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UPDATE 3-Nigeria pipeline blast kills at least 100-Red Cross
Reuters: [2008-05-15 22:46:00]
(Adds details, background)
By George Esiri
IJEGUN, Nigeria, May 15 (Reuters) - At least 100 people were killed and scores injured when fuel from a pipeline ruptured by a bulldozer caught fire and exploded on Thursday in a village near Nigeria's biggest city of Lagos, the Red Cross said.
The fireball engulfed homes and schools at Ijegun village in the Lagos district of Alimosho, and many of the dead, who included schoolchildren, were killed in the ensuing stampede as people fled in panic from the flames.
"About 100 people have so far been confirmed dead from the fire. We have so far rescued more than 20 people with injuries and taken them to hospital for treatment," a Red Cross official at the scene told Reuters.
The disaster was the latest in a series of pipeline explosions or blazes caused by damage or theft which have killed more than 1,200 people since 2000 in Nigeria, the world's eighth largest oil exporter and Africa's top producer.
The pipeline rupture at Ijegun, a village about 50 km (30 miles) from the centre of the sprawling coastal city of Lagos, occurred during work to build a road. A bulldozer moving earth struck the pipeline buried beneath the surface.
"I was returning home when I suddenly saw sparks of fire from where the grader (earthmover) was working," local resident John Egbowon said.
The fuel leaking from the broken pipe caught fire and exploded, sending people fleeing in panic.
"HELL RAINING DOWN"
"It was like hell was raining down on us, then everybody started running in different directions," Egbowon said.
At least 15 homes were burned. More than 20 charred vehicles caught in the fire were visible afterwards in the street, as firefighters and volunteers tried to douse the flames with sand and water after the explosion.
Witnesses said that even after the main explosion, the ground around the fire was so hot that shoes melted.
Abandoned in panic, discarded school bags and sandals littered the compound of one school whose pupils had fled. A group of women wailed in grief nearby.
A network of oil and fuel pipelines criss-crosses parts of Nigeria and explosions and fires that kill many are frequent.
In the creeks of the Niger Delta, the country's main oil producing zone, the pipelines are also the target of sabotage attacks by local militants seeking greater control over oil revenues and more development for their impoverished region.
Previous accidental pipeline blasts in Nigeria have been caused by vandals who drilled holes in the feeder lines, used to distribute mainly imported fuel, in order to steal petrol for sale on the black market.
Despite the country's oil wealth, most Nigerians live on less than $2 per day and many are prepared to take huge risks to obtain free fuel.
At least 45 people were burnt to death last December in another village on the outskirts of Lagos when fuel they were stealing from a buried pipeline went up in flames.
One year earlier, 250 people were killed in another pipeline fire in a different area of Lagos.
In such situations, a small number of organised thieves usually drill a hole in a pipeline, but as word spreads others come and try to steal the fuel and fire often breaks out. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/) (Additional reporting by Tume Ahemba; Writing by Pascal Fletcher) ((tume.ahemba@reuters.com; +234 1 463 0257; Reuters Messaging: tume.ahemba.reuters.com@reuters.net)
Keywords: NIGERIA PIPELINE/FIRE
Council backs stronger UN presence in Somalia
Reuters: [2008-05-15 22:37:00]
By Louis Charbonneau
UNITED NATIONS, May 15 (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Thursday that opens the door to a stronger U.N. presence in Somalia and possible deployment of U.N. peacekeepers in the lawless Horn of Africa country.
Somalia's transitional government is expected to welcome the resolution, even though the text contains no hard promises that the council will eventually deploy U.N. peacekeepers in Somalia as the government has repeatedly requested.
While all 15 council members agree the situation is dire, most have been reluctant to send U.N. peacekeepers to Somalia, where warlords, Islamist insurgents and Ethiopian-backed Somali government forces clash almost daily.
Talk of outside intervention is still colored by memories of a battle in 1993 in which 18 U.S. troops and hundreds of Somali militiamen died. The incident inspired a book and a Hollywood movie -- "Black Hawk Down" -- and marked the beginning of the end for a combined U.S.-U.N. peacekeeping force.
In the resolution adopted on Thursday, the Security Council explicitly backed a recent report by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on his preparations for a U.N. force that would replace African Union peacekeepers, known as AMISOM.
It also calls for Ban "to continue his contingency planning for the possible deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Somalia to succeed AMISOM."
The resolution includes language proposed by South Africa, a strong advocate of sending U.N. troops to Somalia, in which the council explicitly says it will "consider ... a peacekeeping operation to take over from AMISOM" if conditions are right.
South Africa's U.N. Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo told reporters afterward he was very pleased the council said for the first time it would think about sending troops to Somalia if conditions on the ground are deemed acceptable.
"It sends a signal to the people of Somalia that we've heard their cries," he said.
HUMANITARIAN CONCERNS
In February the Security Council extended for six months U.N. endorsement of the AU peacekeeping mission. It consists of two Ugandan battalions, totaling 1,600 troops, and an advance party of 192 Burundians.
The British-drafted text says the council is also concerned about human rights in Somalia and the "worsening humanitarian situation." It also says the country "continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region."
It urges U.N. member states to boost support for AMISOM.
The British text also threatens to impose sanctions against those who try to undermine "a peaceful political process, or those who threaten (peacekeepers) ... by force, or take action that undermines the stability in Somalia or the region."
It says the council wants a list of "individuals or entities" to be targeted by sanctions within 60 days.
It also asks the council to back Ban's recommendation that the U.N. Somalia operations be moved from Nairobi to Mogadishu, a measure aimed at boosting the U.N.'s visibility in Somalia.
France and the United States are drafting a companion resolution that will deal exclusively with the issue of piracy off the coast of Somalia and elsewhere. The second resolution would authorize countries to actively pursue pirates.
A surge in maritime hijackings for ransom off Somalia has made it one of the world's most dangerous shipping zones. (Editing by David Wiessler) ((louis.charbonneau@reuters.com; +1 212 355 6053; Reuters Messaging: louis.charbonneau.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: SOMALIA UN/
Angola forecasts 16.5 percent growth in 2008
Reuters: [2008-05-15 21:54:00]
MAPUTO, May 15 (Reuters) - Angola expects its economy to grow by 16.5 percent in 2008 driven by exports of oil, the country's deputy finance minister said on Thursday.
"We are projecting a growth rate of 16.5 percent in 2008, due to oil exports which are currently in demand," Angola"s Deputy Finance Minister Job Graca told Reuters on the sidelines of the African Development Bank meeting in Mozambique.
With record oil prices, Angola's growth is mostly the result of its growing oil sector.
The country recorded GDP growth of 24.4 percent in 2007, above the government's own forecast of 19.8 percent and the IMF's forecast of 23.8 percent.
Maquarie First South Securities said in a recent research report on Angola that GDP growth in 2008 is expected to outpace the government prediction and come in at around 30 percent.
The revenue from oil is helping Angola rebuild its infrastructure after a 27-year civil war that ended in 2002.
Angola became Africa's largest oil producer last month, OPEC said on Thursday, pumping 1.873 million barrels per day in April -- 55,000 bpd more than Nigeria where unrest had sharply cut output.
Most analysts believe Nigeria will retake the top position this month as much of its shut-in production has been restored. (Reporting by Charles Mangwiro; Writing by Marius Bosch; Editing by Jan Paschal) ((marius.bosch@thomsonreuters.com; +27 11 775 3160; Reuters Messaging: marius.bosch.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: AFDB ANGOLA/
UPDATE 6-Oil slips on natural gas stockbuild, profit taking
Reuters: [2008-05-15 21:49:00]
(Recasts, updates prices; changes dateline from LONDON)
NEW YORK, May 15 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell Thursday as a big increase in U.S. natural gas stocks weighed on the energy complex, spurring profit-taking from recent highs.
U.S. crude <CLc1> settled down 10 cents at $124.12 a barrel, after dipping as low as $120.75 a barrel earlier.
London Brent crude <LCOc1> settled 61 cents lower at $121.25 a barrel, after a power glitch halted trade was on the InterContinental Exchange platform for more than three hours. [ID:nN15287873]
"Natural gas gave us a negative tone at the start of the day. There's also likely a lot of people trying to get out of positions and lock in some profits," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading in Chicago.
Natural gas futures <NGc1> fell 2 percent after a U.S. government report showed a larger-than-expected increase in stockpiles last week. [EIA/GAS]
The losses added to oil's $1.58 retreat Wednesday, which was prompted a bigger-than-expected rise last week in distillate stocks, easing concerns about tight diesel markets that sent heating oil and gas oil futures to record highs this week. [EIA/S]
Oil prices, which also hit a record this week just below $127 a barrel, have jumped six-fold since 2002, propelled by surging demand in China and other developing nations.
Some support came as the dollar weakened against the euro on Thursday, after data showing U.S. industrial production fell 0.7 percent in April, reflecting the biggest drop in the manufacturing sector since September 2005. [nN15269262]
Oil and the U.S. currency have become closely intertwined in recent months as investors have turned to oil as a hedge against the falling dollar.
SAUDI VIEW
Rising fuel costs have hit the economies of consumer nations, such as the United States, which already has been hit hard by the global credit crunch.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has rebuffed repeated calls from consumers to increase output, however, blaming the weak dollar and speculative inflows into commodities for high prices.
Oil's rise has more to do with financial market volatility than fundamentals, Ali al-Naimi, oil minister of OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia, said on Thursday, according to the text of a speech obtained by Reuters. [nSEO267530]
"The short-term oil price gyrations seen in recent years are more closely tied to the internal logic of the financial markets than to underlying supply/demand fundamentals," Naimi said.
OPEC's Monthly Oil Market Report provided more evidence that record oil prices are slowing demand growth, lowering its forecast for world demand growth to 1.16 million barrels per day, 40,000 bpd less than its previous forecast. [nL15510849]
Investment bank UBS raised its projection for oil prices on Thursday to $115 a barrel for 2008. [nL15322865]
The forecast for this year is the most bullish among banks polled by Reuters. UBS previously was the most bearish forecaster in a poll on April 25. [O/POLL] (Reporting by Richard Valdmanis and Matthew Robinson in New York; Additional reporting by Jane Merriman; Editing by Walter Bagley) and Alex Lawler in London, Maryelle Demongeot in Singapore) ((richard.valdmanis@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6056; Reuters Messaging: richard.valdmanis.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS OIL
AfDB forms fertiliser fund to help fight food crisis
Reuters: [2008-05-15 21:49:00]
By Gordon Bell
MAPUTO, May 15 (Reuters) - The African Development Bank agreed on Thursday to set up a facility to subsidise farmers battling high fertiliser costs and help them boost production as food prices surge.
The move was the latest in efforts to help Africans cope with sharply rising food prices that threaten to ignite inflation and damage economic growth.
Food costs have sparked riots and protests in many African countries, with the poor, who spend the bulk of their income on food, the hardest hit. Almost half of Africa's 900 million people live in poverty.
"I have to be categorical, some degree of fertiliser subsidy will have to take place," AfDB President Donald Kaberuka told reporters at the end of the group's annual meeting in Maputo.
"These will have to be market-smart subsidies. They will have to be targeted. This may require public finance (and) this may require support from international institutions."
The bank hoped to raise about $500 million in funding for the facility within six months.
Fertiliser prices had jumped to $1,100 a tonne in April from $245 a tonne in January, he said.
The fund was part of a series of measures announced in response to spiralling costs.
The AfDB recently raised by $1 billion its portfolio of agricultural loans to help boost farm output, bringing total funding to $4.8 billion, and offered up to $250 million to assist some countries deal with immediate financial problems.
The food crisis dominated proceedings at the meeting, with member countries of the continental lender urging international coordination to help solve a problem that has raised the risk of social unrest and instability in many poor nations.
POOR INCENTIVES
Kaberuka said the bank would also help governments boost spending on infrastructure to build better roads and ensure farmers got their produce to markets.
About 60 percent of African crops were routinely lost because farmers could not transport harvests in time, he added.
"For a long time agriculture in Africa suffered poor incentives, poor incentives for farmers ... low prices, impassable roads and international markets which were protected. Now the price incentives are there."
Despite the food crisis, Africa was making good progress in lifting millions out of poverty, he said.
The AfDB said in its annual economic report, released at the meeting, growth for the continent as a whole would rise to 5.9 percent, although this was boosted by robust expansion in oil-exporting countries.
"In 2000, we were growing at 3 percent (a year), the same as the rate of increase in the population (but) now growth is at 6 percent, double the increase in the population," he said.
Nigeria, one of Africa's top oil producers, pledged to replenish a trust fund -- financed by windfalls from high oil prices -- to help poorer nations.
International crude oil prices are near record levels of about $125 a barrel, further fuelling inflation in oil-importing countries and raising import bills.
The AfDB accepted Turkey's application to join the group at the meeting, bringing total membership, including 25 non-African members, to 78.
It also resolved to remain based in Tunisia for the next two years, at least. (Additional reporting by Wendell Roelf and Charles Mangwiro; Editing by Charles Dick) ((gordon.bell@reuters.com; +27 11 775 3151; Reuters Messaging: gordon.bell.reuters.com@reuters.net)) (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/ )
Keywords: AFDB FOOD/
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