Nigerian economic summit, October Inflation report… 7 top business stories to track this week

Here are the seven top business news you need to track this week — November 13 to November 18

INTERNATIONAL RAILWAY CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION 2022

The international Railway Conference and Exhibition 2022 will take place November 15, 2022.

The event is aimed at preparing the African Railway Network for the AFCFTA. 

Mu’azu Sambo, minister of transportation, Fidet Okhiria, managing director, Nigeria Railway Commission (NRC), Al-Mujtaba Abubakar, president, Abuja Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), amongst other international dignitaries and key 5 stakeholders will also be participating.

The theme for this year’s report is “Powering AFCFTA with sustainable railway development”.

28TH NIGERIAN ECONOMIC SUMMIT

The 28th Nigerian Economic Summit (NES), themed ‘2023 and beyond: priorities for shared prosperity, is scheduled for November 14 and 15, 2022. 

The NES is an annual event where the public and private sector stakeholders deliberate on developmental issues.

The hybrid event will take place at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.

This year’s summit is aimed at refocusing the efforts of the incumbent government administrations on reforms that can drive significant economic improvements in the short term.

NBS TO RELEASE OCTOBER INFLATION REPORT, OIL PRICE WATCH THIS WEEK

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) will release a report on the consumer price index (CPI) for October.

The bureau will also release a statistical report on women and men in Nigeria in 2021.

It also intends to release reports on automotive gas oil (diesel) price watch, premium motor spirit (petrol) price watch, liquefied petroleum gas (cooking gas) price watch and national household kerosene price watch for October 2022.

Also, the bureau intends to release a report on internally generated revenue at the state level for half of the year 2022.

NCC TO ENGAGE STAKEHOLDERS AHEAD OF FRESH 5G SPECTRUM AUCTION

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says it will hold an engagement session with stakeholders on the 5G spectrum on November 15, 2022.

NCC said the proposed plan to issue two more 5G licences is “gathering steam”, hence the need to enlighten stakeholders on the Draft Information Memorandum that will guide the process.

An Information Memorandum provides accurate details about the business’ history, current position and projected future growth to attract prospective buyers and investors.

The commission said the stakeholders’ meeting would hold at the Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, by 9.00 am.

In December 2022, NCC will conduct the second round of auctioning for the 5G spectrum. Last year, MTN and Mafab communications won the first leg of the process.

POWER SUPPLY: FG TO INCREASE TCN’S TRANSMISSION CAPACITY BY 1000 MW

The federal government plans to increase the wheeling capacity of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) by over 1000 megawatts (MW) to boost the electricity supply.

Abubakar Aliyu, minister of power, disclosed this while inspecting the ‘Abuja ring project’ being executed by TCN.

Wheeling in electricity is the transportation of electric energy from within an electrical grid to an electrical load outside the grid boundaries, especially distribution companies.

Aliyu said the project, numbering about six, was made up of lines and substations, adding that it would be completed in December.

OIL PRICE TOPS $95 A BARREL

Oil prices jumped on Friday after health authorities in China, top crude importer, eased tight COVID-19 rules.

Brent crude futures rose 2.34 percent to $95.87 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 2.61 percent to $88.77 a barrel.

WORLD BANK INTRODUCES COST-EFFECTIVE ELECTRIFICATION INITIATIVE

The World Bank has introduced a cost-effective electrification initiative to allow sub-Saharan Africa to meet the projection of universal electricity access by 2030.

The bank said the initiative would accelerate the pace of electrification in Africa.