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Airlines Lose N20 Billion Annually to Bird Strikes

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  • Airlines Lose N20 Billion Annually to Bird Strikes

There are indications that Nigerian airlines might be losing as much as N20 billion to bird strike annually, as the frequency of such incidents has increased over the years without efforts to curtail them by concerned authorities.

Some airlines operators said that bird strikes have become very regular that they have to make provisions for the possibility of changing aircraft engines many times in a year.

A bird strike is when a bird enters the jet engine of an aircraft; it usually damages such engine, and forces the airline to replace the engine when it happens. Usually, the aircraft is grounded until a new engine is fixed on the aircraft and tested.

A source said that it was not only that the airlines lose huge resources on bird strikes as the engines are condemned, but oftentimes, the aircraft is grounded for days until a new engine is acquired.

On average domestic operation, a Boeing 737 generates N5million everyday it is put on air and when it is grounded for about 10 days, the airline loses about N50million.

The process of acquiring a new engine could take longer time than 10 day and the cost of the engine of Boeing B737 classic, which could still operate between 3000 to 4000 hours before overhaul is between $3 and $4 million; that of next generation aircraft like Boeing B737-800 is between $6 and $8 million.

Although the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has insurance coverage for environment hazards, the airlines said that the agency does not compensate them when their aircraft are damaged by bird strikes.

However, FAAN’s Environment Department takes measures to reduce the presence of birds at the airports but the measures have not effectively kept the birds at bay; rather, almost every week, there are reports of bird strikes at different airports in the country.

But the President, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Nogie Meggison said that before now, bird strikes occur over five to six times monthly but it has been reduced to a minimum of about four or two monthly, which implies that bird strikes could occur more than 24 times annually.

But an insider said that this is debatable because bird strike incident “happens every other week and I am not sure that the airlines report to AON whenever it happens.”

The Accountable Manager and Chief Operating Officer, Dana Airlines, Obi Mbanuzuo, said that bird strikes are one of the challenges facing airlines especially during the rainy seasons.

“In Africa, it is warm all the time and there are a lot of grasses and vegetation around the airports. If you go to the United States, their airports are concrete. Birds like vegetation, because of this, the airports are supposed to have bird prevention measures to scare off the birds but unfortunately some of our airports do not do that. One of our bird strikes was in take-off and the other one was in landing. The damage can take a lot of money to fix,” Mbanuzuo said.

In April, this year, a Dana aircraft, MD 83 with registration number 5N-SRI departed the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos for Port Harcourt, but had to make an air return to base barely few minutes after departing the airport.

The passengers in the aircraft were delayed for some time before the airline was able to make another aircraft available for the passengers, as the airline disclosed that the aircraft was grounded for days before another engine was acquired and fixed on the aircraft.

The Accountable Manager said Dana Air spent about $1.5 million (about N600 million) to replace the damaged engine and return the aircraft to service.

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Energy

How Nigeria’s National Power Grid Collapsed Ten Times Within 9 Months 

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The national power grid has again collapsed, leaving many Nigerians in total darkness.

Investors King can authoritatively report that this is the tenth time the power grid will be disrupted this year alone.

For this recent collapse, the grid, reportedly lost power generation around 1:39 pm on Tuesday.

Information revealed that power generation was 2,711 megawatts as of 1:00 pm, having previously peaked at 3,631 MW.

Earlier, power generation peaked at 3,934.77 MW around six o’clock in the morning.

However, between 2 pm and 3 pm, hourly generation dropped to 0.00 MW.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria confirmed that the national grid experienced a partial disturbance at about 1:52 pm on Tuesday, 5th November 2024.

TCN spokesperson Ndidi Mbah mentioned that the recent collapse was due to a series of line and generator trippings that caused instability in the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system.

Mbah pointed out that data from the National Control Centre revealed that a part of the grid was not affected by the bulk power disruption.

TCN however indicated that work work is in progress to restore power.

She explained that engineers are already working to quickly restore bulk power supply to the states affected by the “partial disturbance.”

Mbah noted that presently, bulk power supply has been restored to Abuja at 2:49 pm, maintaining that “we are gradually restoring it to other parts of the country.”

She apologized to Nigerians for whatever inconvenience the collapse might have caused.

Findings by Investors King revealed that the grid had collapsed at ten different times between March and November, this year.

Times the grid collapsed included February 4, March 28, April 15, July 16, two times in August 5, October 14, October 15, twice in October 19 and now today, November 5.

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Darkness Falls Again: TCN Explains Latest National Grid Collapse

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The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has provided an explanation for the latest National Grid collapse, which occurred on Tuesday, November 5.

Tuesday’s collapse, marking the 10th in 2024 alone, left Nigerians in total darkness.

Recall that the National Grid collapsed twice in October, sparking concerns among Nigerians.

Reacting to the latest collapse via a statement on Tuesday, the General Manager of TCN Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, disclosed that the collapse happened at 1:52 pm.

The GM revealed that the grid collapse was caused by line and generator trippings.

Mrs. Mbah said, “TCN states that the national grid experienced a partial disturbance at about 1:52 pm today, 5th November 2024.

“This followed a series of line and generator trippings that caused instability in the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system.

Data from the National Control Centre (NCC) revealed that a part of the grid was not affected by the bulk power disruption.

Mbah disclosed that operators are working to restore power in affected states, adding that power was restored in Abuja.

She explained, “TCN engineers are already working to quickly restore bulk power supply to the states affected by the partial disturbance. Presently, bulk power supply has been restored to Abuja at 2:49 pm, and we are gradually restoring power to other parts of the country.”

Apologizing to Nigerians, TCN said, “We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our electricity customers.”

Investors King, in an earlier report, revealed that in an attempt to address the persistent collapse of the national grid, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) announced that discussions were underway with Independent Operators to take over the management of the grid.

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Energy

Nigeria Partners with ECOWAS and Morocco to Launch $26B African Gas Pipeline

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The Nigerian government, in partnership with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Morocco, and Mauritania, has announced plans to advance the $26 billion African Atlantic Gas Pipeline project to drive economic growth across Africa.

This development was revealed on Monday, November 5, by Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), at the ECOWAS Inter-Ministerial Meeting on the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project.

Speaking at the meeting, which was attended by ECOWAS Ministers of Hydrocarbons and Energy as well as representatives from Morocco and Mauritania, Kyari stated that, once completed, the project will connect 13 African countries.

Represented by Olalekan Ogunleye, NNPC’s Executive Vice President for Gas Power & New Energy, Kyari said this will be Africa’s largest pipeline project.

Ogunleye confirmed that progress has been made with the front-end engineering design completed, the phase two study finalized, and work ongoing for environmental and social impact assessments as well as land acquisition and resettlement.

He emphasized NNPC’s readiness to execute the project: “Today, we come together to make significant progress in the African Atlantic gas pipeline project, which is a transformative initiative connecting at least 13 African nations in shared prosperity and development. These achievements underscore our capability to deliver this landmark project, supported by strong regional collaboration.”

Ekperikpe Ekpo, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), described the project as a game-changer for the regional economy, stating, “We stand at a critical juncture where these agreements can reshape our energy landscape, strengthen our economies, and uplift our people.”

He also highlighted that the project will increase Africa’s presence in the global gas market, noting that “the agreements demonstrate a strong commitment to advancing hydrocarbon and energy trade across ECOWAS, enhancing access to natural gas in West Africa, and expanding Africa’s global footprint in the gas market.”

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