27million lines at risk as NCC disconnects unregistered SIMs today

If you are reading this and you have not registered your phone line(s), it may just be almost late. In fact, you need not wonder why you may neither receive nor complete any calls from today.

This is because the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, says the collation, harmonisation and authentication of the subscriber’s identification modules, SIMs card registration it embarked upon in conjunction with all the telecom operators in Nigeria, since 2011, ends today, and those whose numbers were not captured will be disconnected.

For the past two years, the industry regulator (NCC) has embarked on a massive campaign, sensitizing telephone subscribers on the need to register their phones to enable a proper record of subscribers in the country, effective monitoring of telecommunications activities and cut down on phone-related crimes.

The regulator also made it clear that after a six-month period which expires on September 2011; those who did not register their lines stood the risk of losing them by deactivation.

However, following the panic, tension and anxiety as the exercise came to an end, the Commission allowed a grace period by asking people who had not registered to go to their operators to do so while it was collating, harmonising and authenticating the data already gathered.

The harmonisation and authentication exercise have taken over one year and the NCC, a few months back, declared that on June 30, 2013, all unregistered lines would be deactivated.

Truck queues may return to Apapa ports

Long truck queues may resurface at the scanning sites in Apapa ports as the management of APM Terminals Apapa Limited, the concessionaire handling Apapa terminals, has threatened to withdraw scanning logistics at the ports, stressing that it may be forced to review the voluntary logistics support it is providing to port users in getting their containers scanned.

E-Biz247 gathered that APM Terminals had a written agreement with the service provider on the number of containers to scan daily depending on their capacity.

When contacted, the Media Adviser to the company, Bolaji Akinola, explained that APM Terminals was not responsible for scanning of containers at the ports or for any delay associated with scanning.  He said, “Scanning is the responsibility of Cotecna and Customs.

APM Terminals only intervened by taking over the logistics to bring about efficiency in the system.

Oil thieves frustrate efforts to curb $7bn revenue loss

Crude oil theft, which is denying Nigeria about $7bn in revenue annually, has shown no sign of easing despite stakeholders’ efforts to stop it.

In view of its effects on revenue generation and budget implementation, our correspondent learnt that the Federal Government had become frustrated and was considering a new approach to tackle the problem.

President Goodluck Jonathan has thus directed governors in oil producing states, service chiefs and multinational companies to work out an aggressive approach.

The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke, confirmed this, lamenting the high rate of oil theft was adversely affecting the country’s revenue.

Diezani had in 2012 said the country was losing approximately 180,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily to oil theft.

The International Energy Agency also said Nigeria was losing about $7bn annually to oil theft.

Already, the Federal Government had lost N191bn ($1.23bn) to oil theft and vandalism in the first quarter of the year as crude theft continued to flourish.

The Acting Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Tumini Green, said there had been a significant drop in crude oil production for the first quarter of 2013 due to incessant crude oil theft and vandalism along the major pipelines within the Niger Delta.

She said daily crude oil production during the period fluctuated between 2.1 million and 2.3 million barrels per day compared with the projected estimate of 2.48mbpd.

FG considers new approach to job creation

Federal Government will soon unveil a new plan that will help to create about one million fresh jobs annually.

The Special Adviser to the President on Job Creation, Obi Adim, who disclosed this during a chat with journalists in Abuja on Friday, said the initiative would address the country’s high unemployment rate in a pragmatic way.

Nigeria’s unemployment rate, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, currently stands at 23.9 per cent.

Adim, who addressed journalists in company with the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Job Creation, Josephine Washima, said already the initiative, Integrated Youth Development Programme, had received a lot of buy-in from stakeholders, adding the full details of the programme would be released before the end of next month.

German, Japanese firms to improve electric car batteries

Three companies from Germany and Japan say they're teaming up to revolutionize batteries to be used in electric vehicles.

The firms aim to extend the travel range and reduce the weight of their batteries.

German car parts giant Bosch as well as Mitsubishi and GS Yuasa of Japans announced on Thursday that they had decided to set up a joint venture to develop lithium-ion batteries for electric cars.

They added that the research and development project would start operations in Stuttgart, Germany, in early 2014, with production expected to kick off four years later.

The three companies said they planned to drastically boost the capacity of lithium-ion batteries to enable electric cars to travel about 400 kilometers (249 miles) once charged.

That would be a major improvement on the 180 to 240 kilometers achieved so far.

European internet 'running 25% slower than advertised'

Customers across Europe are getting broadband speeds 25% slower on average than that advertised by their service providers, a European Commission report says.

The study suggests the average speed in Europe is 19.7Mbps.

Service providers routinely advertise speeds "up to" a certain amount, which most consumers will not get.

The EU wants to get all households on speeds of at least 30Mbps by the end of 2013 and half on 100Mbps by 2020.