Daily Watch – NMRC aims to triple debt programme, Benin DisCo supplies 325MW to 13 million

4th July 2018

  • The Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company plans to seek approval from members by the end of the month to triple the size of its debt programme to ₦440 billion ($1.44 billion). Nigeria set up a mortgage-backed guarantee company in 2014, partly with World Bank aid, in an effort to boost lending through the creation of a secondary housing market, which is virtually non-existent in Africa’s most populous country. NMRC said the notes could be issued through non-convertible loans and bonds, either through a public offering, private placement or a book-building process, it said in a notice to members.
  • Russian state-owned nuclear group. Rosatom has signed an MoU with Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Signed on 22 June, the document establishes a legal basis for the implementation of bilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas, including the development of nuclear infrastructure in Rwanda and the development of programs aimed at raising awareness of nuclear technologies and their applications, as well as the use of radioisotopes and radiation technologies in manufacturing, agriculture and healthcare. In October 2017, Nigeria and Russia signed several agreements on the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant as well as a nuclear research centre housing a multi-purpose research reactor.
  • Total bought a number of cargoes of Qua Iboe while Exxon and Mercuria, among others, were believed to be selling, according to Reuters. Total was also offering a cargo of Forcados loading in early August at a premium of $2 to the dated Brent price. About a dozen July-loading cargoes of Nigerian crude are still thought to be available for sale. Traders believe Bonny Light crude could resume flowing through the Nembe Creek Trunkline towards the middle of this week, but on Monday Royal Dutch Shell said force majeure remained in place. This comes as Asian demand for imported oil is set to slow for a second straight month in July, according to new data, as economic growth starts to stutter amid an escalating trade dispute with the United States.
  • The Benin Electricity Distribution Company says it needs 1400MW to guarantee steady power supply for its customers. Spokesperson Tayo Adekunle told journalists in Benin City that only 325.34MW has been supplied to the company to distribute to the customers in its area of coverage. This comprises 750,000 households and 13 million people in Delta, Edo, Ekiti and Ondo states. Adekunle said BEDC had embarked on network expansion and provided or repaired faulty transformers ranging from 300KVA to 2.5KVA, in a bid to improve power supply, adding that the company introduced a load shedding system of three hours on and three hours off to satisfy its customers. On metering, he said BEDC had achieved a 65.30 per cent progress in its area of coverage, leaving a metering gap of 34.7 per cent.
  • Ecobank has mandated international lenders to arrange investor meetings in Britain and the United States, after which it plans to issue a five-year dollar-denominated bond, the African bank said on Monday. Ecobank, which has operations in 36 African countries, has hired Deutsche Bank, Standard Bank and Standard Chartered to arrange meetings from 18 June, it said. Proceeds from the offering will be used for debt refinancing among other things, Ecobank said.