In this Article we discussed Voyage to oil quest in Northern Nigeria and the (NNPCL) discovery and drilling of crude oil in Bauchi, Gombe and Nasarawa state.
INTRODUCTION
Nigerian former President Muhammadu Buhari opened the first oil drilling site in the country’s north which he said it will bring energy security and economic development. The fresh source of oil comes as Nigeria’s production ranking has dropped from Africa’s top spot due to the theft of oil in the Niger Delta. Nigeria’s state oil company said the northern Kolmani fields could hold as much as 1 billion barrels of oil, but analysts question whether locals stand to benefit. The Kolmani River Field is located between Bauchi and Gombe states in northeastern Nigeria – a region that has been battling Islamist militants for years. It’s the first time Nigerian authorities have turned to another source of crude oil outside the Niger Delta region.
Crude oil was first discovered there by the privately operated NNPC Limited in 2019. Former President Buhari at the time said that the launch of Kolmani River Field holds up to 1 billion barrels of oil reserves, about 14 billion cubic meters of gas. Buhari said the new project will include upstream production, oil refining, power generation, and fertilizer production. He said it already has attracted three billion dollars’ worth of investment. He spoke in a televised broadcast during the launch. “This discovery had emanated from our charge to NNPC to re-strategize and expand its oil and gas exploration footprints.
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Similar activities across the other basins are currently actively ongoing,” he said. The project is expected to produce up to 50,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Buhari said the project will benefit locals through job creation, energy security, financial security and community development. Nigeria now ranks seventh on the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ crude oil production list, according to the group’s November oil market tally. Authorities blame massive theft in the Niger Delta region for the decline and have been trying to boost production.
VOYAGE TO OIL QUEST IN NORTHERN NIGERIA
Eventually, the search for hydrocarbon in the North yielded results with the inauguration of oil drilling in the Kolmani Integrated Development Project, at the Kolmani oil field site, Alkaleri in Bauchi State. Nigeria, with crude oil reserves of more than 37 billion barrels and the 6th largest world producer, has discovered and launched the first oil drilling project in the north after decades of exploration.
The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC) unveiled the discovery of hydrocarbon deposits in the Kolmani River II Well on the Upper Benue Trough, Gongola Basin, in the northeastern part of the country. The oil wells OPLs 809 and 810 — to be developed by Sterling Global Oil, New Nigeria Development Commission (NNDC) and NNPC Ltd, were launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 22, 2022.
The discovery and drilling of crude oil in Bauchi and Gombe
The discovery of oil in commercial quantity in the north came 62 years after the oil and gas discovery and drilling took place in Oloibiri in South-South Bayelsa states. The South-South region, also called Niger Delta, had since dominated oil production with highest oil and gas reserves in Nigeria. Other states where oil was later discovered in southern Nigeria over the years are Ondo, Imo, Abia, Lagos, Anambra and Kogi. The discovery and drilling of crude oil in Bauchi and Gombe axis is the first in the 19 northern states where millions of dollars had been spent by NNPC looking for oil. Buhari declared that the government has already attracted over $3 billion investment in the oil and gas sector at a time of near-zero appetite for investment in fossil energy.
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Buhari flagged off the Kolmani Integrated Development Project, a fully integrated in-situ project comprising upstream production, oil refining, power generation and fertilizer. “Considering the landlocked location and the huge capital requirement, the economics of the project is a challenging proposition,” he said. “Consequently, from the outset, I instructed NNPC Limited to utilise and leverage its vast asset portfolio across all corridors of its operations to de-risk the project to attract the much-needed investment. “It is therefore to the credit of this administration that at a time when there is near zero appetites for investment in fossil energy, coupled with the location challenges, we are able to attract investment of over $3 billion to this project.”
The Nigerian national petroleum company limited discovery of oil in Nasarawa state.
NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, in a statement issued in Abuja by the corporation’s spokesperson, Garba-Deen Mohammad, said the results of exploratory activities confirmed the presence of substantial hydrocarbon resources in the state. It said the discovery was in continuation of its oil exploration activities in the country’s inland basins, adding that it would spud the first oil well in Nasarawa State in March 2023. On January 5, 2023, it was reported that NNPCL was prospecting for crude oil in more locations across the north, after discovering the commodity in Bauchi and Gombe states. The report stated that NNPCL was taking coordinated steps for more frontier exploration in the region, as part of measures to shore up the country’s oil output and reserves.
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The company had disclosed this in a document on the frontier exploration services activities of the NNPC from 2020 to 2022, as outlined some prospective states where oil was expected to be discovered include Niger, Nasarawa, Sokoto, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Bauchi, and Gombe. Beyond the North, the Anambra basin was listed as another area where the NNPCL was striving to find more oil. Prospecting is the first stage in discovering the oil and gas fields, under which seismic surveys are carried out. Kyari, announced the oil discovery and the planned spud-in when the Governor of the state, Abdullahi Sule, led a delegation of prominent indigenes on a courtesy visit to NNPCL in Abuja.
He also called for prompt action on the project as the global energy transition had led to a reduction in investment in fossil fuels. “This work must be done very fast because the whole world is walking away from fossil fuel due to energy transition, the earlier you go to market, the better for you,” Kyari stated. He added, “Otherwise, 10 years from now, no one will agree to put money in the petroleum business except it comes from your cash flow.” He said community support and a conducive environment were key to a successful operation in the area, in order to avoid the experience of the Niger Delta. In his response, then Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, congratulated the NNPC boss on the successful commencement of oil production and the Kolmani Integrated Development Project which was inaugurated in November 2022 by former President Muhammadu Buhari. He commended the President for his support and assured NNPCL of a conducive environment.