Billionaire Indimi’s Oriental Oil join league of petroleum product producers in Nigeria

By: Bodunrin Kayode

Oil magnate Muhammadu Indimi’s Oriental Energy Resources is set to join the league of petroleum refiners in Nigeria even as his Floating Production, Storage, and Off loading (FPSO) vessel is set to start production when it arrives Nigeria.

The facility which was assembled by
Drydocks World, a Dubai Port (DP) World company, part of a global smart-trade enabler that operates an integrated logistics and supply chain network across Africa and worldwide, carried out a comprehensive refurbishment and conversion of the vessel at its Dubai facility.

The project involved major structural modifications, full marine system upgrades, and the installation and integration of 19 topside production and utility modules, transforming the former oil tanker into a fully operational offshore production unit.

Commissioned by World Carrier Corporation (WCC) on behalf of Oriental Energy Resources Limited (OERL), the FPSO will support production at the Okwok oil field in Nigeria’s offshore Petroleum Mining Lease 15.

Once operational, the FPSO will be able to process up to 70,000 barrels of total liquids per day, manage roughly 15 million standard cubic feet of gas daily and store up to one million barrels of crude oil.

Designed to operate continuously for up to 15 years without dry docking, the vessel is expected to begin production in 2026.

Reacting to the development, Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum described the Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessel as a landmark achievement for Nigeria’s industrial and technological advancement.

Governor Zulum stated this at the sail away ceremony of the EMEM Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading Vessel (FPSO), held at the Drydocks World facility in Dubai, which marked the completion of the vessel, now set to arrive Nigeria.

“The sail away of the EMEM FPSO is more than an engineering feat,” the Governor stated. “It is a powerful statement of confidence in Nigeria’s energy future and a reflection of what homegrown enterprise can achieve when guided by vision, discipline, and excellence.”

He began his remarks by thanking the Government and People of Dubai for their hospitality, noting that hosting the milestone in the UAE “underscores the strength of our mutual commitment to innovation, trade, and sustainable development.”

The EMEM FPSO, a $315 million facility, is the first FPSO to be fully financed by an indigenous Nigerian company, Oriental Energy Resources Limited.

“This achievement does not only contribute to national output, it reinforces our collective belief that Nigeria’s private sector has the capacity to drive growth, create jobs, and compete globally.” said Zulum.

Upon its deployment to Petroleum Mining Lease (PML) 15, the FPSO is expected to boost Nigeria’s oil production and enhance national revenue, aligning with the economic diversification goals of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Governor Zulum concluded that the project’s success reflects the “resilience, innovation, and self-reliance” that define ongoing efforts to rebuild Borno State.

“It inspires confidence that, with determination and partnership, Nigeria’s best days lie ahead,” he said.

The event was graced by the Governor of Adamawa, Ahmadu Fintiri and his Akwa Ibom state counterpart, Umo Eno; Billionaire Indimi, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe; Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri and representative of the Chief Executive, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

Billionaire Indimi’s Oriental Oil join league of petroleum product producers in Nigeria

Clarification on viral video: soldiers intervened to rescue NYSC corps members held hostage in Awka — findings

By: Zagazola Makama

Fresh findings have clarified the circumstances surrounding a viral video showing a confrontation between the Deputy Governor of Anambra State and a military rescue team during the governorship election in Awka.

The video, shared extensively on social media, depicts the Deputy Governor verbally harassing a soldier at an INEC collation point, demanding to know why the military officer was present at the venue.

Military sources told Zagazola Makama that the soldier, along with a small rescue team, was deployed following a distress call from the NYSC State Coordinator, Mrs Pauline Ojisua.

According to the sources, at about 0820 hours on Nov. 8, the NYSC Coordinator alerted 302 Artillery Regiment (General Support), stating that corps members and INEC officials were being held hostage by political thugs at Ukwu Oji Umubele, Awka Ward 5, Awka South LGA, after the collation officer absconded from the polling unit. Acting on the distress call, the soldiers were promptly dispatched to the location.

“Troops promptly moved to the location, rescued the corps members and electoral officials, and escorted them safely to INEC office where collation continued without incident,” the sources stated.

However, upon arrival, however, the rescue team met the Deputy Governor, accompanied by political associates, who challenged the presence of the soldiers and attempted to obstruct their intervention.

A viral Video showed the Deputy Governor raising his voice and repeatedly, insisting that the military had no mandate to be in the collation environment, despite the emergency situation and the presence of threatened NYSC personnel. The soldier remained calm, clarifying that he was responding to a distress call.

The Deputy Governor continuously demanded explanations while refusing to listen to the INEC officials who placed the call. The soldier was heard asking: “Madam, what did you tell me when you called?” The video then cuts abruptly before the INEC/NYSC official could respond.

Sources within the security team said that the Deputy Governor’s conduct suggested displeasure with the military intervention, which prevented political thugs from taking advantage of the situation.

Zagazola report that Election security procedures allow military intervention only in life-threatening situations, particularly where corps members serving under NYSC, not political parties are endangered.

Furthermore, INEC collation guidelines bar candidates and their deputies from entering or staying inside collation centres, to avoid interference or intimidation.

Legal experts, Kelvin Martings described the soldier’s action as lawful, necessary and timely, given that the NYSC State Coordinator, a senior Federal Government official, requested immediate protection for corps members.

He also condemned the Deputy Governor’s behaviour, describing it as unruly and obstructionist, especially toward uniformed personnel responding to an emergency involving vulnerable citizens.

Another sources familiar with the matter confirmed: “The military’s swift intervention prevented potential harm to corps members. Any harassment of security personnel performing rescue duties is unacceptable.”

INEC is yet to issue an official statement as at press time.

Clarification on viral video: soldiers intervened to rescue NYSC corps members held hostage in Awka — findings

EXCLUSIVE: Boko Haram–ISWAP rivalry escalates into full-scale territorial war across island corridors

By: Zagazola Makama

The Lake Chad Basin is witnessing a dangerous escalation in insurgent-on-insurgent warfare, as a fresh wave of violent clashes between rival jihadist factions Boko Haram’s Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) intensifies across strategic island strongholds and riverine settlement routes in Abadam and Kukawa Local Government Areas of Borno State.

Between 5 and 8 November 2025, Boko Haram’s Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) launched a fierce coordinated assault on its rival faction, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), across a stretch of islands identified as Sahel 1, Dogon Chuku, Mangari, and linked riverine basins spanning Tumbun Gini – Tumbun Dalo – Tumbun Shanu – Mangari – Dumba in Abadam and Kukawa local government areas of Borno State.

The fighting was intense. The objective was clear. JAS wants to erase ISWAP. Sources revealed that JAS fighters, led by commanders Hassan Buduma and Mohd Hassan, mobilised multiple watercraft loaded with fighters and heavy weapons, moving in waves from Tumbun Gini through the upper river basin to Tumbun Dalo, Tumbun Shanu, Mangari, Dumba and surrounding islands, a chain of sandy enclaves where humanitarian presence is almost non-existent.

In a scene described as “an amphibious assault in insurgent style,” JAS fighters attacked ISWAP from the water, surprising them at dawn. “This is not a misunderstanding, this is a takeover,”said one intelligence source familiar with the region.
However, after days of sustained fighting,
ISWAP fighters were forced to abandon their river camps scrambling for their lives.

The number of casualties remains unknown, but ISR reportedly picked up heat signatures of several bodies floating and others buried in shallow sand pits.

Multiple sources also confirmed that JAS deployed several motorized watercraft in a multi-axis assault, overrunning ISWAP clusters and pushing surviving fighters off the island perimeter into mainland hideouts around Ali Jillimari, Metele, Kangarwa, and Gudumbali in North of Borno.

While both groups share an extremist ideology, the battle has nothing to do with religion. It is about power. Control of the Lake Chad islands means control of millions of naira collected through extortion of fishermen and traders, they will also take control of the Arms and fuel smuggling corridors through Niger, Chad and Cameroon. They will also have mobility advantage where the water channels provide a perfect cover from air surveillance.

ISWAP had dominated these islands since 2021, after the death of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau. But water levels have receded this season, opening new land routes and exposing old fishing settlements.

At the core of this escalation is not ideology — but dominance. JAS, according to intelligence intercepts, has vowed to “totally eliminate ISWAP presence in the Lake Chad islands”, and seize ISWAP’s lucrative supply corridors interfacing Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

JAS reportedly plans to push further south toward ISWAP headquarters within Marte and Ngala LGAs, a strategic move that, if successful, would reverse ISWAP’s dominance for the first time since 2021. Once ISWAP regroups on the mainland, it will retaliate violently to reclaim the islands. The group has never allowed a territorial defeat to stand.

Zagazola report that the clashes represent a transition from sporadic skirmishes to a full territorial campaign. More ambushes, roadside bombs and abductions along access routes linking Metele, Kangarwa and the Maiduguri–Damasak MSR, should be anticipated.

The emerging trend suggests that both factions will now lunched retaliatory raids on each other’s strongholds, attack supply lines, including river transport. Communities in Kukawa and Abadam especially fishermen, transport boat operators, and seasonal farmers will bear the immediate consequences.

The Lake Chad Basin has always held strategic value a place where borders blur and armies struggle to manoeuvre. But this new insurgent rivalry marks a turning point. For the first time in years, Boko Haram and ISWAP are not just fighting the state. They are fighting over who gets to rule the shadows.

And somewhere in the middle caught between gunboats, ideology and hunger are the civilians of the Lake Chad islands, whose lives continue to be shaped by a war they did not choose and cannot escape.

Zagazola Makama is a Counter Insurgency Expert and Security Analyst in the Lake Chad Region.

EXCLUSIVE: Boko Haram–ISWAP rivalry escalates into full-scale territorial war across island corridors