NNPC, First E&P Kickstart Oil Production At OML 85, Expects 7.3m Barrels Annually

Oil production in Nigeria has received a boost with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and its Joint Venture partner in Oil Mining Licence (OML) 85, First Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited (First E&P), announcing the commencement of export from the facility.

 Output from the asset also known as Madu Field, located in shallow waters offshore Bayelsa State and operated by First E&P is expected to be at an average of 20,000 barrels per day or 7.3 million barrels annually.

A statement from the Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the national oil firm, Olufemi Soneye, on Friday stated that the achievement was a testament to the commitment of the President Bola Tinubu administration to optimise production from the nation’s oil and gas assets through the provision of enabling environment for existing and prospective investors.

Madu, is a shallow-water oil and gas field located off the coast of Nigeria, where THISDAY learnt, First E&P holds a 40 percent stake, while the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) holds the remaining 60 percent interest in the project.

The field development project involves two conductor-supported platforms (CSPs) tied back to a floating production, storage, and offloading vessel (FPSO).

Located in the Niger Delta, off the coast of Bayelsa State in southern Nigeria, the water depth in the project area ranges from 35m to 55m. The Madu field is located 20km northwest of Anyala. First E&P acquired a 40 percent stake in  OML 85 block from Chevron Nigeria in February 2015.

Yinson, was awarded contracts worth approximately £678.6m ($901.793m) at the time, for the charter, operations, and maintenance of the FPSO for the Anyala and Madu field development project in February 2019.

Speaking on the development, the statement quoted the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC, Mr. Mele Kyari, as describing the commencement of oil production at the Madu Field as a significant milestone.

He added that it will contribute to the larger goal of meeting the production required to drive revenue growth and boost the nation’s economy.

Kyari, who commended stakeholders for their support, also explained that the addition of 20,000 barrels per day by an indigenous oil player signals the commitment of stakeholders to achieving economic development for Nigeria.

According to the NNPC release, the Final Investment Decision (FID) on the development of the Madu Field and a sister field, Anyala, was taken by the NNPC Ltd/First E&P JV in 2018.

“Production from the Madu Field will be processed at the JV’s Abigail-Joseph Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) Unit, which has a crude oil storage capacity of up to 800,000bbls,” the NNPC said.

Emmanuel Addeh

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