Art2004 - yes, I keep praying that is how this turns out.

ND9

Article mentions SEO Jefferson connection

Read article below. Author states Jefferson had deals with SEO......

"Jefferson is a man that gained surreptitiously from many African countries by executing contracts and deals using front companies owned by him and his family. He even had deals with people like Emeka Offor. He and Atiku should be put away for life"

I really hope this isn't the case.

ND9
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Thursday, June 14, 2007

http://nigeriaworld.com/articles/2007/jun/142.html
WABARA, TOO LATE TO TALK NOW!


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Let no man deceive you with vain words (Biblical Proverb)

It is no time to go for the doctor when the patient is dead (Irish Proverb)

t is unfortunate that people always fail to learn from their mistakes or that of other people. It is unbelievable how people miss the opportunity they had to speak up, but, will start talking when it is no longer necessary and when the audiences might all “have gone home”.

Senator Adolphus Wabara is now talking and for him to start talking about the secrets he know that will bring Obasanjo down is a smack of childishness, cheap sentimentalism, an act of cowardice and a belated furry.

In June 2003, Wabara emerged as President of the Senate under very controversial circumstances. But all that lasted until March 2005 when a bribery allegation rocked the upper chamber of the National Assembly and Wabara alongside four other senators were accused along with some members of the House of Representatives of collecting N50 million bribe for budget approval from the then Minister of Education, Prof. Fabian Osuji.

The event that followed it led to Wabara's disgraceful exit as the number three citizen on April 5, 2005 when he resigned to pave the way for his successor, Senator Ken Nnamani. He was even dragged to court for collecting bribes.

When he disgraced himself out of office, Wabara barely existed as a senator only seen occasionally but never heard on any issue.

As the senate rounded up its debate on the controversial constitution amendment last year, Wabara was the last to speak. All I made out of his speech then was “that the fight against corruption will not be won if it is targeted at selected individuals”. Wabara in that speech wanted 42 state-structure Nigeria with each zone comprising of seven states. That means additional two states for the South-East.

On the same May 16, 2006 when the third term project was defeated at the National Assembly, Wabara, after speaking on other issues, came to the contentious tenure elongation scheme, philosophically saying that he personally wishes Obasanjo to continue indefinitely given the achievements of the president. That was all we heard from him.

Then on May 31, 2007 at the close of the fifth session of the senate which was two days after Obasanjo handed over to Yar´Adua, he started opening up again after a long time in hibernation.

Senator Adolphus Wabara in his valedictory address at the session that marked the close of the fifth Senate presided over by his successor in office, Senator Ken Nnamani, dismissed as untrue the claim by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that he did not want a third term in office, saying Obasanjo wanted it badly but that the God of Nigeria denied him his “devilish plans.”

Wabara told the Senate that he was privileged to know certain things that were not in the realm of the ordinary Nigerians.

According to him, “We should not forget that the Third Term agenda collapsed right here in this hallowed Chamber and even if we did nothing else, this cannot be wished away. We had the courage to do the right thing, and we rescued our people and our country from the stranglehold of one man who recently said if he wanted Third Term, he would have had it. Obasanjo wanted Third Term badly but the God of Nigeria, the Allah of Nigeria, denied him his devilish plans”.

Wabara used the forum to remind Obasanjo that he resigned his position as Senate President to protect the integrity of the Upper Legislative chamber and not because of his fear of EFCC. Wabara had the gut only after Obasanjo left the political stage to say “I expected Obasanjo to step aside and face charges on the PTDF issue instead of clinging to power as Baba or is it Ali Baba and the forty thieves.”

Wabara claimed that some of the Senators, including him, were sacrificed because of their opposition to the “earlier incarnation of the Third Term Project.” An easy way to cover up!

Then in Daily Sun Newspaper of June 11, 2007 he seems to have turned into a talkative when nobody was listening to him, warning that he has Obasanjo’s killer secrets, saying that he will reveal them at the appropriate time:

“Adolphus Wabara declared that at the appropriate time, he would reveal all that he knew about former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, even as he declared that the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu was a stooge under the Obasanjo’s administration”.

Wabara said in that interview: “I was not number three citizen for nothing. Just as Atiku was taken for a ride, when he opened his Pandora’s Box, Nigerians were agog in disbelieve. And since we are all in the same government, we all have our own Pandora’s boxes waiting to be opened. But at the fullness of time, I’ll do that. I’m not waiting for him to jump start it, or to kick start it”.

On Ribadu, the former Senate President said “We have been saying it that you don’t run a parallel government because you are making all kinds of statements. If you finish your investigations, take your investigations to court and prosecute. I’m happy since Yar´Adua stepped in; he (Ribadu) is quiet. It doesn’t mean he is not doing his job. He is doing his job. But it is not for him to go to the pages of newspapers saying all kinds of things. What the president should say and what he shouldn’t say, he is the one saying them. It tells you that he is a robot. Otherwise if that is his style, why is he doing the right things now? He’s probably a robot or a stooge to Obasanjo.”

Senator Wabara is a man that had the opportunity to change things in positive ways for his people, but, blew the chance on the altar of selfishness, errors of judgement and political immaturity. Infact Wabara committed political suicide. He is dead politically and can never win election again even as a councillor in his ward. Why is he making noise? Playing to the gallery will not help him.

I still remember him lamenting and wailing during the 2005 Christmas celebrations how life changed, because, he celebrated it only with his wife and son as nobody came calling to identify with him. He was comparing the Christmas celebrations of 2005 with those of the years before when he was still the senate president and the number three man in Nigeria; when you hardly see space in his compound, because people was “trooping” in and out, trying to identify with the man of the moment then. Sadly for him, the 2005 Christmas season jerked him back to reality of life as “the head that once worn the golden crown started wearing a crown made of thorns”. He was left alone and on his own. All his friends when he was the senate president deserted him. Nobody wanted to identify with a failure. There will be more lonely Christmas seasons for Wabara. Moreso, now that he is no longer a senator.

Wabara forgot where he came from and then where he was going, because, for somebody to know where he/she is going, he/she must know where he is coming from.

His people, the Ukwa-Ngwa people, the Igbos and Nigerians that expected much from him were disappointed. Wabara failed his family, his village, his community, his local government area and most of all, the Ukwa-Ngwa people, the Igbos and Nigeria as a whole.

Let me tell Wabara a little about those he failed:

Wabara failed those women with babies at their backs labouring under the harsh rays of the sun in their farms in Ohanku, Azumini, Umuagbaghi Aba, Nsulu, Osisioma, Ngwaiyiekwe, Obegu, Obeaja, Owerrinta etc.
Wabara failed those poor traders hawking their wares at Nkwo Ngwa market, Ahia Ohuru, Ahia Ehere, Eke Akpara, Afo Ogwe, Orie Ohabiam, Ahia Araria, Ahia Ogwumabiri etc.

Wabara failed those women weaving clothes at Akwete, working very hard, but, gain little or nothing from their labours.

Wabara failed the children (all over his senatorial zone) going hungry and out of school because their parents can’t afford to pay their school fees.

Wabara failed those people fetching and drinking worm and bacteria infested stream water at Akwete, Ogbor Hill, Ohambele, Ohanso, Umuosi, Owerri-Aba etc.

Wabara failed the palm wine tappers and palm fruit cutters from Ihie Ukwu, Ihie Obeaku, Umuakwa, Nkpuruobe etc, risking their lives every day to make ends meet.

Ukwa-Ngwa land is also an oil producing area, but, it is not receiving the kind of spotlight the other oil producing areas in Nigeria are getting. Wabara should have changed all that, but, he failed.

Wabara as a senate president failed to get Obohia – Azumini Road that leads from Aba town to his compound repaired. He decided only to fly in then with helicopter as the number three man in Nigeria. Whatever that goes up must come down. Now he is down to the reality. Just like Obasanjo who the other day lamented how he spent two hours in traffic between Otta and Lagos. Obasanjo spent eight years living in fantasy, but, is experiencing now what every other Nigerian is experiencing. I hope that he will soon see that many Nigerians are living on less than a dollar a day, because, when he was still the president, he feigned ignorance to that obvious fact.

Wabara is one of those selfish Igbo political elites that my generation wants out of the political limelight because he offered nothing to his people when he had the opportunity to do that and will not offer anything in the future.

He spent more than two years after his dethronement still as a senator and failed to tell the world what he know that can bring Obasanjo down , but, waited until Obasanjo left the presidency to start promising “fire and brimstone” against the ex-president.

Senator Wabara, Obasanjo is not going for a beauty contest again and is not afraid of the jury. All that you and your colleagues at the senate then claimed to have achieved the last four years was the scuttling of the third term project. Who cares?


If some of us had the premonition that Yar´Adua will take the steam out of EFCC, we would have supported the third term project so that Obasanjo would have continued and sanitised the political arena. Afterall, what good is a democracy if it can’t bring in meaningful changes for the people? In Nigeria we have only “glorified democracy” that is nothing other than PDPcracy (clique rule).


The third term bill had other better intentions for Nigeria and if that the bill had sailed through, it would have definitely changed Nigeria for the better. Look at what we missed by throwing away the third term bill: Call for state creation; increased derivation; rotational presidency; direct funding of local governments and judicial as well as legislative independence etc.


Senator Wabara started his tenure as senate president by being “too” friendly to the presidency and Obasanjo used and dumped him. Typical of Obasanjo! Wabara gave Obasanjo the ammunition he needed to bring him down by his lack of decorum and miscalculated political steps.


Ken Nnamani that took over from Wabara learnt a fast lesson from him. That was why Nnamani stood his ground upon everything Obasanjo and PDP did lately to make him crack. Wabara witnessed everything that happened to Evan Enwerem, Pius Anyim and Chuba Okadigbo before him and still made the same mistakes the trio made. We need to re-examine the mental capability of senator Wabara, because, as an Igbo man he supposed to be wiser than he exhumes.


Wabara ruined his career and that of Prof. Osuji, a nice man that had the interest of his then ministry at heart! Wabara asked Osuji for the bribe in order to increase his ministry´s allocation and Osuji wanting to do something for his ministry because of his love for education, decided to go to his friend, the then Vice-chancellor of Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) to borrow the money to give to Wabara and his colleagues in crime. Osuji lost everything due to Wabara’s insatiable appetite for money.


If Wabara was still the senate president when the PDP gubernatorial nomination in Abia State was held, there was no way an Ukwa-Ngwa man wouldn’t have secured the nomination due to his influence and an Ukwa-Ngwa man could have defeated the PPA candidate that was rigged in as the governor of Abia State. Ukwa-Ngwa people having the number and the preponderance of votes would have matched whatever trick Orji Uzoh Kalu might have devised to rig his man in so as to continue being relevant in Abia State politics and maintaining his excruciating grip on the state, even all the way from United States where he will run to when the EFCC turns the heat on him. Is he still in Nigeria, if I may ask?


Unfortunately Abia State will remain the same for the next four or eight years, depending whether the present governor “wins” re-election in 2011. His mentor and predecessor Orji Uzoh Kalu did nothing for the state for the eight years he was incharge and that will continue for the next four and maybe eight years to come. Aba town, my home town; a city I am emotionally attached to and for me the best place in the world has been turned into a city of dungs. This is a city that gave Nigeria a lot. Aba and Abia State deserve better!




Few words for President Yar´Adua


President Yar´Adua should not expend his political capital on trivialities. He should not take the goodwill of the people for granted. People can make his reign as miserable as possible. He is not Obasanjo and will crack under pressure that Nigerians can bring to bear on him. He should be careful!


Nigerians decided to give Yar´Adua the benefit of doubt, taking into cognisance the process that threw him up on our faces, hoping that he will be a break from the past, but, if he can’t bring about the needed changes, I am sorry that he might not last. We are not judging him yet, but, his body language these two weeks since he took over is not too pleasing. Yar´Adua should not forget that Nigeria of 2007 and beyond will not be like the Nigeria before 2006. He should not underestimate the resolves of Nigerians, Things are getting to a breaking point; when the elasticity limit is surpassed, there will be no remedies again. Groundbreaking revolutions the world over started from no where and became all encompassing and all consuming. Nigerians are being pushed to the wall. I hope that Yar´Adua as a former Marxist understands what that means.


EFCC is the best thing that has happened to Nigeria since independence. Every body acknowledges the importance of the organisation, even those that oppose the method they are using in achieving their set out goal. If Yar´Adua makes EFCC to be everything less than what it was during Obasanjo’s tenure, then he is failing. What people like me want is the empowerment of the organisation more than Obasanjo did, but, it seems Yar´Adua is taking out the steam from the body to please his corrupt ex-colleagues.


Looting of treasuries and other crimes are deep rooted in Nigeria and must not be handled with kid gloves. President Yar´Adua should know that if he help put corrupt politicians behind bars, he has achieved a lot for Nigeria, because, incumbents of authority positions and others will be afraid to embezzle the commonwealth in their care and will use it to develop their respective states or whatever and that will mean “development” we all are craving for. There must be deterrence otherwise Nigeria will fall back to pre-1999 level.


Yar´Adua should remember how he lamented about where to get five million Naira to collect the PDP Presidential nomination form in 2006 when he was still a governor of a state and wanted to contest for the presidency. He could have easily dipped his hands into the state coffer to take the money, but, he didn’t. For the corrupt ex-governors that contested for the presidency then, the five million Naira figure was a peanut! There was no difference for them between their state’s fund and their personal money.


Yar´Adua declared his assets as of when due and he transformed his state from one of the least developed to a vibrant one. Yar´Adua rendered selfless services to his state as a governor while most of the other state governors squandered their state’s commonwealth and want now to be walking free. No way, they belong behind bars.


The corrupt politicians and ex-governors know how to circumvent justice through the law court because the judiciary in Nigeria can be compromised. That is why so many corrupt ex-governors decided not to run away again, Yar´Adua in order to please some of them took the steam and flame out of EFCC. Those that ran away are coming back because they are sure to buy their ways out in the law court. Atiku Abubakar who is one of the most corrupt Nigerians of all time might now decide to come back. The following ex-governors: Joshua Dariye, Boni Haruna, Saminu Turaki and Chimaroke Nnamani absconded, but, might be regretting it and might be making their ways back to Nigeria since EFCC is no more “biting”. It is now reported that Nnamani is back because there is nothing to fear again.




About Atiku Abubakar:


I feel disgusted by his attitude. He is such a person that Nigerians should be thankful to the Almighty in heaven that he was not elected the president. Nigerians should thank God for His infinite mercies that Atiku Abubakar is still being exposed.


United States grand jury said that: Former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, agreed to accept a bribe in the form of a percentage in order to assist United States Congressman, William Jefferson, secure a business deal in Nigeria. This US Grand Jury indicted Jefferson for racketeering, soliciting bribes, wire fraud, money-laundering, obstruction of justice, conspiracy and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.


Atiku reacted: Saying that he was a victim of a 419 scam in the controversial United States Congressman Williams Jefferson saga, saying further that he was exposed to a conman who dropped his name to swindle unsuspecting businessmen.


US Congressman Jefferson reacted: Insisting that part of the alleged bribe money belonging to FBI was meant for “it’s Nigerian Plan”. Claiming that FBI gave him the money to give to Atiku! Wonders will never end.


Atiku would have sell Nigeria without blinking, if, he was elected the president


Atiku and Jefferson’s saga is a clear case of lies, deceits and denials. They are victims of their own traps.


Atiku that supposed to protect Nigerians from conmen is himself crying to be a victim. What will ordinary Nigerians then do?


Jefferson is accusing the FBI of setting up Atiku. But Jefferson refused to tell us that he was the first person that reported Atiku to Obasanjo before even the FBI asked Nigeria to provide them with certain information about Atiku Abubakar. Infact Jefferson exposed Atiku Abubakar. Jefferson is a man that gained surreptitiously from many African countries by executing contracts and deals using front companies owned by him and his family. He even had deals with people like Emeka Offor. He and Atiku should be put away for life. My people say that “he who fetched firewood containing ants invited the lizards for picknick”. The preponderance of evidences against this duo is overwhelming.


It is always the case for African-Americans to hide under the cheap blackmail “that they are being persecuted because, they are blacks” anytime they are caught up in crime. We know that blacks in America and Europe are sometimes falsely accused, but, whenever that is the case, the whole world use to see it that way, but, Congressman Jefferson refused to tell us why FBI should rope Atiku in through him?


FBI and CIA will only go after somebody if that person is being considered a “threat to American interest and security”. Is Congressman Jefferson telling us that Atiku was and is still a threat to American existence in any way as to be the reason for the FBI setting Atiku up through him? What does FBI intended to achieve by going through Jefferson to get at a then sitting Vice-President of another country?


Atiku is claiming to be “clean”. Why was he the only vice-president in the whole wide world then that FBI went after?


Jefferson was not the only black member of the US Congress. Why was he chosen by the FBI to do their “dirty” bidding, if he claims to be innocent?


The simple answer is that Jefferson and Atiku are conmen themselves who fell into their own traps. Atiku is now back, the EFCC should prosecute him immediately. He is still bluffing, but, when the chips are down, he will face the reality of life.


My take on all these:


“For God so love Nigeria that He did not allowed Atiku Abubakar to be President, because he would have sell Nigeria at our back, but, gave us Yar´Adua in order to lift Nigeria out from the quagmires she is in”


The story that appeared on daily Champion of May 13, 2007 (Yar´Adua, Atiku strike deal) is too cold to be true. If Yar´Adua decides to incorporate Atiku in any way into his government, then is that the beginning of the end? Atiku is no longer comfort staying abroad because of the US Grand Jury’s report that implicated him in crime. Atiku is now afraid that a US court might issue an international arrest warrant on him anytime from now, that’s why he decided to accept to work with Yar´Adua now after rejecting the same offer for weeks. Atiku decided to return to Nigeria to hide from the American Judiciary System. Things worked out fine for him, because the EFCC that he ran away from is no longer as effectual as before, because Yar´Adua in trying to legitimise his flawed election decided to water down the powers and clout of the EFCC to please his corrupt political friends and opponents. Oh my God, we seem to have a big problem in Nigeria.


On the other hand, the news that, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) has finally agreed to team up with Yar´Adua to form a government of national unity is pleasing and is just like music to my ears. This is what Nigerians want and is a step in the right direction. Unity government that is all inclusive is the best for Nigeria, as long as Atiku is not included.


The Ex-Governors are going to EFCC now with pomp and pageantries and those that ran away are coming back because they have seen that Yar´Adua has made EFCC a toothless bulldog. The ex-governors that supposed to be going to answer EFCC´s call like “fowls beaten by the rain” are now going there with deafening footsteps with no fears at all. Something is wrong here!


So far, the EFCC has quizzed about seven governors out of 15 billed to be questioned. Among ex - governors so far interrogated are Dr. Peter Odili, Chief James Ibori, Rev. Jolly Nyame, Alhaji Saminu Turaki, Alhaji Ahmed Sani Yarima, Senator Tinubu and Chief George Akume.




For instance, ex-governor Ibori of Delta state bankrolled Yar’Adua’s campaign, but, his successor is downsizing the ministries because, there is no money to maintain them. That means that so many people from Delta state will be out of work and that will entail hardship to such people and their families. Ibori is walking free bragging to be the “king-Maker”. He should go to jail to be the King of Kirikiri Prison.




There is a report that the on-going interrogation of former state governors by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yielded over N100 billion so far. It is not enough. Some of those ex - governors should be in jail; they raped their respective states and left them bare.


No corrupt ex-governor should be given appointment. It is unacceptable to Nigerians. From the reports reaching us, so many corrupt ex-governors submitted their names for ministerial and other appointments through their present state governors and chairmen of their party. The only ex-Governor that deserves an appointment is Donald Duke. He belongs to my generation and he rendered selfless services to Cross River State. We are calling upon President Yar´Adua to start grooming Duke for higher authority positions, because we know that he will one day be the president of Nigeria, no doubt about this.


Imagine where the departing governors handed over empty treasuries and debts to their successors, upon that they received their state’s monthly allocation for May few days before they left office.


Nigerians want a just and egalitarian Nigeria where all will have a sense of belonging. There are three arms of the Armed Forces (Army, Navy and Air Force) and three arms of the Para-Military Forces (Police, Custom and Immigration). There are six geo-political zones in Nigeria. Fairness demands that a person from each of the geo-political zone heads one of these arms of the Armed Forces and Para-Military Forces. This will be subjected to rotation within a time frame. There must be one senior person in each cadre from each of the geo-political zone that can be tapped to lead a branch of the Forces.


May I reiterate here that the Igbos should be treated fairly and equally, we can’t be watching Yar´Adua do the same things his predecessors did against the Igbos.


Yar´Adua had a meeting with the South-South Governors; he should also do the same with the South-East Governors. The leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force, (NDPVF), Alhaji Mujahid Asari-Dakubo detained since September 19, 2005 has been released. A good thing! The leader of MASSOB Chief Ralph Uwazuruike should be released also. The longer the MASSOB leader is incarcerated, the more his followers get hardened and then the harder it will be to placate their minds and to solve the problem(s).


Yar´Adua wants to meet with Afenifere, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) and Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the three major ethnic, social and political groups in the country inorder to confer with the leadership of the groups as to provide them an insight into the working of his administration and the need to promote unity, peace and progress among the nation's ethnic groups. Yar´Adua also want to use the opportunity to assure the groups that no Nigerian, irrespective of his ethnic background would be marginalised by the current administration. That is good, but, let that transcend above mere words as soon as possible.


Yar´Adua promised in Germany (while attending the G-8 summit held there recently) to declare a state of emergency on the energy sector so as to have free hands to confront the problem by circumventing the bureaucratic hurdles of the National Assembly. Good thing!


Conclusion


Yar´Adua should “stand up” for the down-trodden. He pledged to be a servant-leader. Good, but let it not be only in words, because talk is talk and talk is cheap. We want actions.


Yar´Adua should make sure that no Nigerian is left behind; he should carry every body along.


Yar´Adua should not pretend not to know what is going on; that every day lots of Nigerians passes on because of poverty and disease.


I believe and hope that before his tenure runs out; I will see an end to hopelessness, suffering, giving in, injustice, death, poverty, ignorance, illiteracy, diseases, frustration etc amongst millions of Nigerians. If he fails to make that happen, then we will count him as a big failure. The expectations on him are overwhelming and he should not fail to “deliver” because he has no reason not to.


Nigeria is blessed in and out; Yar´Adua has everything to make the needed differences. There should be no excuse(s) for failing.

"if Middle Eastern financial institutions were to team up with domestic U.S. private equity firms, that would be a way for them to take equity ownership in U.S. assets"



the above is a quote from the article

Millinneum Energy Director is Cadet. Did WB leave?


Energy
Higher oil prices and rising demand in the global oil and gas markets will spur investments not only by national and international oil and gas companies in the upstream sector, but also in processing facilities, infrastructure projects and services. The Middle East holds 62 percent and Africa 9 percent of the world's oil and gas reserves. These reserves are relatively under-exploited and will be drawn upon to meet world's demand for oil and gas. The MEA Region will be a prime target for infrastructure, services, and facilities investments, where the MFC can play a crucial role mobilising private capital and facilitating effective private investments in the sector.

MFC has an extensive network of contacts and strong relationships with a wide range of industry participants. Our Energy team is highly experienced and has been involved in numerous strategic transactions, including acquisitions, mergers, privatisations, licensing, and a diverse range of debt and equity financing. MFC is one of the very few financial institutions in the Region offering a full service energy team capable of providing its clients with a unique combination of expertise, a broad range of investment banking services and access to top regional decision makers within the energy sector.

If you would like to discuss a potential transaction in Energy, please contact Laurent Lavigne du Cadet, Managing Director (Tel. +971 4 363 4200).
http://www.mfcorp.ae/cms/view.php?id=129

Buyout firms + oil riches = Perfect match
Will oil states awash in cash be the next foreign governments to get in on the U.S. private equity boom?
By Grace Wong, CNNMoney.com staff writer
June 4 2007: 10:41 AM EDT


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- China raised eyebrows on Wall Street and in the red-hot private equity business last month when its state-run investment arm agreed to buy a stake in Blackstone Group, one of the leading private equity firms in the United States.

The question now is which governments will be the next to partner up with a major private equity firm?

MORE ON PRIVATE EQUITY
Private equity: Not just for the rich

State pension funds are some of the largest investors in private equity. Here's a look at some of the biggest investors. (more)

PUMPING PETRODOLLARS
ESTIMATED TOTAL ASSETS
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (UAE): $250-$500 billion
Bank of Russia Reserves & Oil Stabilization Fund (Russia): $260 billion
SAMA & Government Institutions (Saudi Arabia): $250 billion
Government Pension Fund (Norway): $170 billion
Kuwait Investment Authority (Kuwait): $160-$250 billion
Qatar Investment Authority (Qatar): $30 billion-$40 billion
Source: PIMCO. Estimates as of mid-2006.

Oil-producing nations - which have benefited from the climb in oil prices over the last five years - are believed to be among the most likely candidates. The surge in oil prices has sent the value of their oil exports soaring - creating huge trade surpluses and lots of cash for governments in the Middle East and Central Asia.

The bad boys of oil
According to Morgan Stanley, the cumulative surplus in trade and investments for oil-producing countries in those regions soared to 20 percent of GDP last year, up from 5.4 percent in 2002.

Oil states don't publicize much about their investments so tracking where their funds are going can be difficult. Ramin Toloui, senior vice president at bond manager Pimco, estimates that so far, the oil nations have plowed most of their oil riches into low-risk assets like U.S. Treasury bonds.

But some governments have been putting money into more aggressive, return-oriented investment funds, he wrote in a report earlier this year.

And Gulf states would not be alone in seeking higher returns by buying into private equity firms. Investors around the world have piled into the risky, but lucrative world of private equity in recent years.

Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates, has formed its own private equity firm, Dubai International Capital, which in turn has done deals with some of the most prominent names in the buyout business.

Dubai International Capital, for example, sold the Tussauds Group to Blackstone earlier this year, and as part of the deal, received a 20 percent stake in a newly combined group of tourist attractions.

And the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) - considered one of the most powerful institutional investors in the world - reportedly bought a 40 percent stake in a fund that Apollo Management, another prominent U.S. private equity firm, listed in Europe last year.

Owning part of a private equity firm is different from merely investing in its funds. China's deal - considered the first of its kind - gives it a stake in Blackstone's management company and the lucrative fees it generates. That could prove an attractive structure for Gulf states seeking to improve their returns and also to get a crack at the U.S. buyout firms.

"This is speculative, but if Middle Eastern financial institutions were to team up with domestic U.S. private equity firms, that would be a way for them to take equity ownership in U.S. assets," said Christopher Ruppel, a senior geopolitical analyst with energy consulting firm John S. Herold Inc.

Still, there is some hesitancy among Persian Gulf states to invest in the United States after the collapse last spring of Dubai Ports World's effort to manage U.S. ports, said Saad Rahim, manager of the country strategies group at energy consulting firm PFC Energy.

"The big issue is a question of political backlash. Dubai Ports World scared a lot of people in the Gulf and made them wary of large investments in the U.S.," he said.

But the way deals are structured could help defuse political tension. For example, under its agreement with Blackstone, China limited its ownership to 10 percent and took a non-voting stake.

Phillip Phan, a professor of management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, thinks China's move will pave the way for similar deals.

"It sends a strong signal," he said, and gives comfort to other institutional investors that may be leery of the risks associated with private equity

WEF looks to China with hope and fear
Sapa-AP
Posted to the web on: 15 June 2007


SA less competitive globally, says WEF

CAPE TOWN - Business and political leaders attending an annual conference meant to focus entrepreneurial attention on Africa hailed China’s and India’s huge appetite for raw materials as a powerful driving force to move the African economy up a gear.

But the discussion at the World Economic Forum’s (WEF’s) annual conference on Africa, which ended on Friday, was tinged with a now familiar note of anxiety that the two giants would exploit Africa’s resources and leave the continent empty handed.

"It’s an opportunity of a lifetime for a continent such as Africa to have such great attention and increasing demand for its resources from two countries both having populations of more than 1-billion," said businessman Tokyo Sexwale, who is a potential candidate to be the country’s next president.

But he said that the big challenge for China would be to prove to Western critics that it was not motivated by the same financial imperialism of which the West stood accused in the past.

China has found a seemingly limitless market in Africa for its cheap goods. And oil-rich countries such as Nigeria and Angola provide the natural resources China needs to sustain its rapid growth.

The Chinese economy is growing by about 10%. Much of Africa’s estimated 5,5% economic growth last year - well ahead of the global average - was attributed to China’s near-insatiable demand for the continent’s oil, gas, timber, copper and other natural resources.

"China is growing. China has a voracious appetite for many things. They are buying anything under the sun to support a growth that has taken off," said Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa. "Should we stop them? Should we say they should not buy from us because it’s only raw materials they are buying?"

He said China’s goal of doubling its rate of growth by 2020 offered boundless opportunities for Africa to benefit from the boom.

Africa has become a crucial part of China’s growth strategy. Two-way trade soared 40% to $55,5bn last year, and Beijing says it believes that figure will rise to $100bn by 2020. At a Sino-African summit in Beijing late last year, Chinese entrepreneurs signed deals worth $1,9bn with African governments and firms.

China’s former foreign minister, Li Zhaoxing illustrated the extent of the ties: China had 900 projects in Africa; more than 800 Chinese companies are operating in Africa; it has sent 16 000 medical personnel to the continent; offered scholarships to 20 000 African students and trained 17 000 African professionals. And so the list went on.

China’s relationship with Africa was based on "friendship and equality," said Li, who made a point of greeting African delegates in their native languages. Not everyone agreed.

"We cannot develop industries if within China itself, people see successful stories in Africa and make cheap copies. It doesn’t matter how much aid they give us because they are killing our capability," Kenyan businessman Chris Kirubi said to ringing applause, reflecting widespread concern about cheap Chinese counterfeit products.

Despite the sustained economic growth in Africa, the continent still lags behind the rest of the world. A United Nations (UN) report last week said not a single country in sub-Saharan Africa is on target to meet UN goals of cutting extreme poverty by half, ensuring universal primary education and stemming the AIDS pandemic by 2015. Malnutrition rates and child mortality are rising and African leaders continuously berate developed countries for reneging on promises of aid and debt relief.

Much of the theme at the World Economic Forum conference was about Africa taking control of its own destiny and boosting its own performance.

At Friday’s closing ceremony, President Thabo Mbeki said one of the biggest problems was fragmentation - the continent’s countries often impose high trade barriers against each other’s products. "Everybody recognises it’s necessary to break down barriers and increase trade among ourselves," he said. "The challenge arises in doing all of these things."

Indian science and technology minister Kapil Sibal voiced impatience with the African complaints. "This has nothing to do with China, India and Africa," he said. "Africa must empower itself. They must design their future, they must empower their future."

He said Africa should take note of the example set by India, which lowered its barriers to Chinese imports. "Chinese goods flowed into India and once they flow its a tsunami," he said. But he said that Indian businesses adjusted by raising the quality of their products and thrived on the challenge.

Sexwale appealed to the Chinese to allow African finished products, and not just raw materials, on to its markets. "As for tsunamis, we ask you to keep them Asian, don’t send them to Africa," he said.

Africa Forum Ends With Eyes to "Chindia"

June 15, 2007, 12:23PM
Africa Forum Ends With Eyes to "Chindia"


By CLARE NULLIS Associated Press Writer
© 2007 The Associated Press

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CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Friend or foe? Comrade or colonizer?

Business and political leaders attending an annual conference meant to focus entrepreneurial attention on Africa hailed China' and India' huge appetite for raw materials as a powerful driving force to move the African economy up a gear.

But the discussion at the World Economic Forum's annual conference on Africa, which ended Friday, was tinged with a now familiar note of anxiety that the two giants would exploit Africa's resources and leave the continent empty handed.

"It's an opportunity of a lifetime for a continent such as Africa to have such great attention and increasing demand for its resources from two countries both having populations of more than 1 billion," said Tokyo Sexwale, a South African business tycoon who is a potential candidate to be the country's next president.

But he said that the big challenge for China would be to prove to Western critics that it was not motivated by the same financial imperialism of which the West stood accused in the past.

China has found a seemingly limitless market in Africa for its cheap goods. And oil-rich countries such as Nigeria and Angola provide the natural resources China needs to sustain its rapid growth.

The Chinese economy is growing by about 10 percent. Much of Africa's estimated 5.5 percent economic growth last year _ well ahead of the global average _ was attributed to China's near-insatiable demand for the continent's oil, gas, timber, copper and other natural resources.

"China is growing. China has a voracious appetite for many things. They are buying anything under the sun to support a growth that has taken off," said South African trade and industry minister Mandisi Mpahlwa. "Should we stop them? Should we say they should not buy from us because it's only raw materials they are buying?"

He said China's goal of doubling its rate of growth by 2020 offered boundless opportunities for Africa to benefit from the boom.

Africa has become a crucial part of China's growth strategy. Two-way trade soared 40 percent to $55.5 billion last year, and Beijing says it believes that figure will rise to $100 billion by 2020. At a Sino-African summit in Beijing late last year, Chinese entrepreneurs signed deals worth $1.9 billion with African governments and firms.

China's former foreign minister, Li Zhaoxing illustrated the extent of the ties: China had 900 projects in Africa; more than 800 Chinese companies are operating in Africa; it has sent 16,000 medical personnel to the continent; offered scholarships to 20,000 African students and trained 17,000 African professionals. And so the list went on.

China's relationship with Africa was based on "friendship and equality," said Li, who made a point of greeting African delegates in their native languages.

Not everyone agreed.

"We cannot develop industries if within China itself, people see successful stories in Africa and make cheap copies. It doesn't matter how much aid they give us because they are killing our capability," Kenyan businessman Chris Kirubi said to ringing applause, reflecting widespread concern about cheap Chinese counterfeit products.

Despite the sustained economic growth in Africa, the continent still lags behind the rest of the world. A U.N. report last week said not a single country in sub-Saharan Africa is on target to meet U.N. goals of cutting extreme poverty by half, ensuring universal primary education and stemming the AIDS pandemic by 2015. Malnutrition rates and child mortality are rising and African leaders continuously berate developed countries for reneging on promises of aid and debt relief.

Much of the theme at the World Economic Forum conference was about Africa taking control of its own destiny and boosting its own performance.

At Friday's closing ceremony, South African President Thabo Mbeki said one of the biggest problems was fragmentation _ the continent's countries often impose high trade barriers against each other's products.

"Everybody recognizes its necessary to break down barriers and increase trade among ourselves," he said. "The challenge arises in doing all of these things."

Indian science and technology minister Kapil Sibal voiced impatience with the African complaints.

"This has nothing to do with China, India and Africa," he said. "Africa must empower itself. They must design their future, they must empower their future."

He said Africa should take note of the example set by India, which lowered its barriers to Chinese imports.

"Chinese goods flowed into India and once they flow its a tsunami," he said. But he said that Indian businesses adjusted by raising the quality of their products and thrived on the challenge.

Sexwale, the South African businessman, appealed to the Chinese to allow African finished products, and not just raw materials, on to its markets.

"As for tsunamis, we ask you to keep them Asian, don't send them to Africa," he said.

Africa - New oil and gas deposits in many African countries

14 June 2007 - PANA. Some international oil companies late Wednesday here showcased new hydrocarbon deposits in some African countries, describing them as "viable attractions".
The companies exhibited the deposits and made presentations at the 5th West and Central Africa Oil and Gas 2007 exhibition event.



Some of the countries with the new oil and gas potential are Mali, Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Niger, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Congo, Uganda, Mozambique and Madagascar.
Senior Vice President in charge of Exploration and Business Development for the US-based Vanco Energy Company, Jeff Mitchell, who spoke at the forum, said: "We have acquired deepwater oil and gas acreage for exploration and exploitation in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana".



He said most of the basins have been evaluated using the latest seismic and geo-chemical techniques, which have proven their potential reserves.
Mitchell disclosed that exploration deals have so far been struck in the two countries, including Uganda and other countries.
He also said that the new deposits, which is mostly made up of gas are found both onshore and offshore.



An official of London-based Tullow Oil Plc., Tim O'Hanlon, said the company, which is one of the largest independent oil and gas exploration outfits in Europe, has invested in some African countries with new hydrocarbon deposits.
"Tullow has 120 licences in 22 countries, with operations in the UK Southern North Sea, Africa and South Asia," O'Hanlon, who is the company's Vice President in charge of African business told the participants.



He also revealed that in January 2007, Tullow completed the 595 million pounds acquisition of Hardman Resources Limited, which materially enhances the Group's operations in Mauritania and Uganda.
Meanwhile, Nigeria currently the highest crude oil producer in Africa had recently overtook Saudi Arabia as the US third leading supplier, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).



The African producer leaped from fifth place in February to third in March, pushing the world's top exporter into fourth place, the data showed.
Canada and Mexico held on to first and second places, with crude exports to the US of 1.776-million barrels per day (bpd), down 64,000 bpd from February and 1.621-million bpd, about 263,000 bpd up from February.

Both funds would then invest up to half of the money within rest of article.........................

three months.

In November, the manager of the energy fund said it was in talks with companies including Australia's Anzon Energy and Abu Dhabi's Aabar Petroleum about investing in Middle East and African oil fields.

The second, $600 million tranche for each fund would draw funds from Asian, European and North American investors, and likely close after the summer.

Dubai Islamic and Dubai World, owner of port operator DP World, will provide 10 percent toward each fund, which will comply with Islamic law banning investment in companies involved in alcohol, armaments and gambling or lending on interest.

Dubai Millennium sees 10-plus M&A deals by year-end
Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:10AM EDT

DUBAI (Reuters) - Dubai-based Millennium Finance Corp. is advising on at least 10 $1 billion-plus M&A deals in the Middle East, with several expected to be completed by the end of this year, its CEO said on Monday.

M&A clients include Arcelor Mittal Savola Group, Dubai government-owned firm Dubai World, Dubai Islamic Bank and Bahrain Telecommunications Co., Millennium's Chief Executive Keba Keinde told the Reuters Middle East Investment Summit in Dubai.

"We're seeing consolidation in telecoms and financial services, prompted by globalization," he said.

Overall the company was working on 20 M&A deals in which the target company or the acquirer was based in the Middle East.

Keinde also said that Millennium Finance, an investment bank controlled by Dubai Islamic Bank, was lead managing a IPO worth more than $1 billion to be listed in London and Dubai.

"It will be the largest ever done in the UAE. We hope it will happen this year," Keinde said, adding that other lead managers on the issue included Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch and Shuaa Capital.

Dubai Islamic Bank said earlier this month it expected to raise the first $800 million of a $5 billion group of private equity funds by April and begin investing in energy and telecom projects in the Middle East and Africa.

Millennium said last year it would set up seven funds that comply with Islamic principles to invest in mainly unlisted companies.

The first two $1 billion funds, focusing on energy and telecommunications, will each raise $400 million from Gulf Arab investors by April Continued...

Qatar joins forces with Dubai to invest $1bn
By Simeon Kerr in Dubai

Published: June 14 2007 03:00 | Last updated: June 14 2007 03:00

Qatar and Dubai, two of the Gulf's most aggressive investors, have teamed up to create a new vehicle looking at international and regional investment opportunities.

The $1bn (€750m, £507m) joint company was announced late on Tuesday during a visit to Dubai by Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, Qatari prime minister and a large international investor. It signals growing co-operation between the gas-rich emirate of Qatar and Dubai, the region's commercial hub. Both are ploughing billions of dollars into western companies, while also snapping up expensive London property.

The rest of this article is for FT.com subscribers only

Premier energised by renewed Dubai bid talk
By Andrew Dewson
Published: 15 June 2007
It has been just over six months since Premier Oil's name cropped up in takeover whispers, but the word doing the rounds yesterday was that Dubai Energy is considering an offer for the company.

Premier first disclosed it was in takeover talks in October, and although its suitor was never officially revealed the name most commonly linked to the talks was Dubai Energy. Since the offer talks were terminated, shares in Premier have fallen by more than 25 per cent. Despite an official denial from the company, the market seems convinced something is going on, although one trader pointed out the chat was bound to be revived once the six-month bidding ban passed. Premier closed 31p better at 1,074p as Credit Suisse also told clients that the stock is a "trading buy".

A major investor in the mining giant Anglo American decided to book some profits as Morgan Stanley began a placing of 6.2 million shares through an accelerated book-build. By the close, more than 18 million had been traded, but the bullish overall market mood meant shares in Anglo American still managed to close better, up 16p at 3,055p, and traders said demand for the placing comfortably outstripped supply.

Elsewhere in the blue chips, International Power was well bid on the back of rumours that Electricité de France is considering a bid that could value the shares at up to 600p. Volume was decent as more than 20 million shares changed hands, but by the close of business there was little evidence of the rumours being taken seriously as the stock closed 6.75p better at 435.25p.

The private equity story for Morrisons Supermarkets seems to have been around since the days of Methuselah, but the Swiss broker UBS gave it another airing yesterday. It told clients it believes Morrison's property portfolio could be worth 292p per share, meaning the rest of the business is being valued by the market at almost zero. The broker reiterated its "buy" recommendation, setting a target price of 360p per share. The stock firmed 3p to 300.75p.

London traders were in bullish mood from the word go, following Wall Street's excellent overnight performance and better than expected retail sales figures. Bradford & Bingley led the blue chips higher after a Credit Suisse upgrade which helped the stock to climb 23.25p to 423p. Mining and natural resources stocks were also in demand as the FTSE 100 closed the session 90.3 higher at 6,649.9, with only six stocks closing in negative territory.

MyTravel's merger with Thomas Cook should go through next week and the company will join the Morgan Stanley Capital Indices global index - one that is tracked by many major global funds. That should give the shares a meaningful boost on its own - traders believe few non-UK funds are up to weight in the stock, meaning that there could be a significant short-term supply issue. Traders know demand for the stock is likely to surge, and bid the shares 13p better to 316p.

The oil exploration and production group Soco International hit an all-time high after confirming it expects to see the first production from its Vietnamese wells in the first half of 2008. The stock has been the outstanding performer in the mid-market oils against a sector that has been decidedly sluggish in the past 12 months. The broker UBS upped its target for Soco to 2,100p as the stock climbed 67p to 1,872p.

Down in the small caps, AT Communications got a boost as Ian Crawley, a former corporate financier at Shell International, joined the company as finance director and promptly bought 1.5 million shares at 38p per share. The appointment came with a bullish statement from the chief executive Alex Tupman who told investors the company is poised for growth. The shares rallied 6p to 44p.

Small-cap investors are banking on an all-out bidding war between Sir Tom Hunter's West Coast Capital and the retail behemoth Tesco over Dobbies Garden Centres, following a dawn raid that saw West Coast double its stake in the group. Dobbies agreed to a 1,500p-per-share bid from Tesco on Friday, but it now looks like West Coast will up the ante. It paid 1,750p for the extra stake, taking its holding in Dobbies to 20.6 per cent. The shares rose 260p to 1,785p.

MAXjet Airways completed one of the largest fund raisings on AIM so far this year after the broker Panmure Gordon placed its shares. The low-cost transatlantic business-only airline raised £47.3m of new capital at 138p per share, valuing the company at admission at £96.1m. Despite an early rally, the stock closed the session a slightly pedestrian 2p better at 140p.

Dana Gas and APICORP enter into strategic cooperation and co-investment agreement
Dana Gas, the Middle East's first regional private-sector natural gas company, announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for strategic cooperation and co-investment with the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP).
United Arab Emirates: Sunday, May 27 - 2007 at 09:56 PRESS RELEASE



From Right to Left: Hamid Dhiya Jafar, Executive Chairman of Dana Gas, and Ahmad Al-Nuaimi, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of APICORP during signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates yesterday.


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APICORP is a leading inter-governmental regional financial institution specialized in energy finance and investment throughout the Arab region, and is headquartered in AlKhobar, Saudi Arabia.

This move, which was sealed yesterday in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, marks another significant step in Dana Gas' continued regional expansion, with the strategic alliance signed between Hamid Dhiya Jafar, Executive Chairman of Dana Gas, and Ahmad Al-Nuaimi, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of APICORP. The agreement provides for strategic cooperation across the Middle East Region, including co-investment in joint projects in the natural gas sector.

'We are delighted to have entered into this accord with APICORP. I know it will prove to be a rich and mutually beneficial relationship for both parties in the short and the long term,' said Hamid Dhiya Jafar, Executive Chairman of Dana Gas.


'APICORP's deep level of support for the hydrocarbon and energy industries in the Arab world is well known. Dana Gas aims to capitalize on the equity investment, finance and world class financial advisory capabilities which form APICORP's core business lines.'



'Since both Dana Gas and APICORP are well-established regional entities, this is an important strategic cooperation for both sides,' said Ahmad Al-Nuaimi, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of APICORP. 'Indeed, since APICORP is an intergovernmental institution, while Dana Gas is a private sector company with wide shareholding from throughout the GCC region, this partnership is an ideal example of Public-Sector/Private-Sector Partnership (PPP) that is being advocated globally as an important model for advancing economic growth. The partnering between Dana Gas, which has set itself the highest standards of corporate governance and transparency, and APICORP with our complementary skills and expertise in financing and investing in major energy projects, will bring a great deal of positive value to the related industries in the region, especially to the rapidly-growing natural gas sector.'

Dana Gas and APICORP are already partnering in the Gulf of Suez Gas Liquids Plant, which involves the engineering, fabrication, installation and operation of a high-efficiency gas liquids extraction and manufacturing plant near Ras Shukheir, on the western shore of the Gulf of Suez, Egypt. The Plant will be capable of processing at least 150 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas and will produce approximately 120,000 metric tonnes per year of propane and butane in liquid form.

APICORP was established in 1975 and is owned by the governments of the ten Member States of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), which includes all the GCC countries. The objectives of APICORP are to provide equity investment, finance and specialised financial advisory services of a world class standard in support of the hydrocarbon and energy industries in the Arab world and to initiate, study and promote petroleum-related projects, and participate in their equity funding.

Dana Gas has announced that partnering with reputable companies and institutions from the region and internationally will form a key part of its strategy as it grows across the Middle East and North Africa natural gas industry, through a combination of strategic acquisitions and the development of new energy projects that contribute the region's economies, while serving the interests of its shareholders

United Arab Emirate-based Dana Gas has entered into a partnership with Arab Petroleum Investments Corp. (Apicorp) to facilitate Dana's expansion into other markets, including North Africa and the Mediterranean.

http://www.energyintel.com/DocumentDetail.asp?Try=Yes&document_id=204498&publication_id=31

Dana Gas to sell $1 billion sukuk to fund new projects
BY A STAFF REPORTER

6 June 2007



DUBAI — Dana Gas yesterday said it would sell at least Dh3.67 billion ($1 billion) worth of convertible Shariah-compliant bonds, or sukuk, to finance new projects and acquisitions.


The company has called for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) with shareholders to seek approval to issue the bonds, whose holders will have the right to convert these into shares in the Abu Dhabi-listed company. The EGM has been set for June 26, or July 3 if quorum is not reached at the first meeting.

"The sukuk issue is part of Dana Gas' strategy to put in place a more efficient capital structure through broadening and diversifying the financing channels for the continued growth and expansion of the company's activities," according to the statement issued by the company.

It added that Dana Gas, the first private natural gas company in the Middle East, had received approval from the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority with regard to the issuance of sukuk, which could have a five-year maturity.

It said a sukuk is a fixed term debt obligation that could be converted into shares of the issuer at the election of the sukuk investor and, under certain conditions, at the election of the issuer of the sukuk. Islamic law does not allow a sukuk to pay interest, and so it is structured as profit-sharing or rental agreements underpinned by physical assets.

Hamid Dhiya Jafar, Executive Chairman of Dana Gas, described this as an "important step" for the company to fund its growth plan in the industry across the Middle East region. "The bond issue will also position Dana Gas in international capital markets, where international institutions are showing increased interest in the region and especially the rapidly growing natural gas sector," he said.

The statement said Dana Gas is about to appoint some lead managers to handle the issuance of sukuk, and is having talks with various major international banks that are interested in leading the matter.

Dana Gas is now having a regional expansion in the natural gas sector. In January, it acquired Centurion Energy for over Dh4 billion ($1.1 billion), making the latter Egypt's sixth largest gas producer. It also marked Dana Gas's entry into the exploration and production sector of gas.

In April, the company sealed agreements for gas projects with the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, having an initial investment of some Dh1.5 billion ($400 million).

The statement put at more than Dh1.8 trillion ($500 billion) the current Islamic banking assets worldwide, saying that it is growing at over 15 per cent per annum.

Six Years after, FG Returns Disputed Oil Block to Etete
By Chika Amanze-Nwachuku, 06.14.2007

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The Federal Government has restored the controversial Oil Prospecting Licence (OPL 245) originally awarded to Malabu Oil and Gas Ltd, a company owned by former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Chief Dan Etete, after the company offered to pay $210 million Signature Bonus.
The licence for the oil block which was obtained by the company in 1998 when Etete was minister, was revoked in July 2001, over the company's alleged failure to fully pay the required signature bonus. This has generated a series of controversy and litigations over the years.
The decision to revert the acreage to the company followed an out-of-court settlement of the dispute between it and the Federal Government. According to the settlement terms, the signature bonus is to be paid within 12 months, from December last year when the parties agreed to the terms.
Although, industry sources alleged that Etete awarded the highly prolific block to his company without due process while he was minister, Malabu maintained that it applied and obtained the licence, following government's call for indigenous participation in the upstream sector of the oil industry.
According to the company, the OPL 245 was granted to it in April 1998 on conditions which included a clause that foreign participation in the block should not to exceed 40 per cent. The company further claimed that it complied with all the conditions including the payment of the application fee of N50,000; bidding fee of US$10,000, part payment of signature bonus/reserve valued $2,040,000.
It was learnt that the company thereafter carried out a 2D seismic survey on the block, after which it entered into agreement with Shell Nigeria Ultra-Deep Ltd, consequent upon which Malabu assigned 40 per cent participating interest in the block to the Shell, which it also appointed as its technical partner.
But in a twist, the oil licence was revoked via a letter by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), dated July 2, 2001 and all efforts by the company to make the government rescind its decision yielded no result.
The company had accused Shell of frustrating its efforts at getting the government change its decision, alleging that Shell wanted the government to allocate the acreage to it.
Consequently, Malalu briefed its solicitors to write Shell and Exxonmobil on the suspicion that the former, its technical partner, was in "secret talks" with the government for a selective bidding process with Exxonmobil.
Shell was said to have thereafter sought to terminate the agreement with Malabu, but the company declined. The development prompted Shell to institute a proceeding against Malabu before the International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration. On its part, Malabu approached a United States Court to challenge the revocation, as well as the purported re-award of the block to its technical partner (Shell).
Aside from the US litigation, the company also filed another suit against the Federal Government and Shell before a Federal High Court, Abuja, following an alleged plan by the Government and Shell to consummate the deal while the action was pending in court. The government, it was further revealed, had entered an escrow agreement with Shell for the payment of $210 million and the signing of a production sharing contract over the oil block was carried out notwithstanding the pending litigations.
But after a prolonged legal battle within and outside the country, the parties agreed to amicably resolve their dispute out of court.
Consequently, the parties agreed that the OPL 245 has completely returned to Malabu Oil and Gas Ltd, the federal government has informed Shell of this development and has offered it (Shell) an alternative oil acreage, and that Malabu is expected to pay the federal government a signature bonus of $210 million posted by Shell.
The agreement was contained in various letters written by the former Attorney General of the Federation, Chief Bayo Ojo and the former Energy Minister, Dr. Edmund Daukoru.
The government, according to some of the correspondences exclusively obtained by THISDAY yesterday, had asserted the restoration of the acreage to Malabu and categorically advised Shell to stop laying further claim to it.
Indeed, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) in a letter to Daukoru, dated March 16, titled "Re: Restoration of OPL 245 to Malabu Oil and Gas Ltd By the Federal Government", had noted that the Federal Government received a complaint from counsel to Malabu that Shell was still laying claim to the oil block and reaffirmed that the ownership of the OPL 245 has been restored back to Malabu, following the out-of-court settlement of the dispute by parties.
The terms of settlement agreement signed by the company and the federal government restored the block wholesale and completely subject of course to payment of the signature bonus of $210 million by Malabu.
"Accordingly, the ownership of the block is that of Malabu and therefore same is no longer in dispute and Shell should be so advised," the AGF had said.
Also in a letter to Malabu dated April 11, Daukoru averred that the acreage had been reverted to Malabu and asserted that the decision by the government was irreversible.

National oil champions gain international clout

REUTERS[ THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 2007 04:11:01 AM]

LONDON: Empowered by high prices and fears of supply shortages, the national oil companies which stand guard over the world’s biggest reserves can make ever tougher demands on firms clamouring to join forces with them. For decades international oil companies (IOCs) assumed they had the brains, cash and expertise the national oil companies (NOCs) wanted.

So far this century, their complacency has been rocked by the entry of Asia into the race to access dwindling reserves and by the willingness of NOCs to pool their increasingly impressive expertise rather than to rely on the IOCs. “It’s tougher and tougher for the IOCs who want a place to invest the marginal buck,” said William Ramsay, deputy executive director of the International Energy Agency.

“The NOCs are just a fact of life and if the IOCs want to play, they’re going to have to do it in conjunction with the NOCs.” China overtook Japan in 2003 as the world’s second biggest energy consumer after the United States and has since played a leading role in fuelling explosive demand growth.

As its own reserves are depleted, its national oil companies have been aggressively chasing alternative supplies and often beating IOCs in the scramble for access. In Libya, for instance, Chinese companies have helped to raise the stakes by paying huge sums to win exploration licenses and in West Africa, they have pledged to take part in major infrastructure projects.

“National oil companies from consuming countries are going to plague the international oil companies with these wide-ranging deals,” said Adam Sieminski of Deutsche Bank. “A lot will depend on how flexible they are, but it’s difficult for ExxonMobil, BP, Shell or Total to promise to build railroads.”

Apart from being willing to meet conditions shareholders might balk at, NOCs are maturing into quasi-IOCs or INOCs, as some analysts put it. “NOCs are becoming INOCs in order to be competitive in the search for resources outside their home countries,” said Bob Fryklund of consultancy IHS.

“The landscape has really changed. In the background, the overriding concern is security of supply.”As NOCs gain maturity and aggression, another factor that has made them look not to the IOCs but to one other is the trend for resource nationalism — or the tendency for resource holders to seek to maximise the wealth they retain from reserves.

The chief executive of Malaysia’s state oil firm Petronas said the sense of shared interests by NOCs could one day lead to mergers between national champions. “I think as we move along, as national oil companies develop capabilities and competencies, there is now a willingness... to be working together, sharing resources,” Hassan Marican said in an interview.

“Ten years ago there was a reluctance to work together, but that has changed.” Petronas makes almost as much money as No. 3 US oil firm ConocoPhillips and contributes nearly a third of Malaysia’s revenues. As a leader among NOCs, it has set the pace for other Asian firms.

Hassan is among those who say the rise of the NOCs is partly of the IOCs’ making because they have cut investment in the technology that traditionally has been their strength. “For all the talk about technology, IOCs lag in terms of how much research and development spending they do,” said Saad Rahim of PFC Energy in Washington. — Reuters

If they want to regain their bargaining power, they should increase their research budgets, he said. Alternatively, looking beyond oil and gas, a less obvious approach would be to rethink radically how they work with producer countries.

“In other words, is there a future role for IOCs to serve as vehicles of economic diversification? This has always been the pipe dream of the producers, but is there a way to actually do this for real, especially in the Middle East?” Rahim asked.

UAE's Dana Seeks Regional Acquisitions


http://www.energyintel.com/DocumentDetail.asp?Try=Yes&document_id=205623&publication_id=31

Taiwan foreign minister to visit five African allies to cement ties

Jun 12, 2007, 13:39 GMT


Taipei - Taiwan Foreign Minister James Huang will visit five African diplomatic allies in July to cement ties, following Costa Rica's end of its six decades of formal relations with the island by switching allegiance to China, officials said Tuesday.

'The foreign minister will head to five African allies next month to extend invitations from President Chen Shui-bian to the leaders there for a summit to be held in Taipei in September,' said Chang Yun-ping, African affairs director of the foreign ministry.

Chang said Huang will also attend national day activities in Malawi, and Sao Tome and Principe, two of the five African allies of Taiwan. The three others are Swaziland, Gambia and Burkina Faso, which are among the 24 countries that recognise Taipei diplomatically instead of Beijing.

Ministry officials said Huang's planned visit is aimed at cementing ties with the Asian island's African allies in the face of a growing diplomatic squeeze from China, a rival of the island since the two sides split at the end of a civil war in 1949.

China regards Taiwan as its breakaway province. It claims the island is not entitled to international recognition and has vowed to attack the island if it declares formal independence from China.

Taiwan has been on high alert following reports that China is seeking to woo Sao Tome and Principe by offering to finance the island nation in an oil exploitation cooperation project.

Costa Rica's surprise switch of diplomatic allegiance from Taipei to Beijing last week dealt a serious blow to Taiwan, which had maintained official ties with the Central American nation for 63 years.


© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

Oil companies go deep into Gulf's potential



June 13, 2007, 3:20PM
Oil companies go deep into Gulf's potential
They are taking the bet they can extract oil lying 30,000 feet below the sea floor

By BRETT CLANTON
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

RESOURCES
Graphic: Oil and gas discovered deep in Gulf of Mexico Last fall, a team led by Chevron Corp. became the toast of the oil industry when it demonstrated that an alluring deepwater region of the Gulf of Mexico could deliver on its promise.

Now, oil companies are taking concrete steps to unlock the area's potential, with an eye toward extracting oil from there in as little as two years.

Devon Energy Corp., an Oklahoma City-based firm with about 2,000 employees in Houston, is planning to drill what could be the first commercially producing oil field in the region by late 2009. Chevron has assembled a 60-person team to explore how it will develop the offshore frontier. Shell Oil has ordered a floating platform and plucked 200 employees to work on a project planned to come online by the turn of the decade. Others are also studying ways to turn prospects and discoveries into producing oil fields.

The activity has been spurred by predictions that up to 15 billion barrels of oil — enough to increase the nation's reserves by 50 percent — could be trapped in an ancient rockbed known as the lower tertiary.

The area of greatest interest, known in industry lexicon as the lower tertiary trend, has been hailed as the biggest discovery since
Alaska's North Slope in the late 1960s. It runs about 200 miles from the central Gulf of Mexico to the South Texas Coast, spanning an area about the size of West Virginia.

But the challenges of pulling oil from the region still loom large. Not only are the reservoirs more than 30,000 feet under the sea floor in places, they are hidden under nearly 10,000 feet of water. Getting to the rock means sending drills into densely compacted formations that will be stubborn in yielding resources and that may require new tools that can withstand higher temperatures and higher pressures. All of that means huge costs.

Last week, Devon talked of those challenges during a tour of the Ocean Endeavor, a newly renovated drilling rig it has under contract for the next four years as part of a huge company bet on the lower tertiary.

Stephen Hadden, Devon's senior vice president of exploration and production, compared the task to trying to thread a needle from 10 feet away in the dark. Yet if successful, the company could double its proven oil and gas reserves and see a huge return on investments, he said.

"The reward is worth the risk," he said.


Incentives growing
The excitement over the ultra-deepwater Gulf region comes as high commodity prices and growing global energy demands are providing incentive for companies to invest in higher-risk projects.

Chevron's successful test in September of its Jack No. 2 well told the industry that enough oil could be drawn from the lower tertiary trend to justify the massive investments.

"It proved that this trend could be produced economically and that it even holds a good potential to impact domestic and global oil production," said Matt Pickard, an analyst with Quest Offshore Resources in Sugar Land, which does market research and analysis for the global offshore energy industry.

The Jack well was completed and tested in 7,000 feet of water, and more than 20,000 feet under the sea floor, including a wide salt layer. Such layers, called salt canopies, have been obstacles for oil companies in the region because the formations hampered traditional seismic survey work needed to map underground deposits. But in recent years, more sophisticated 3-D seismic equipment has allowed oil companies to "see" through the salt.


12 finds and counting
So far, 12 discoveries have been announced in the lower tertiary trend since 2001, according to the Interior Department's Minerals Management Service. Yet that number could grow as international oil companies and state-owned firms including Brazil's Petrobras show more interest in the area.

Devon has leased more than 230 blocks — second only to Chevron — from the federal government. Each block is about 5,000 acres.

In coming weeks, Devon will use the Ocean Endeavor to drill a prospect well at its Chuck field, which it owns with Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips. Then, it will drill another well at Chevron's Jack field, in which it owns a partial stake. After that, it will move the massive rig to Cascade, a field in which it holds a majority interest and expects to begin producing oil from in 2009.

Each well will cost at least $100 million and take three to four months to drill, Devon said.

That's why operators are cautious about diving into the region too quickly.

James Cearley, Chevron's general manager of deepwater exploration, said Chevron's team is in the "earliest stage" of a feasibility study to determine how it should invest resources to develop oil fields in the lower tertiary trend.

The company won't begin producing oil in the region until at least 2010, he said.

Other firms, including Houston's BHP Billiton, have sold some stakes in discoveries to focus on lower-risk projects. Such moves are a reminder that not everyone is sold on the outer waters of the Gulf.

Gregory Simmons, Devon's manager of Gulf of Mexico deepwater exploration, said after many years in the industry and seeing many booms and busts, it is hard to blame them.

"Regardless of how good these look," he said, "there's never a sure thing."

brett.clanton@chron.com

Chevron Postpones $3 Billion Jack Prospect in Gulf (Update2)

By Joe Carroll

June 13 (Bloomberg) -- Chevron Corp., the second-largest U.S. oil company, won't resume drilling at Jack, a Gulf of Mexico oil field that may unlock reserves to rival Alaska's Prudhoe Bay, until late this year or early 2008 because of a shortage of rigs.

The company halted work in August because it needed to use the Cajun Express rig to finish another project. It planned to resume drilling next month. A scarcity of rigs that can bore 6 miles below the seabed forced a second postponement, Chevron spokesman Mickey Driver said in an interview today.

The rig shortage means a longer wait before U.S. refiners gain access to the oil in Jack and dozens of adjacent fields in the Gulf. Chevron's successful test of a 20,000-foot well at Jack last year showed that 3 billion to 15 billion barrels of previously unreachable crude could be tapped.

``We absolutely won't start up at Jack this summer,'' Driver said in an interview from Houston. ``There's still a very tight market out there for these rigs.''

There are only 33 drillships and other vessels that can drill in waters as deep as those above the largest reserves of oil in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Rigzone, which tracks global rig markets. Another 48 are under construction.

Transocean Inc., which supplied the rig used to drill last year's Jack well, ``has no rigs available this year, almost none in 2008 and very little in 2009,'' said Philip Weiss, an analyst at New York-based Argus Research Corp. who rates Chevron shares a buy and doesn't own any. ``Given those conditions, it's not surprising to see Gulf of Mexico projects being pushed back.''

More to Prove

The delay at Jack means Chevron has even more to prove to investors in 2008, when five major oil and natural-gas projects are scheduled to begin production in the Nigeria, the Congo, Australia and the Gulf of Mexico, Weiss said today in a telephone interview.

``Next year is when things are supposed to really come to fruition for Chevron,'' Weiss said. ``They went through a little bit of a slow period.'' The company's worldwide oil and gas output fell an average of 1 percent a year for the past five years.

Chevron hasn't decided whether to rent another rig or use one of the vessels already under lease to its partners in Jack, Devon Energy Corp. and Statoil ASA, Driver said.

The company has said it will cost about $3 billion to develop Jack.

Shares

Shares of Chevron rose 59 cents to $81.15 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, retreating from a gain of as much as 99 cents earlier in the session. The stock rose 43 percent in the past year, the third-best performance in the 13-member Amex Oil Index behind Marathon Oil Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp.

San Ramon, California-based Chevron operates Jack and owns 50 percent of the project. Devon, based in Oklahoma City, and Norway's Statoil each owns 25 percent. The field, which holds an estimated 500 million barrels of oil, is about 270 miles southwest of New Orleans.

Chevron, which triggered the energy boom in Saudi Arabia with the 1938 discovery of oil in the kingdom, halted work at Jack last year because it needed the Cajun Express to help finish drilling wells at the $3.5 billion Tahiti field.

Bill Thornburg, Chevron's senior drill-site manager on the Jack and Tahiti projects, said in a December interview that he expected to resume drilling at Jack in July.

Single Platform

Tahiti, which holds 400 million to 500 million barrels of crude, is expected to begin production in the second or third quarter of 2008. Chevron is spending about $1.6 million a day to lease, staff and supply the Cajun Express and the Discoverer Deep Seas drillship working on Tahiti. Houston-based Transocean owns both vessels.

Chevron may pump oil from Jack and a nearby discovery known as St. Malo through a single floating platform to reduce costs, Driver said. The company plans to use the next well it drills at Jack to help decide what sort of platform will work best and how large it needs to be, he said.

The St. Malo field, discovered by Unocal Corp. in 2003, was originally expected to begin production two years ago. Chevron became operator of St. Malo and more than tripled its stake in the project to about 41 percent with the $20 billion acquisition of Unocal in August 2005.

``A year or a year and a-half from now, we'll have a much better idea about what the production profile of this field is going to look like,'' Driver said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Carroll in Chicago at jcarroll8@bloomberg.net

DougC - a R/S would also help get our share price higher so that maybe one day we could get out from the OTBCC and move to a different stock market/exchange - then maybe we could get some real institutional investors.......... Not sure, hoping, dreaming.........

ND9

Drillship Deepwater Discovery was under contract through Aug 06, and was working in JDZ. At least, that's what this article, dated Feb 06, states. See article below where it says, "The Deepwater Discovery is currently under contract to an operator group and drilling offshore Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe in the Joint Development Zone. Upon completion of the existing contract, currently expected during August 2006,"..........

I don't know if plans changed after this article was published......

ND9
****************************************************

Transocean Inc. Fifth-Generation Drillship Deepwater Discovery Awarded Multi-Year Contract

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 3, 2006--Transocean Inc. (NYSE:RIG) today announced that Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) has awarded the company's Fifth-Generation, ultra-deepwater drillship Deepwater Discovery a minimum three-year contract for drilling operations offshore Brazil. Under the terms of the drilling contract, which is currently expected to commence in November 2008, Devon has the right within one year from signing of the contract to convert the primary term from three years to four or five years. Revenues of approximately $520 million to $775 million could be generated over a primary contract term of three to five years in duration, excluding revenues for mobilization, demobilization and client reimburseables.

The Deepwater Discovery is currently under contract to an operator group and drilling offshore Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe in the Joint Development Zone. Upon completion of the existing contract, currently expected during August 2006, the rig will enter a shipyard for approximately 60 days, followed by the commencement of a two-year contract with Total SA (NYSE:TOT) on Total's Akpo field development offshore Nigeria. The rig is one of 32 High-Specification Floaters in the Transocean Inc. fleet, 13 of which are Fifth-Generation Deepwater Floaters. The Deepwater Discovery, which is capable of operating in water depths up to 10,000 feet, entered service in 2000 following its construction at Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Koje, South Korea.

Statements regarding contract durations, contract commencement dates, revenues, timing and duration of shipyards, as well as any other statements that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements that involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. These include but are not limited to operating hazards and delays, actions by customers and other third parties, factors affecting the duration of contracts including well-in-progress provisions, the actual amount of downtime, factors resulting in reduced applicable dayrates, the future price of oil and gas and other factors detailed in the company's most recent Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which are available free of charge on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated.

Transocean Inc. is the world's largest offshore drilling contractor with a fleet of 90 mobile offshore drilling units. The company's mobile offshore drilling fleet, consisting of a large number of high-specification deepwater and harsh environment drilling units, is considered one of the most modern and versatile in the world due to its emphasis on technically demanding segments of the offshore drilling business. The company's fleet consists of 32 High-Specification Floaters (semisubmersibles and drillships), 23 Other Floaters, 25 Jackup Rigs and other assets utilized in the support of offshore drilling activities worldwide. With a current equity market capitalization in excess of $25 billion, Transocean Inc.'s ordinary shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "RIG."


CONTACT: Transocean Inc., Houston
Analyst Contact: Jeffrey L. Chastain, 713-232-7551
or
Media Contact: Guy A. Cantwell, 713-232-7647

SOURCE: Transocean Inc.

World output to rise 41% on growing fuel demand

Wednesday June 13, 2007
World output to rise 41% on growing fuel demand

By Susan Tam

KUALA LUMPUR: The world oil production is expected to increase by 41.2% over 15 years from 83.3 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2005 to 117.6 million barrels per day (bpd) to meet the growing demand for fuel.

United Arab Emirates (UAE) governor and Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) national representative Ali Obaid Al Yabhouni said the main problem in meeting global demand for fuel was the lack of refinery capabilities.

He said 2007’s world oil demand was estimated at 103 million bpd, while Opec could only produce nearly 36 million bpd.

However, Opec’s crude production capacity would be increased steadily from about 35 million bpd in 2006 to nearly 40 million bpd by 2010.

“Opec works hard to create long-term sustainable production capacity and is willing to invest more if markets demand more hydrocarbon resources,” Ali Obaid said at his presentation at the 12th Asia Oil and Gas Conference 2007 yesterday.

On global supply, he said the world would see continuous growth in oil supply from 83.3 million bpd to 117.6 million bpd by 2030.

He said Opec and non-Opec members were expected to produce similar amount of oil, which was about 52.3 million bpd and 58.8 million bpd respectively.

Ali Obaid said average demand for oil grew at 1.7% yearly and Opec expected fossil fuels to continue to provide more than 90% of the world’s energy needs.

He said consumption would be driven by Asian nations, citing examples of the 7% yearly economic growth estimates of India, and China and South Korea’s 4.5% growth.

Based on the world oil demand for the past few years, Ali Obaid said there had been a “large downwards revision” from the last six years, but did not provide explanations on this move.

He said that in 2000 and 2001, worldwide oil demand – based on International Energy Associates Inc – was at 115 million bpd, but had drastically declined to 105 million bpd in 2006 and 2007.

He also said currently the oil price was not as high as it seemed as the US dollar was weakening versus other currencies, which made oil relatively less expensive.

As at May this year, oil price which averaged at US$63.60 per barrel only translated into 47 euros per barrel, Ali Obaid said.

Opec consists of Algeria, Angola, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Venezuela.

UPDATE 1-Equator needs $40 mln or merger will collapse
Mon Jun 11, 2007 1:00 PM BST


By John Bowker

LONDON, June 11 (Reuters) - Oil and gas explorer Equator Exploration Ltd (EEL.L: Quote, Profile , Research) needs to raise an extra $40 million or face the collapse of its merger with privately owned CAMAC Energy Holdings (CEHL), a company spokesman said on Monday.

"The AIM market will not allow a company (to be listed) that is not adequately capitalised to fulfil its drilling obligations," he told Reuters, adding that the merger was dependent on the extra cash being in place.


West Africa-focused Equator said in March its short-term funding requirement could be as much as $50 million but added on Monday that it had raised $10 million via two working capital facilities.

The firm said in a statement it had "identified potential sources of additional financing" to make up the shortfall, and a source close to the deal said these included trying to recover cash owed by Nigerian firm Peak Petroleum, a partner on the offshore Bilabri development.

"The $40 million is roughly equivalent to what Equator thinks it is owed by Peak," the source said.
UPDATE 1-Equator needs $40 mln or merger will collapse
Mon Jun 11, 2007 1:00 PM BST
Email This Article | Print This Article | RSS [-] Text [+]
Equator, which has been in takeover or financing talks off and on since November, said earlier on Monday it had reached agreement on a reverse takeover of CEHL, which like Equator has assets offshore Nigeria.

"This strategic transaction will offer shareholders a larger and more balanced portfolio of assets in the highly prospective West African offshore basin," Equator Executive Chairman Samuel Jonah said in a statement.

CEHL is a subsidiary of Texan oil & gas conglomerate CAMAC International, which is providing the $10 million working capital facilities via one of its other subsidiaries.

Equator shareholders will get 30 percent of the combined group.


"Equator have effectively been taken over, but CEHL has experience in Nigeria and this gets them (Equator) out of a hole," said Keith Morris, oil and gas analyst at Evolution.

Equator shares were suspended last month after a sharp jump in price forced it to admit that it was in talks regarding a possible reverse takeover.

Analysts have said the company's most valuable assets are in deep water offshore Nigeria and therefore require a firm with deep pockets in order to develop them.

© Reuters 2007.

Peak could not be reached for comment. Continued...

News Analysis: Nigerian economy is shaping up UPDATED: 07:45, June 12, 2007

Strong indications from Nigeria's domestic and external sectors show that Nigerian economy is receiving a positive impact.

The second quarter and indeed, this year are promising opportunities for accelerated economic growth for Nigeria, especially, after the April general elections.

The third quarter will actually reveal the true pace of the economy, because, by then, the newly elected officials, will have assumed governance duties.

Currently, Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves is standing at about 43.48 billion U.S. dollars. The government, through the creation of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is waging a ferocious war on corruption, money laundering and related offenses.

Gross Domestic Product per capita was 1,114 U.S. dollars, oil production grew by 2.5 percent, Gross National Savings by 20.6 per cent, the oil sector by 4.7 per cent while the non-oil sector by 8. 9 per cent, at the end of 2006.

According to the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Charles Soludo, Nigeria now has a sustained macroeconomic stability, rapidly growing non-oil sector, telecommunications and capital market, among others.

Finance Minister Nenadi Usman, a month ago, disclosed that the removal of the country's debt overhang has restored investors' confidence in Nigeria and also facilitated trade with other countries by improving access to export credit facilities.

"Nigeria's exit from the Paris Club is the biggest debt write- off for any sub-Saharan African country. The debt was structured to enable Nigeria secure a complete and permanent exit from the Paris Club within the shortest possible time," Usman said.

Before August, 2005, when Nigeria secured a debt forgiveness of 18 billion, U.S. dollars from the Paris Club of creditor nations, the country's external debts were about 30 billion dollars.

Now, the country's external debt stands at 3.03 billion dollars, considered sustainable following internationally-accepted benchmarks.

The Nigerian economy is on a reforms journey it embarked upon, some eight years ago, it was ostensibly to have its inherent structural defects corrected.

Before now, virtually every aspect of the economy, agriculture, manufacturing industry, energy, transport, communications, education, information, culture, sports, water, housing, and general administration, among others, is abounded with unjustifiable subsidies, resource mismanagement and waste.

The story is a different one today, as the African giant is under reforms. A sector by sector overview of the economy in reforms reveals an upward trend in manufacturing industry. This is based on economy-wide optimism while hope is placed on possible improved funding from the recapitalized banking system.

Currently, the capitalization of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) is 6.754 trillion naira strong (about 52.77 billion U.S. dollars). The banking sub-sector has continued to inspire hope as it remained the most active on the floor of the Exchange. Now, about 16 Nigerian banks are in the list of top 1,000 banks in the world while five are in Africa's top 10 banks' list.

The public sector has been investing greatly on infrastructure including the ones for transport and the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, formerly National Electric Power Authority (NEPA), among others. About 1.3 trillion naira (about 10.16 billion U.S. dollars)is believed to have been sunk into the power sector over the past eight years.

There has been some inflow of direct foreign investments into the economy, mainly from the telecommunications sector. The agricultural sector is showing some promises, although government's objective of food security is yet to be achieved. The petroleum sector, which is the cash cow of the economy, is undergoing reforms to make it competitive internationally. A better accounting system for oil proceeds has been established for the purpose of consolidating inflows and outflows into the national budget.

Soludo has advised newly-elected President Umaru Yar'Adua to consolidate on the modest achievements of the current reforms "by breaking the national resource curse" of dependency on oil, ensure micro-economic stability and fiscal responsibility to sustain the gains of the reforms.

The challenge before the new government is how to reverse an entrenched tendency of sharing oil riches to the few and leaving the vast majority in crippling poverty.

Source: Xinhua

120 Indians quit Nigeria oil firm after abductions
Agence France PressePosted online: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 at 0000 hrs Print Email
LAGOS:: Around 120 Indians working for Eleme Petrochemical Company in southern Nigeria have left the region or the country following two kidnappings, a company spokesperson said on Monday.


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“The majority of expatriate Indians—mostly engineers and technicians—have relocated, as a result of the attacks. Most have gone back to India,” the spokesperson said.

He said production has been affected at the firm, located on the outskirts of Port Harcourt, the capital of the oil-rich Rivers State, which has been attacked twice in quick succession.

On May 19, two Indian nationals were abducted from the company’s premises in an incident that left one civilian dead. On June 1, ten people—three senior managers, three workers and four family members including two women and two children—were seized from the firm’s residential compound.

Oil prices may hit US$80 per barrel: Iran oil official


TEHRAN


11-Jun-07

OIL prices could surge to US$80 ($123.24) a barrel this year because of tropical storms, rising demand for gasoline and disruptions in crude supplies from Nigeria, a senior Iranian oil official said yesterday.

"The US$80 price is a maximum forecast for oil in the current year, but the average price of oil in the current year will be US$66.20," Mohammad Ali Khatibi, deputy director for international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company, said.

Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency carried the remarks.

Khatibi said storms, like Cyclone Gonu that lashed the south of Iran and disrupted oil exports from nearby Oman last week, could help drive the price to around US$80 a barrel although he did not specify which benchmark crude he was referring to.

"Based on forecasts, within the next three months ... the increase in gasoline consumption, seasonal storms and problems in Nigeria's oil supply will cause the price of oil to seriously increase," he was quoted as saying.

"This will raise concerns with consumer countries," he added.

A long-running row between Iran, the second-largest Opec oil exporter, and the West over Tehran's nuclear programme has also helped prop up prices, traders say.

The West accuses Iran of seeking nuclear weapons.

But Tehran has repeatedly denied the charge.

Khatibi did not mention the nuclear dispute as a supporting factor.

An Iranian oil official said on Wednesday members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries were against raising production because a price spike to more than US$70 for benchmark Brent crude was not due to a shortage in crude supply.

Brent eased to just below US$69 a barrel on Friday. Reuters

Brez63 - 9/05 is when the year ended. Not sure when Jeter actually picked up the shares.

ND9

STP article ran again today in California and Ohio.....


Tiny island nation aims to build ecotourism business
By BARRY HATTON
Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 06/10/2007 01:56:05 AM PDT


Flying into the tiny island of Principe off Africa's west coast brings a sense of traveling back in time.
Seen from over the Atlantic, the dense tropical jungle coats the volcanic terrain down to a turquoise sea and golden beaches reachable only by boat. It looks like a prehistoric land that time forgot.

Principe is one of the poorest spots on earth in dollar terms. But in terms of virgin tropical landscapes it is one of the wealthiest, says Rombout Swanborn, a Dutch businessman and conservationist.

Swanborn recently purchased two hotels on Principe and, backed by local authorities, aims to plug this island of about 6,000 people into the ecotourism boom now spreading across West Africa.

Ecotourism took off in eastern Africa in the early 1990s. Underdeveloped countries such as Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya discovered they had what vacationers from developed countries sought — raw wilderness rich in animal life.

Now the business is gaining traction in the western part of the African continent, too.

Ecotourism is flourishing in Gabon and Ghana. Angola and Nigeria are also signing up. Sao Tome and Principe, a twin-island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, aims to become the latest.

"The people here are sitting on a pot of gold," said Swanborn, who also operates four ecotourism developments in Gabon.

The Madrid, Spain-based World Tourism Organization in October described Africa as the industry's "star performer." Growth in visitors is predicted to be


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Advertisement

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around 10 percent this year, more than double the world average.
"One can safely say that the growth we observe in Africa ... is mainly based on ecotourism growth," said Eugenio Yuris, head of the WTO's sustainable tourism section.

The United Nations and international conservation bodies such as the World Wildlife Fund are backing the ecotourism trend. They view the development of sustainable tourism as a way of wedding local needs and care for the environment.

There are potential pitfalls, though.

Neel Inamdar, a senior adviser at Washington, D.C.-based Conservation International, a nonprofit organization, points out that Kenya has fought hard to recover from the damage wrought by high-volume, low-cost ecotourism.

"You need a strong regulatory environment, with bodies that will stand up to the industry," Inamdar said.

Principe island, just north of the equator, fits the bill of a tropical paradise.

Just a few hundred people live in its seaside capital, Santo Antonio. The rest are scattered across small communities of clapboard houses and tumbledown former plantation buildings where they scrape a living from farming and fishing.

The jungle spills down to beaches where you can spend an entire day and the only footprints in the sand are your own.

The thick Atlantic rainforest is sprinkled with colorful birds, including rare species, and waterfalls. In certain seasons, sea turtles lay eggs on the beaches and whales come within view of land.

Despite its charms, this country is not all that it could be as a vacation destination. There are few international-standard hotels.

But tourism development is gathering pace.

Portugal's Pestana Group, which runs a resort on Sao Tome island, is building a development in the capital, also called Sao Tome, that includes a five-star hotel, a casino and villas.

Arlecio Costa, local director of the Falcon Group, is developing a huge project on the northern tip of Sao Tome island called Lago Azul (Blue Lagoon) with South African investors.

The $380 million development, still at the planning stage but scheduled to open in five years, includes a quay for cruise liners, an 18-hole golf course, a conference center and a hotel with a health spa.

"It looks like a dream," Costa said.

The project will leave a large footprint, but Costa insists its biggest selling point is the area's natural beauty, especially the nearby Obo National Park whose conservation activities are supported by the United Nations.

Sao Tome and Principe was a largely overlooked country until it found major oil reserves, estimated at 11 billion barrels, in its offshore waters a few years ago. That discovery brought foreign governments and international oil companies knocking at its door.

Costa, though, reckons tourism is the way forward.

"The oil will run out one day," he said. "Tourism can be forever, if you take care of it."



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If you go ·Sao Tome: National tourism Web site: www.saotome.st ·Traveling to Sao Tome: Foreign passport holders require visas and a yellow fever vaccination to enter Sao Tome. Flights leave from Lisbon, Portugal (TAP Air Portugal); Luanda, Angola (TAAG); and Gabon (Air Sao Tome). Air Sao Tome flies from Sao Tome island to Principe island. ·When to go: The equatorial islands have a steady temperature between 72-86 degrees. The October-May rainy season brings sporadic heavy showers and higher temperatures. It is mostly cloudy between June and September. ·Tips: Portuguese is the official language. Few speak English; more can speak French. The local currency is the dobra, though euros can be widely used. There are a few taxis, and visitors renting vehicles are advised to choose four-wheel-drive jeeps because the roads are poor. The streets are safe and the people are friendly and welcoming. Sao Tome, with international aid, has greatly improved its problems with malaria in recent years, but visitors should take the usual precautions against mosquito bites.

Nigeria: Emirates Offers Nigerian Passengers Free Stay in Dubai

Daily Champion (Lagos)

3 June 2007
Posted to the web 4 June 2007

Lagos

Nigerian travellers flying Emirates are to join their counterparts in select countries of the world in enjoying the airlines' characteristic hospitality with the commencement of the Hotel-For-Free promotion.

The programme, which offers First and Business Class passengers flying to or via Dubai special super value packages, runs from June 15 to August 31.


This offer is in line with the airline's continued efforts to promote Dubai as a world-class tourist destination and in support of its sponsorship of the Dubai Summer Surprises.

First Class passengers will receive two complimentary nights in a deluxe room at the Ritz Carlton Dubai, while Business Class passengers will be entitled to stay overnight in a deluxe room at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers. Both classes of travellers could also choose between US$100 credit at their hotel or a Sundowner Dune Dinner Safari. The offer includes a 96-hour visa.

The accommodation covers breakfast and all applicable taxes and service charges. The US$100 credit per person could be used for food and beverage and/or spa facilities.

Relevant Links

West Africa
Nigeria
Travel and Tourism
Transport and Shipping
Middle East and Africa



The offer applies to First and Business Class passengers travelling exclusively on flights operated by Emirates to or via Dubai from Lagos. Those travelling on frequent flyer redemption tickets cannot apply. Accommodation has to be pre-booked but need not be used immediately on arrival in Dubai.

Speaking on the launch of the offer, Hafeez Azeem, Emirates Manager Nigeria said: "Emirates has put together these unbeatable packages as part of its drive to offer value-added services to the Nigerian traveller. Special deals like these underscore the importance of the Nigerian market to Emirates."

"Our special offers every year are a big success and something our passengers look forward to. We expect this offer for First and Business Class travellers to be a complete sell-out as it has been in previous years," he added.

5 MYTHS ABOUT GAS PRICES
Think you know why costs are at a 26-year high? Think again
By LISA MARGONELLI
Special to The Washington Post
Article Last Updated: 06/10/2007 01:56:14 AM PDT


Whew, gas prices are high. Higher than they've ever been. During the week of May 21, the Lundberg Survey, a biweekly gas price tracking service, put the average cost of a gallon of unleaded at $3.18. Adjusted for inflation, that topped the 1981 price spike that had held the record for 26 years. Prices have since slipped a bit, but many predict they'll stay up near the stratosphere all summer. Wondering why? The answers may not be what you think. Here are five common myths about why we're paying so much at the pump.
Those evil oil companies are gouging us.

Whenever gas prices soar, Republicans and Democrats join hands to virtuously denounce "gas gouging" by greedy oil companies. Two weeks ago, the House passed legislation against this supposed scourge of the pump. Too bad it's so hard to find evidence that gouging is jacking up prices. Multiple investigations by the Federal Trade Commission since 2000 have come up, well, dry.

Conspiracy theorists say this lack of evidence is proof that the regulators are in bed with the oil companies. But last year, California's Energy Commission undertook its own investigation of a May 2006 price increase and found no smoking gun indicating market manipulation. Today's high prices are the result of a collision among consumers' increasing demand for gas, a shortage of oil-refining capacity and 50 states with different regulations that make it hard to trade gas across state lines.

So why protect consumers from this vaporous phantom?


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Politics. More than 80 percent of Americans believe that high gas prices are the result of oil company shenanigans rather than market forces, according to the Opinion Research Corp. So passing legislation against gouging is a bit of theater that allows the political class to avoid the hard work of getting Americans to use less gas.
Here's the solution to our pricing problems: ethanol.

This plays wonderfully in corn-rich Iowa, but corn ethanol will neither replace gasoline nor lower its price. It may even raise gas prices.

First, at the pump, ethanol is priced according to what consumers will pay, not what it costs to make. So, according to research by Soren Anderson of the University of Michigan, ethanol prices follow gas prices very closely. It's unlikely that gas will make a U-turn and start following ethanol.

Second, even if a ready supply of ethanol does put a bit of downward pressure on gas prices, ethanol's real cost is much higher than whatever we shell out at the pump. Consumers actually pay twice for this corny goodness: once when they fill up and once on April 15. In 2006, ethanol makers and sellers received subsidies of $1.87 for every gallon of gas they managed to displace, according to Doug Koplow of Earth Track, a Boston-based consultancy.

Finally, even if we can stomach these nutty subsidies, illogical incentives to tempt automakers to produce ethanol-friendly cars actually increase the amount of oil we use. Blame a little-discussed loophole: In exchange for producing ethanol-ready "flex fuel" vehicles, Congress lets auto manufacturers make their cars less fuel-efficient than corporate average fuel economy standards require. By 2015, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists, that loophole could increase our oil gluttony by 200,000 barrels a day — approximately the amount of crude we now import from Kuwait.

Blame China, whose growing demand for oil is hurting U.S.

consumers.

China's oil imports have increased dramatically during the past five years; the country now imports 3.5 million barrels a day, compared with U.S. daily imports of 12.2 million barrels. But it's far less obvious that Americans are really paying a price for this.

If you've been to the mall lately, you've probably noticed that China is making scads of plastic. As the world's second-largest plastic producer, it is furiously turning oil and petrochemicals into everything from lobster souvenirs to sneaker soles. By embedding oil in products, China is, in effect, importing oil on behalf of U.S. consumers — as much as 1 million barrels per day.

While China's demand for energy is driving up oil prices worldwide, its cheap goods are having the opposite effect on the U.S. cost of living. A recent analysis by the U.N. World Economic and Social Survey suggests that Chinese pressure on oil imports may have raised U.S. inflation by 0.23 percent from 2001 to 2005, but cheap imports of Chinese goods decreased U.S. inflation over that same period by 0.28 percent. For the moment, the net winners are U.S. consumers.

We need more refineries and more oil wells.

The call for more oil wells was reasonable when FDR's policymakers were crafting a U.S. energy strategy 70 years ago, when manufacturing and infrastructure required more energy to grow, and pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions seemed less important. But since 1970, the United States has met 75 percent of its new energy needs through greater energy efficiency rather than new energy supplies, economist Skip Laitner says.

Still, we have plenty of incentives that encourage waste; for example, we let landlords write off energy costs annually but force them to amortize their investments in energy efficiency over many years. As a result, the United States squanders far more fuel than Japan and Western Europe. Approximately 40 percent of the energy that the United States consumes is now lost as waste heat. Eliminating some of that waste would be a quick fix for energy problems.

A recent report by the McKinsey Global Institute says Americans could reduce the amount of energy we use between now and 2020 relatively easily. We wouldn't need huge investments, just current technology that offers a yield on investments of 10 percent per year. What we would need, however, is leadership willing to enact tough energy standards and eliminate the perverse incentives (such as tax credits for big vehicles) that encourage us to squander fuel.

When gas prices get high enough, people will drive less. (And the corollary: What this country needs is a big, fat gas tax.)

According to some conservatives, when gas prices are high enough, people will drive less and buy more efficient cars. According to some liberals, nothing but high gas prices or taxes will pry the rich from their fancy sport utility vehicles and the rest of us from our wasteful routines.

But when conservatives and liberals climb into their cars, they ignore these supposed market forces. Gas prices have doubled in the past five years, and American drivers have hardly blinked. In March 2002, we were paying $474 million a day for gas, according to the Oil Price Information Service. Last week, we paid more than $1.25 billion a day. Over the past five years, we've driven 8 percent more miles overall, according to statistics from the Transportation Department. And SUV sales are up this quarter, after taking a dive in 2006. Rather than finding alternatives to driving, consumers will absorb the increases, charge gas on credit cards or save pennies elsewhere.

High prices have hit the poor the hardest. They're also particularly unfair outside of Washington, where the average person drives only 6,700 miles a year. The typical Wyoming resident, by contrast, drives nearly 18,000 miles a year, probably in a big old pickup. Gas costs now suck up as much as 15 percent of people's annual income in some poorer rural areas, compared with 2 percent in wealthy suburban areas. Years of laissez-faire energy policies have left the poorest Americans struggling to get to work so they can buy more gas to get to work. And the rest of us? We're losing billions of dollars a week just driving around in circles.

We can't afford to continue blathering about gouging, ethanol and China. It's time policymakers abandoned the theater and started the hard work of remodeling the U.S. economy to get more bang out of that $3.18 gallon.

Lisa Margonelli, an Irvine fellow at the New America Foundation, is author of "Oil On the Brain: Adventures From the Pump to the Pipeline."

Soaring charter rates force oil exploration giants to buy rigs
PIYUSH PANDEY & NEVIN JOHN

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ WEDNESDAY, JUNE 06, 2007 01:33:54 AM]

MUMBAI: India’s hunt for new energy sources has hit an unforeseen obstacle: dearth of operational rigs. Poor rig supply and soaring charter rates have led to long delays developing new energy deposits, and most oil majors have had to pay a penalty or even relinquish blocks for not fulfilling the minimum work programme. Rig shortage has even forced the government to postpone the next round of bidding through New Exploration and Licensing Policy (NELP) by four months.

Faced with little option, exploration majors such as Reliance Industries (RIL), ONGC, Cairn India and Essar Group are planning to invest in constructing or buying rigs.

RIL may have to further delay KG gas production due to late deliveries of deepwater drilling rigs by its service contractor Transocean Inc. KG gas production was scheduled to start by June 2008. In order to de-risk its exploration business from relying on its service contractors, RIL is actively pursuing plans to own a deepwater rig. The company is said to be in talks with leading rig manufacturers and the investment could be around Rs 4,000 crore.

According to RIL’s petroleum business president PMS Prasad, global contract drilling backlog has ballooned to $70 billion. “Transocean alone has a backlog of $20 billion. Since 2002, seismic costs have risen over 200%, drilling and services 100-200% and field development equipment and services 100-200%. There has been overall cost escalation by 100-200% across the supply chain leading to an 18-month delay KG basin production,” says Prasad.

Cairn India has ordered two on-shore rigs for its Rajasthan block, which are likely to arrive from Houston by year-end. On-shore rigs are easier to secure when compared to the off-shore. “Given the demand for rigs, Cairn India is pleased that it has been able to secure equipment to meet its drilling commitments”, says a Cairn India spokesperson. “The company is primarily focused on both onshore and shallow-water operations in its search for hydrocarbons in India.”

India’s largest exploration firm ONGC will be spending around $2 billion to purchase oil rigs and another $2 billion for hiring and upgrading its existing rigs. An ONGC spokesperson told ET that the company would be buying four jack-up rigs for shallow waters at Rs 4,400 crore. “These are likely to arrive by 2012. ONGC also plans to buy a floater for deepwater costing Rs 3,000 crore. Besides, another 10 rigs are likely to join ONGC in 2-3 years,” said the spokesperson.

Charter rates of rigs have gone through the roof, forcing many to invest heavily into buying such rigs. In January 2007, Essar Oilfields Services (EOSL) acquired a semi-submersible rig -- ‘Essar Wildcat’ at a cost of $220 million, marking Ruias’ re-entry into rigs business. Subsequently, they won a drilling contract from Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) for drilling in the KG Basin. And the contract value: a cool $250 million for a 2-year period. In 5 years, EOSL will earn over half-a-billion dollars from this rig, according to rough calculations.

Chennai-based Aban Offshore owns four jack-ups and one drill ship. Jindal has inchartered two rigs and ordered two more. Great Offshore owns a jack-up and a drill ship. Mercator Lines has placed an order for one rig and is planning to buy another one from the second-hand market. Industry officials said there are 27 jack-ups and eight drill ships that are currently in operation in India.

Industry analysts attribute the high charter rate to the growing deficit in supply of rigs globally, poor fleet addition in the 1990s and attrition from the recent hurricanes. The new E&P markets such as Indian sub-continent have pushed up the demand of rigs.

“Rig charter rates are heading north with the exploration and production sector witnessing fast growth,” says HK Mittal, chairman and managing director, Mercator Lines, who recently placed an order for a Rs 810-crore jack-up rig. “For last three months, rig rates have been almost flat, but it’s healthy. Actually, there is no limit for rig rates, it can go up to any level, depending on demand. The market is so buoyant that contracts for rigs are being signed in advance. At prevailing rates, the rig can earn anything between $200,000 and $230,000 a day,” says Mittal.

High day rate of rigs has shot up by 40% in the past one year globally. The day rates have climbed by $3,000 every month in 2006. In January 2006, the world-wide average was at $99,382 per day while it has shot up to $1,37,509 in December 2006. In January 2007, the highest day rate being earned was $3,25,000 by ‘Noble Paul Romano’, a 4th-generation semi-submersible. But the new peak day rate was set when Transocean’s 4th-generation semi-submersible ‘Jack Bates’ earned $477,000 a day in August.

“The day rates still trail the surging oil and this fast growth will help day rates stay on a firm foot in the coming years. Once the block awards under the sixth round of the NELP is completed, the rig shortage will grow. But if oil prices comes down to $50 per barrel, then the rig rates may fall,” says Jigar Shah of KR Choksey Securities.

During 2006, a total of nine new jack-ups, three platform rigs, and two inland barges joined the fleet world over. In addition to the rigs delivered this year, another 27 jack-ups, 27 semi-submersibles, 10 drill ships, two tenders, one inland barge, and one platform rig are currently being built at various shipyards across the globe. Most of them will be delivered in 2008 and 2009. Another vital issue faced by the E&P players is the acute shortage of manpower. NK Mitra, director-offshore of ONGC, said his company is facing a major crunch. “Over 150 drillers left ONGC in the last one year for greener pastures,” he adds.

The ministry of petroleum has proposed forming a rig pool for state-run oil companies to avoid exploration delays. The plan is to consider an adequate number of rigs for purchase, and that the government-owned companies would pool in money for them. The petroleum ministry has worked out the proposal on the basis of recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee attached to the ministry.

Offshore oilfield service providers set to reap big

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ SUNDAY, JUNE 10, 2007 12:33:29 AM]

MUMBAI: Offshore oilfield service providers are likely to post robust growth in the next few years, driven by increasing spend in exploration and production (E&P) activities, sustained demand for offshore rigs and supply vessels and strong charter rates, said Mumbai-based Emkay Share & Stock Brokers.

"As countries and oil companies, in their endeavour to secure oil and gas reserves, go on an exploration and drilling spree, the demand for offshore rigs and supply vessels is expected to remain robust," the brokerage said in a recent report to clients.

"Capacity constraints in view of the long gestation period of 3-4 years for a new rig and supply vessels suggest that the current up cycle in offshore services is likely to be sustained in the medium to long term, thereby improving the earnings visibility for offshore oilfield services companies," the report said.

Some of companies involved in this business are Great Offshore, Aban Offshore and Garware Offshore. Emkay said: "The fundamental of Indian offshore companies are extremely strong; It is valued very attractively with the group trading at an average two-year forward P/E multiple of 8 times."

With a world-wide shortage of rigs, robust demand and supply constraints, Emkay believes the global offshore rig market is on one of its strongest phases over the past decade. A total of 120 offshore rigs are expected to enter the market by 2010, it said.

Firm crude prices, low oil reserves and increasing consumption of oil have resulted in most upstream oil companies actively increasing exploration and production (E&P) spend. The macro scenario for strong and sustained E&P capex remains conducive and there remains a strong upside bias to E&P spends.

"Upstream companies globally have very strong balance sheets which are essential to incur and sustain strong exploration capex," the report said.

"With strong growth in E&P spend over the last few years, the demand for offshore rigs has seen a significant increase. However, with a two decade prolonged period of low investment in new build ups, the supply of rigs has not kept pace with demand, creating a shortage of 50 rigs," it said.

On a macro level, global spare oil production capacity is perched at a 30-year low. Increased marine construction activities have further fuelled demand for offshore support vessels. The prospects of supply of vessel fleet are linked to number of active rigs and offshore platforms. With supply remaining under check and significant rise in demand, the need for offshore supply vessels should maintain an uptrend.

"Even though on an absolute basis, the new build order book for supply vessels is significant, we do not think that supply would overshoot demand. About 50% of the global fleet is above 20 years of age today. This would mean that a lot of these vessels would be due for replacements in the next five years. There will also be a requirement for specialised supply vessels for exploring hydrocarbons," The report added.

With demand for offshore rigs and support vessels increasing in virtually all regions and the current supply not keeping pace with demand, the day rates for these assets have moved above replacement threshold, spurring a new construction boom, the report added.

In interview (5/04), Mr Jeter says he hasn't taken any ERHC shares for his work........ I guess right after that he decided to take shares.......

Compensation expense for the year ended September 30, 2005, as recommended by the Compensation Committee and approved by the board, is shown in the table below.

Director Name Fees Common Shares Value Total
Sir Emeka Offor $ 33,300 85,000 $ 36,125 $ 69,425
Nicolae Luca 19,125 85,000 36,125 55,250
Howard Jeter 13,292 85,000 36,125 49,417
Andrew Uzoigwe 13,644 85,000 36,125 49,769

http://sec.edgar-online.com/2006/04/27/0001144204-06-017121/Section16.asp

Maybe I missed it but what was it in interview that Mr Jeter said or did in interview that made you go long?

thanks,
ND9

Jeter is a Director. Look at ERHC website. It clearly says, Howard F. Jeter, Director.

http://www.erhc.com/CompanyProfile.htm#

Howard F. Jeter, Director

Howard F. Jeter has served as a director since April 2005. Ambassador Jeter retired with the rank of Career Minister from the State Department in 2003 after a 27-year career in the Foreign Service. He is the immediate past US Ambassador to Nigeria. He also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, State Department Director for West Africa, President Clinton's Special Envoy for Liberia, and Ambassador to Botswana. Ambassador Jeter was Deputy Chief of Mission and later Charge d'Affaires in Lesotho and Namibia. He also had multi-year assignments in Tanzania and Mozambique. He earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree, with Honors, from Morehouse College and Masters Degrees in International Relations, Comparative Politics, and African Studies from Columbia University and UCLA. He is currently the Executive Vice President of GoodWorks International, an international consulting and business advisory group, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Africa, US Export - Import Bank and a board member of Africare and Africa Action

Noble Announces Independent Investigation of Operations in Nigeria
Buy This Report Print This Page E-Mail
06/04/2007 08:30:06 AM EDT
PR Newswire

SUGAR LAND, Texas, June 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Noble Corporation (NYSE: NE) today announced that it is conducting an internal investigation of its Nigerian operations, focusing on the legality under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA") and local laws of its Nigerian affiliate's reimbursement of certain expenses incurred by its customs agents in connection with obtaining and renewing permits for the temporary importation of drilling units and related equipment into Nigerian waters.

The Audit Committee of the Company's Board of Directors has engaged Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, a leading law firm with significant experience in investigating and advising on FCPA matters, to lead the investigation.

The Company's management brought to the attention of the Audit Committee a news release recently issued by Tidewater Inc. disclosing that Tidewater was conducting an internal investigation into the FCPA implications of certain actions by a customs agent in Nigeria in connection with the temporary importation of its vessels into Nigeria. The Company's drilling units currently operating in Nigeria do so under temporary import permits, and management considered it prudent to review the Company's own practices in this regard.

The Company has voluntarily contacted the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice to advise them that an independent investigation is under way and that it intends to cooperate fully with both agencies. The investigation is in an early stage and no conclusions can be drawn at this time as to whether either agency will open its own proceeding to investigate this matter, or if a proceeding is opened, what potential remedies these agencies may seek. Although management will seek to avoid material disruption to its Nigerian operations, the Company cannot gauge at this time the ultimate effect of implementing any measures necessary to ensure compliance with applicable laws in connection with its business in Nigeria.

The Company has concluded, given the status of the investigation, that it is premature to determine whether it needs to make any financial reserve for any potential liabilities. The Audit Committee and management will work together with special counsel and appropriate personnel within the Company to implement promptly such measures as are considered appropriate.

Noble Corporation is a leading provider of diversified services for the oil and gas industry. The company performs contract drilling services with its fleet of 62 mobile offshore drilling rigs located in key markets worldwide, including the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the Middle East, Mexico, the North Sea, Brazil, West Africa and India. The fleet count includes six rigs under construction.

This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" concerning the company's business, financial performance and prospects. Statements about the Company's, management's or directors' plans, intentions, expectations, beliefs, estimates, predictions or similar expressions for the future are forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that the outcomes of such forward-looking statements will be realized, and actual results could differ materially from those expressed as a result of various factors. A discussion of these factors, including risks and uncertainties, is set forth from time to time in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Additional information on Noble Corporation is available via the worldwide web at http://www.noblecorp.com.

SOURCE Noble Corporation

CONTACT: investors, Lee M. Ahlstrom, Vice President, Investor Relations and Planning, +1-281-276-6440, or media, John S. Breed, Director of Corporate Communications, +1-281-276-6729, both of Noble Drilling Services Inc.



Copyright © 2007 PR Newswire

China's Sinopec reportedly faces depletion in oil reserves at aging fields

By MarketWatch
Last Update: 5:33 AM ET Jun 1, 2007


BEIJING (MarketWatch) -- China Petrochemical Corp., or Sinopec Group, faces depletion of oil reserves in five main fields in eastern China and the company needs to increase investment in exploration in the region, reported the China Petrochemical News Friday, citing the general manger of the company.
The fields, which have been developed for nearly 50 years, face increasing difficulties of production, including more water content and more sophisticated geological structure, the report said.
"By stabilizing the output and reserves of the main fields in (the) east, Sinopec will be able to have a stable performance in its upstream business and even the entire business," General Manager Chen Tonghai was quoted as saying.
The five fields, which produced 34.8 million tons of crude oil in 2006, accounted for 86.64% of Sinopec's total oil output and three quarters of its newly discovered oil reserves in the year, said the newspaper, which is backed by Sinopec.
The fields consist of Shengli field, the country's second-largest field by output after PetroChina's Daqing, Zhongyuan field, Henan field, Jiangsu field and Jianghan field.
-Edited by Rosalyn Lim
-Contact: 201-938-5400

E&P spending up by 13%

Lehman forecasts increased worldwide spending in ’07, beyond despite high costs

Ray Tyson

For Petroleum News


Exploration and production companies worldwide are expected to boost capital spending by 13 percent on average in 2007 compared to 2006, a 4 percent increase from a prior forecast of a 9 percent increase, with deepwater projects in the Gulf of Mexico helping to lead the way in U.S. spending this year, according to Lehman Brothers’ 2007 mid-year E&P spending report.

However, Canadian spending is expected to drop 11 percent in 2007 compared to a 7.5 percent decline reflected in Lehman’s December survey.

Lehman’s survey results partly square with three other upstream surveys conducted earlier this year by Grant Thornton, KPMG and Energy Intelligence.

Lehman’s survey of 350 companies, released to the news media on June 4, indicates that the overall increase in spending this year is largely expected to come from areas other than the United States and Canada. In fact, international spending likely will rocket to 20 percent from the 13 percent increase predicted in Lehman’s December report.

“The growth expected in 2007 is broad-based by region and by company type, with the strongest growth coming from the national oil companies based in Russia, Asia and Latin America,” Lehman said in its report, noting that U.S. companies planning to boost international spending this year include Apache Corp., with a 65 percent increase and Murphy Oil Corp., with a 61 percent increase.



U.S. E&P spending expected to grow 5 percent

Lehman’s survey found that E&P spending in the United States this year is expected to increase 5 percent from 2006, unchanged with the December forecast of about $77 billion. In addition to deepwater Gulf of Mexico, shale, coalbed methane and other unconventional natural gas plays are expected to help lead the spending increase in the United States. Lehman also found that smaller companies are budgeting larger percent increases in spending in the United States.
Grant Thornton, an accounting, tax and business advisory firm, polled more than 80 energy company executives in the United States. Of the total, 65 percent anticipated an increase in domestic capital spending this year, compared to 89 percent in 2006, which partly explains the relative softness of U.S. spending vs. international spending in the Lehman’s survey.

Top concerns among those executives polled in the Thornton survey included uncertainty about the future of oil and natural gas prices and replacing an aging workforce. Thornton’s survey specifically targeted senior executives of independent oil and gas operators and service companies throughout the United States. Released in early March, the survey covered the period from December 2006 through mid-January 2007. Forty percent were public companies and 60 percent private.

“The findings show an industry that is generally optimistic and strong, but somewhat apprehensive about projecting increases in capital spending and drilling activities when the prices of natural gas and oil remain uncertain for the most part,” Thornton’s Reed Wood concluded.



Survey confirms some nightmares

The KPMG survey confirmed some of industry’s worst nightmares, in particular the fact company executives now overwhelmingly believe the world oil supply is being consumed faster than it can be replaced.
“These executives are deeply concerned about declining oil reserves, a situation they see as irreversible and worsening,” said Bill Kimble of audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG, which polled 533 financial executives in April on a number of energy-related issues.

When executives were asked about their upstream capital spending in a 2006 KPMG survey, the majority indicated that investment would be a factor in helping them manage declining oil reserves. Sixty-nine percent?said that it would increase by more than 10 percent, a jump of 49 percent over 2005. However, KPMG’s 2007 survey suggests that increases in spending are flattening, with 35 percent saying they expect an increase of more than 10 percent, 19 percent saying they expect an increase of up to 10 percent, and 38 percent saying it would stay the same. Seven percent expected to see a spending decrease.



Energy Intelligence survey finds production exceeds replacement

Meanwhile, news publication Energy Intelligence published results of a survey that discovered the world is currently producing more oil annually than it is replacing with new reserves. That sobering conclusion was based on an accounting of global liquids reserves. In contrast to the gradual rise in global oil reserves that have been reported annually in most surveys based on public sources, the new assessment shows that the trend in worldwide liquids reserves “is actually one of stagnation and modest decline.”
High oil prices and sharply increased upstream spending budgets of many oil companies have not yet provided any significant improvement in global additions to reserves, but more time may be needed, Energy Intelligence said, adding that the main reason for the poor performance in growing reserves is a lack of additions to reserves from new discoveries, which account for 20 percent or less of additions in the last few years.



Canadian investment different than U.S.

Lehman’s survey results of E&P spending in the United States, while largely positive, tell a different story about Canada which fell victim this year to an early thaw and weakness in natural gas prices.
Despite the less-than-stellar outlook for Canada, U.S.-based natural gas producer EOG Resources Inc. plans to increase Canadian spending 39 percent in 2007, Lehman noted, adding that strong oil and natural gas prices have prompted energy producers to spend heavily to increase output over the past three years.

Higher costs for oilfield services, equipment and labor have also pushed up spending, according to the Lehman survey, which also showed that E&P spending worldwide is expected to be about $308 billion in 2007, up an overall $10.7 billion from the December survey. Survey results showed that 62 percent of the companies responding to the survey expected to increase their exploration and spending budgets in 2008, and 73 percent said the increases would be more than 10 percent next year.

Oil service companies expected to benefit from the increased spending in international markets include major oilfield service companies Weatherford International Inc. and Schlumberger Ltd. Contract drillers which are likely to benefit include major offshore drilling companies Transocean Inc. and Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc., according to the Lehman report.

Following William Jefferson to the Bank......

I am really, really hoping there is no Import Export - Jeter -ERHC connection here...........

ND9
*****************************************
June 7, 2007 5:30 AM

Following William Jefferson to the Bank
The congressman and the institution that’s time has come and gone.

By Stephen Spruiell

At least one former official at the U.S. Export-Import Bank took money from a Nigerian businessman involved in the bribery schemes of Rep. William Jefferson (D, La.), who was indicted on Monday. The indictment reveals that the Ex-Im Bank played an important role in Jefferson’s plan to perform a number of official acts in exchange for cash and shares of stock from a U.S. company seeking to do business in Nigeria. The U.S. Department of Justice maintains that the investigation into Jefferson’s activities is “continuing”; presumably that includes a closer look at the Bank’s role (a DOJ spokesman will not confirm or deny this). But what we already know about the way the Bank operates should be enough to prompt congressional hearings into whether we need an institution like the Ex-Im Bank at all.

According to the indictment, in mid-2003, Jefferson attempted to broker a deal between a U.S. telecommunications company called iGate and a Nigerian company called Netlink Digital Television (referred to in the indictment as “Nigerian Company A”). We know Netlink, or NDTV, is Nigerian Company A because behavior described in the indictment matches behavior described in an article in Roll Call last year.

The relevant portion of the indictment reads:

On or about July 20, 2003, in London, England, Defendant JEFFERSON introducted [sic] [iGate CEO Vernon] Jackson to Nigerian Company A executives, including Nigerian Businessperson A, who preliminarily agreed to purchase iGate’s products and services for Nigerian Company A’s use in Nigeria. […]

On or about August 6, 2003, in New York, New York, Jackson, on behalf of iGate, entered into a business agreement whereby Nigerian Company A agreed to pay iGate a total of $44,934,400 contingent upon an iGate production schedule, which included a $6.5 million up-front payment to iGate by Nigerian Company A within five business days of the agreement.

In or about August 2003, in Washington, D.C., Defendant JEFFERSON introduced Jackson and Nigerian Company A executives to personnel of the Ex-Im Bank for the purpose of obtaining financial support for iGate and Nigerian Company A’s venture in Nigeria.

Jefferson, the indictment alleges, sought bribes from both Jackson and “Nigerian Company A” (NDTV), and Jackson paid one of Jefferson’s family’s companies $200,000 after iGate received $5 million from NDTV. Jackson pleaded guilty to bribery last year. Nigerian Company A eventually pulled out of the deal.

In May of last year, Roll Call reported on Jackson’s plea deal, which identified NDTV as the Nigerian company involved:

Beginning in 2003, Jefferson allegedly tried to interest telecommunications firms in Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon in investing in iGate or buying its technology - deals that could have been worth millions of dollars in secret payments to the Democratic lawmaker, according to Jackson’s plea deal.

A Nigerian company, Netlink Digital Television, did pay iGate $6.5 million as part of a $45 million business venture, and Jefferson then tried to get the U.S. Export-Import Bank, a government agency, to finance the remainder.

The Ex-Im Bank’s mission “is to assist in financing the export of U.S. goods and services to international markets.” Essentially this means it provides low-interest loans or loan guarantees to foreigners to help them buy things from U.S. companies. In the deal described above, the Ex-Im Bank presumably would have helped NDTV finance its purchase of products and services from iGate.

This is where a former Bank official named Maureen Scurry, a.k.a. Maureen Edu, enters the picture. In 2006, the DOJ sent a letter to the Nigerian government requesting assistance in its investigation into Jefferson’s activities. Among the things DOJ requested were “Bank Records of accounts held by Maureen Scurry, also known as Maureen Edu, from January, 2003 to the present.”

The Nigerian government’s report back to DOJ included a summary of a statement that Scurry provided. According to Scurry, NDTV chairman Otunba Fasawe gave her a “gift” of $100,000 in early 2004. Scurry said this was to help pay for her brother’s cancer treatments. Scurry received the money after she arranged and attended a meeting with Jefferson, Jackson, Fasawe, and a member of the Ex-Im Bank’s board, but before the deal between iGate and NDTV fell through. In other words, Fasawe gave Scurry $100,000 at the height of Jefferson’s efforts to secure a U.S. taxpayer-backed loan for NDTV. And according to the indictment, Jefferson encouraged his partners in these schemes to dole out bribes as frequently as he asked for them.

Phil Cogan, a spokesman for the Ex-Im Bank, declined to comment for this article, except to say that the Ex-Im Bank has been and still is cooperating with the investigation. He told the New Orleans Times-Picayune last year that Scurry did work at the Bank during the period in question. He also told the paper that iGate never applied for or received a loan from the Bank.

Jefferson’s efforts to influence the Ex-Im Bank went beyond the deal between iGate and NDTV. According to the indictment, he continued to lobby the Bank on behalf of an investor he found to replace NDTV, which had pulled out of the deal in mid-2004. He also went to the Bank to obtain financing for a sugar plant in Nigeria for another businessman who was bribing him.

According to Ian Vásquez, director of the Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity at the Cato Institute, the Ex-Im Bank is vulnerable to these types of corrupt designs because it bases its lending primarily on political rather than financial calculations. “The Bank has always been an insiders’ game, so that lends itself to abuse,” Vásquez says. “If you look at the lending pattern, it really is an agency that is set up for people who are politically connected.”

Earlier this year, journalist Tim Carney reported that, “In fiscal years 1998 through 2005… 52 percent of Ex-Im’s money went to help just one company.” That company, Boeing, is one of the most powerful and well-connected firms in Washington.

Enron was another notable recipient of the Ex-Im Bank’s low-interest loans and U.S. taxpayer-backed loan guarantees. In a column published shortly after the energy-trading giant collapsed in 2002, Robert Novak reported that the Clinton administration had given “more than $650 million in Export-Import Bank loans to Enron-related companies.” Most of these loans went to Enron-owned overseas companies, which proceeded to purchase energy from Enron itself. Thus, the Bank facilitated a classic example of the style of accounting that now bears Enron’s name.

Vásquez says that, despite such well-publicized embarrassments, the companies that benefit from the Bank’s largesse have successfully prevented concerned taxpayers from shutting it down. “Nobody likes corporate welfare except the insiders who benefit,” he says, “and there have been coalitions in the past against corporate welfare that have tried to put an end to the Export-Import Bank, but they’ve failed. The resources on the other side have been too great.”

One might argue that if the collapse of Enron and the ensuing bad publicity for the Bank didn’t kill it, nothing will. But if the DOJ investigation of the Jefferson scandal uncovers more incidents of Bank officials taking bribes, its opponents in Congress might have the ammunition they need to go after it.

Their argument should be simple. The Ex-Im Bank, a relic of the Great Depression, has outlasted its usefulness. In a world that’s awash with private capital, projects that can’t find funding anywhere but the Bank probably shouldn’t be funded at all. Furthermore, the Jefferson scandal demonstrates the institution’s susceptibility to corrupt players who could never get the private sector to finance their schemes. Finally, as Vásquez puts it, “This is an agency that privatizes profits and socializes losses. Why would we want that?”

— Stephen Spruiell is an NRO reporter.