Airtel Nigeria emerges sole bidder in second 5G licensing round:Airtel Nigeria Limited, has emerged the sole bidder in the second round of licensing for the deployment of 5G technology. The Nigerian Communications Commission revealed that Airtel applied for the 3.5GHz spectrum alongside Standard Network & Connections Limited, but only Airtel made the initial payment required. Based on this, Airtel would be assigned one of the available lots of 100 MHz TDD Spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band at the NCC’s reserve price of $273.60m.
Nigeria expecting €63m mega transformers: According to the Minister of Power, Abubakar Aliyu, the mega transformers ordered under the Presidential Power Initiative had successfully undergone a factory acceptance test at Siemens’ transformers factory in Trento, Italy. This includes the purchase of the 10 morbid power transformers and 10 mobile substations to rehabilitate the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry and the value chain in the sector.
NNPCL signs MoU with Ghanaian, Gambian firms: The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has signed five memoranda of understanding with the national oil companies and relevant entities of five African countries on the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project. The five national oil companies and relevant entities were from Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone
NNPC spent N621 billion on 21 roads; to inject N1 trillion in the second phase:The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has revealed plans to fix federal roads across the country with an additional N1 trillion under the federal government road infrastructure tax credit scheme.
Nigeria, Mexico sign $3bn plant export deal:The Federal Government, through the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, announced that it had signed an agreement with the Mexican government to increase the export of hibiscus from Nigeria to Mexico. The deal is expected to provide an annual revenue of $3bn to Nigeria, as well as generate sustainable wealth, among the 70 per cent of our population that are engaged in agriculture and agro-allied industries.
GCR revises AIICO Insurance Plc’s national scale financial strength ratings:GCR Ratings (“GCR”) has revised AIICO Insurance Plc’s national scale financial strength rating to AA(NG) from AA-(NG) with the outlook accorded as Stable.
GCR affirms Global Accelerex Limited’s’s national scale long and short-term ratings: GCR Ratings (“GCR”) has affirmed Global Accelerex Limited’s national scale long and short-term issuer ratings of BBB+(NG) and A2(NG) respectively with the outlook revised to Stable from Watch Negative.
GCR affirms Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited’s national scale long and short-term ratings:GCR Ratings (“GCR”) has affirmed Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited’s national scale long and short-term issuer ratings of A-(NG) and A2(NG) respectively with the outlook accorded as Stable. This rating is based on strong market position and moderate earnings margin.
GCR assigns Edo State Government of Nigeria first time national scale long and short-term ratings:GCR Ratings (“GCR”) has assigned Edo State Government of Nigeria national scale long and short-term issuer ratings of BBB(NG) and A3(NG) respectively with the outlook accorded as Stable. This rating is supported by its moderately diversified economy.
Oil production hits 1.18mbpd, highest in seven months:According to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Nigeria’s crude oil production rose to 1.185 million barrels per day in November 2022. This represents the highest output by the country in the past seven months and is due to the Federal Government’s intensified efforts to check the menace of oil theft.
National debt hits N44tn, repayment burden worsens:According to the Debt Management Office, Nigeria’s public debt rose to N44.06tn in the third quarter of 2022, from N42.84tn recorded in the second quarter. This 2.85 percent increase quarter-on-quarter, was due to new borrowings by the Federal Government to part-finance the deficit in the 2022 Appropriation Act, alongside new borrowings by sub-nationals.
Pension assets rebound, gain N164bn in one month:According to data from the National Pension Commission, the assets under the Contributory Pension Scheme rose to N14.59tn in October. The data also revealed that N9.23tn of the funds was invested in Federal Government securities, N1.53tn in corporate debt securities, N2.17tn in money market instruments, and N65.68bn in mutual funds.
PenCom lists 34 lenders for mortgage scheme:The National Pension Commission has published the list of mortgage lenders that meet the eligibility criteria of its guidelines under it Micro Pension Plan. The Commission also highlighted the requirements for Retirement Savings Account holders to access their equity contributions for the acquisition of residential mortgages.
