The Federal Government has discovered new oil fields with a daily production capacity of 1.52 billion standard cubic feet of gas and 681,000 barrels of crude oil, respectively.
According to The Punch, it disclosed this in a document put together by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission titled “Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Sector: Value Optimization, Energy Transition and Regulatory Perspectives.”
The Chief Executive of NUPRC, Gbenga Komolafe, described the incremental amounts of oil that were anticipated from new wells and well re-entry in the document that was received by our correspondent in Abuja.
He continued, “We also finished the 2020 Marginal Field Bid Round and awarded 50 Petroleum Prospecting Licenses to eligible recipients. With the current discoveries in the awarded fields, it is anticipated that the awardees will pursue an early Field Development Plan, resulting in increased oil and gas production.
“The commission is speeding up approvals for early production and speedy re-entry. The awarded fields are expected to produce an additional 58,000 bpd and 87 mmscf/d.
“In the short/medium term, we anticipate an estimated incremental volume from new wells and well re-entry of 461,000 bpd and 565 mmscf/d. Long-term, we anticipate that the permitted and in various stages of execution FDPs will add an estimated 162,000 bpd and 868 mmscf/d to the volume.”
Komolafe further mentioned that the commission now had the duty to ensure friendly and peaceful interactions between the various stakeholders in the host communities due to the adoption of Host Community Provisions under Section 235 of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.
He explained that the introduction of the Host Communities Development Trust will accomplish this.
“The commission has created templates and published regulations, including the one for the Host Community Development Trust, in conjunction with the appropriate partners.
“The goal of the HCDT is to effectively meet the development needs of impacted areas and integrate oil-bearing towns into the value chain, integrating oil-bearing villages into the value chain will help to reduce restlessness in such communities as it offers a good environment for operators to thrive.
“This would ensure smooth operation, increase investor trust, and create a climate that will allow for the sustainable growth of the nation’s hydrocarbon resources, he said.
He continued by saying that the NUPRC was pleased to announce that the commission has approved more than 60 Host Community Development Trusts.
He said, “This is undoubtedly a milestone in the execution of the PIA, 2021.”
“To reach the 1.8 million barrels per day quota that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has set for Nigeria, the Federal Government and its agencies have been working to increase the nation’s crude oil production.
“The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, for instance, announced on Monday that the nation’s oil production had grown to 1.6 million barrels per day, a few millions short of the 1.8mbpd quota allocated to Nigeria by OPEC.
At a gathering of industry stakeholders in Abuja, NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive, Mele Kyari, made this announcement. He also said that the rectangle security strategy had assured the output had recovered from its July 2022 level to the present 1.67 million barrels per day level.
The Chief of Upstream Investment for NNPCL, Bala Wunti, represented Kyari at the event. Kyari claimed the Detect, Deter, Destroy, and Recover policy had been successfully implemented.
The creation of the Central Command and Control Center for efficient monitoring and coordination, the launch of the Whistle-Blowers Portal and the Crude Oil Validation Portal, the use of surveillance tools in the battle against oil theft and vandalism, and other tactics were also implemented.
