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BIO-FRIENDLY CARS: Nigeria’s $95bn oil deal with China, India in jeopardy

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My rift with Baru: How Nigerians got it wrong --Kachikwu

The recent deal struck by Nigeria with India and China worth about $95 billion in crude oil sales may be in jeopardy as from the second quarter of 2017.

The reason is that plans to replace fuel-powered vehicles in those areas have been perfected.
Experts in modern technology-driven cars have secured approval of the authorities in most countries in that continent to introduce the vehicles into commercial use by next year, effectively cutting down the demand for petrol, a bye-product of the crude oil.

Nigeria in seeking relief from the shortfall of oil sales from its old buyers, mainly Europe and America, shifted focus in the direction of the China, India and Singapore.

The market there was expected to absorb about 40 per cent of Nigerian crude exports till 2019.

But the news that China and Japan have concluded plans to introduce a more environment friendly energy for vehicles will see the two countries phasing out most carbon-exuding vehicles from their countries.

A petroleum marketing expert, Tobias Ochua, said the development will render all efforts, aimed at shoring up the revenue base of Nigeria ineffective, as about 50 per cent of the export target may be affected.

Already, the Nigerian Senate has summoned the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachukwu, to appear before it and throw more light on the proposed crude-swap deal with China and other countries, which the ministry said is capable of seeing the country, raise needed capital to revamp the ailing economy.

But an aide to the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said one of the issues facing the economic team, headed by the VP and which meets regularly in his office, has been on what will be the solution to a possibility of the Asian countries turning their backs on Nigerian oil.

Read also: Senate to grill Kachikwu over $95bn oil deal

“At at last meeting in October, the VP tasked the team to start finding an urgent and practical means of diversifying the country’s economy in response to eventual loss of the new Asian market.

“Two ministries: Agriculture and Solid Minerals were mandated to come up with some blue prints on how to reeve the revenue base before the end of the first quarter of 2017,” he stated.

However, Kachukwu is said to be unmoved by the alarm on the threat of modern technology to the market.

A senior official quoted him as saying the commitment had already been obtained from the countries targeted in the oil market deal.

In fact the minister had visited his counterparts in the countries targeted, while a high powered delegation paid an official visit to Nigeria in September 2016 on the same issue.
By Emma Eke….

 

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