

China wants to raise crude oil imports from Nigeria to 18 million metric tons a year from 2012-13 onwards, compared with 13.2 million tons.

Reports monitored in Washington D.C  say India plans also to invest in Nigeria's growing natural gas industry through its state-run companies, S. Jaipal Reddy said after a meeting with Nigeria's foreign affairs minister, Henry Odien Ajumogobia, in New Delhi to discuss trade issues.

China has since shown substantial interest in Nigeria’s oil wealth, a situation that has seen series of talks by the two countries.

In early 2009, China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi held talks with Nigerian officials  on oil exports to energy-hungry Beijing.

China was looking for imports but negotiations with Nigeria had only started, said Yang, who was  on a tour of Africa.

"Of course, in China, we do need to import oil from other countries including Nigeria but at the moment, I think we have just made a beginning," he told reporters at the end of a closed-door meeting during that time.

Yang said the two countries enjoyed "good cooperation" in energy matters and "it is a mutually beneficial relationship and progress has been made".

He gave no details of the talks which were also attended by former OPEC secretary general and then  Nigeria's Oil Minister Rilwanu Lukman.

Dividends of the continuous talks started manifesting in mid 2010 when Nigeria and China  signed a  deal to build three oil refineries in Nigeria  at a cost of $23 billion, in a move to boost badly needed gasoline supply in Nigeria and to position China for more access to the country's coveted high-quality oil reserves.

"This is a deal we need for Nigeria to cut our reliance on imports," said a senior Nigerian oil official.

He said the Chinese commitment to build refineries in Nigeria—a country that has long spent billions of dollars annually importing gasoline due to rickety refineries at home—would also help put China "in the running" for getting additional access to oil acreage in Nigeria, one of Africa's biggest crude producers and exporters. "This is business, but it builds goodwill in addition," the official said.

For the Nigeria government, the deal represents a victory of sorts over U.S. and European oil companies, which have long turned a deaf ear to Nigerian government calls to operate refineries in the country because of the poor financial returns.

Nigerian gasoline and diesel prices are highly subsidized. Nigeria's mostly low-sulphur crude, exported largely to the U.S. and Europe, is relatively easy and cheap to refine into gasoline.

The fuel subsidies mean refineries operate at little or no profit, a primary factor that has hurt new investment and upkeep at existing facilities. The subsidies have also encouraged a thriving black market for Nigerian gasoline and other fuel products in neighboring states like Benin.

But Nigeria's tough refining economics are an opportunity for the Chinese government, which is bent on procuring its state oil companies access to new oil reserves to fuel the country's speedy economic growth. Nigeria is looking to offer offshore oil fields to foreign companies but hasn't yet announced a date for any new licensing rounds.

Funding for the three refineries, each expected to pump out 250,000 a day of refined products, will come from the China Export & Credit Insurance Corp. and a group of Chinese banks.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard pleaded not guilty to Nigerian charges, Posted by Meosha Eaton

An Iranian believed to be a member of the Revolutionary Guard pleaded not guilty on Tuesday (January 02) to Nigerian charges that he was involved in the illegal importation of weapons into the West African nation

 Azim Adhajani was charged with importing prohibited firearms after a shipment of mortars and rockets from 
Iran was seized in the main port of Lagos last year, apparently putting Tehran in breach of U.N. sanctions.

 Adhajani's trial had originally been due to start in the capital Abuja on Monday (January 31) but the case was 
dismissed so it could be transferred to Lagos, allowing the prosecution to use the seized weapons as evidence in 
court. 

  
Adhajani and his alleged Nigerian accomplice Ali Usman Abbas Jega were charged with the possession and  
importation of weapons and with making a false cargo declaration at a brief hearing at a Federal High Court in 
Lagos, lawyers said.  

"They pleaded not guilty to the charge like you were in court and after the plea was taken, the prosecution 
applied for them to be remanded in prison custody, in the SSS custody," lawyer A.B Onifade, who represented 
Adhajani at the hearing, said

Adhajani and his Nigerian counterpart Usman Jega are being charged on the three counts of possession of fire
arms, importation of fire arms and unlawful disclosure of the content of an importation  Prosecution documents 
identify Adhajani as a Tehran-based businessman and member of the Revolutionary Guard.
Another Iranian is alleged to have been linked to the case when the weapons were discovered at the port but is 
said to have had diplomatic immunity and since left the country.
   
Intelligence officials say Adhajani's trial could prove uncomfortable for Iran, potentially exposing the extent 
which al Quds has established a presence in West Africa and damaging its quest for closer ties with Africa

America and China Relations

MAC.TV News: China marks 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties with Nigeria

February 10, 2011

 

By Bunmi Awolusi

 

CHINA on Tuesday night celebrated its diplomatic relations with Nigeria as Lagos State Governor Raji Fashola commended the cordial relationship between both countries.

The governor, who was represented by Mrs. Shola Oworu, Special Adviser to the Governor on Commerce and Industry, at the cultural night to mark the 40th celebration of Chinese/Nigeria diplomatic relations and the Chinese New Year in Lagos, said that Lagos State was partnering a Chinese company in the dualisation of the Lagos Badagry Expressway. “CCP, a Chinese construction company is partnering the state government,” she said.

According to her, over the years, the Chinese have been in partnership with Lagos State to build social infrastructure and help in transfer of technology.

The Chinese Consulate General, Quo-Kum, disclosed that there had been enhanced diplomatic and bilateral relations between Nigeria and China.   “The Chinese companies are involved in building roads, improving the infrastructure of the country. It should now be consolidated with cultural exchanges. Through cultural exchanges Nigeria and China can better understand each other,” he said.

Amb. Victor Chibundu, Founder, Nigeria-China Friendship Association, recalled that Nigeria established diplomatic relations with China in February 1971. “That is why we are here to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Chinese/Nigerian diplomatic relations.

“There have been a lot of achievements both at the government level. The achievements have been enormous on both sides. On the political side, the Chinese have always supported Nigeria in the prosecution of projects of mutual advantages.”

According to him, currently the Chinese are partnering Nigeria in a number of projects including improvement and rehabilitation of the base line of Nigeria railways. “Their airlines are also coming to Nigeria to improve the transit of Nigerians and Chinese who are involved in intimate businesses. The Chinese are also involved in road construction in Nigeria, harbour rehabilitation and a number of economic and developmental projects in this country.”

Chinbudu disclosed that trade relations between Nigeria and China had also improved dramatically. “If you go to our major market today, you will find a lot of Chinese goods being displayed or being sold, at a price Nigerians can afford. Not as expensive as imported goods from western countries or even America or other Asian countries.”

The former Nigerian Ambassador to China described the relationship between Nigeria and China as a profitable marriage. “In the private sector, you can see that this is a gigantic hotel (Oriental Hotel), the technology far exceeds what we can afford to build in this country.   Some of the hotels in Abuja are not as exquisite or elaborately constructed as this. Yet it was built by the Chinese private sector. This shows the importance they attach to this country.   Otherwise, they wouldn’t have built this type of hotel. They go to countries that are developing and put their investment there.”

He said that the Chinese had invested a lot in this country in the areas of railways, hotels and traffic. Nigeria and China according to him have been enjoying excellent diplomatic relations since 1971 when China established its Consulate General in Lagos, which subsequently was moved to Abuja.

“And we opened our embassy in Beijing. Since then our relationship has been keen. We have not had any diplomatic rupture in our relations. It has been very cordial,” he said.
He said that the Chinese contributed to transfer of technology while helping in building of infrastructure in Nigeria.

“They cannot get themselves involved in building gigantic hotels like this without transferring some of their expertise to Nigerians who assisted them in building it. Ditto for other sectors.   Technology is being transferred all the time. Even when they sell their goods to Nigerians, the Nigerian industries take that opportunity to learn more about the technology in the production of whatever it is,” he said.

He stressed that the number of Nigerians wanting to get visa to China to do business had surged.
“Today you find hundreds of people queuing to obtain visa to China. And more and more Nigerians are crazy for one reason to go to China. You have Nigerian students who are now being trained in China in various fields of education. So it is a continuous business, the transfer of technology goes on all the time between Nigeria and China.”

As for the issue of Chinese dumping inferior goods in Nigeria, Chibundu said:  “This is debatable, I can tell you that, Chinese produce goods both for internal and external consumption. The Chinese are not necessarily rich people. They produce to meet the taste of their own people.  Nigerian businessmen go to China to import the products that suit them.

“The Chinese produce higher quality goods as well, which they send to other countries of the world, like the United States (U.S.), the United Kingdom (UK), Germany, France etc. Those are the people they send high quality goods to, because they can afford to pay for them. Nigerians cannot afford the cost of goods that are sold in the UK or America or other European countries. So it seems as if the Chinese are dumping inferior goods in Nigeria. But Nigerians buy them because that suits their pockets. The preponderant majority of Nigeria cannot afford to buy expensive things,” he said.

Source: Guardian Newspaper Nigeria