…Total of 17 marginal oilfields currently producing in Nigeri
…PIA restricts further declaration of marginal fields
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has confirmed that no less than 17 marginal oilfields are currently producing petroleum products.
Meanwhile, over 30 oil fields were awarded have since its inception in 1999.
The Commission’s chief executive, Mr. Komolafe Gbenga made this known at the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) Strategic International Conference on Thursday in LagosThe Conference has as its theme, “Energy Transition: “Shaping the Future of Nigeria’s Energy Industry, an Appraisal of PIA, Evolving Benefits and Challenges.”
Represented by Mr. Abel Nsa, head, National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre (NOGEC), Komolafe said marginal fields award was initiated to increase participation of indigenous companies in the upstream sector and build local content capacity.
He also said the marginal fields were created to provide employment opportunities, and increase capital inflow to the oil and gas sector.Komolafe said: “Since its inception, a total of 30 fields have been awarded, 17 currently producing.
A breakdown of the allocation of the fields to indigenous operators is as follows: two fields awarded in 1999, 24 in 2003/2004, one each in 2006 and 2007, and two in 2010.
According to him, 10 years after, in 2020, a total of 57 fields were put up for bidding.
Unfortunately, Nigeria was yet to see the final outcome of the bidding exercise of the 57 marginal fields until the arrival of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).Komolafe said his commission have pursued the last bidding round matter frontally and have just concluded it.
“We are delighted to inform you that the exercise, which commenced in June 2020, has been concluded with the issuance of Petroleum Prospecting License (PPL) to the deserving awardees.
“The issuance of the PPL has ushered in a new dawn for our indigenous operators to hit the ground running in developing their awarded assets in line with industry best practices and to take full advantage of the increasing crude price in the international market.”
He, however, noted that the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) had brought an end to the era of marginal field awards.
According to him, Section 94(9) of the Act states that, “No new marginal field shall be declared under this Act.”
Accordingly, the minister shall now award PPL on undeveloped fields following an open, fair, transparent, competitive, and non-discriminatory bidding process in line with Sections 73 and 74 of the Act.
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