Breaking news: NNPC and FIRST E&P confirm commencement of oil production from OMLs 83 and 85

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and FIRST Exploration & Petroleum Development Company Limited (FIRST E&P) have confirmed the commencement of oil production from Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 83/85.

Discovered 42 years ago, the OML 83/85 is a shallow water asset located in the Anyala Field offshore Bayelsa State where FIRST E&P is the Operator of the two blocks, on behalf of the NNPC/FIRST E&P Joint Venture.

This remarkable milestone will lead to an expected peak production of 60,000bbl, the state oil company said in a tweet on Thursday, November 12, 2020.

The milestone marked the introduction of hydrocarbon into the Abigail-Joseph Floating Production Storage & Offloading (FPSO) Vessel which was safely achieved at 15:00hrs on 21st October, 2020.

Speaking on the development, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari said the state oil company is committed to monetizing Nigeria’s abundant oil and gas resources from all of the country’s assets, saying “It’s in our informed interest to deliver gas projects in view of the resilience gas has shown in the market since COVID-19 outbreak & the value it delivered.”

An elated Kyari described the project as a milestone for Nigeria being the first wholly indigenously executed and funded integrated oil and gas project in the shallow offshore.

Kyari added that the NNPC will continue to work with partners to deliver low-cost barrels in spite of the current market dynamics occasioned by the COVID19 pandemic. “We remain ever committed to delivering value to the 200 million Nigerians, who are our critical shareholders.”

The NNPC-First E&P JV operates the Madu Field, which is located in OML 85. It is expected to come on stream in 2021.

The OMLs 83 and 85 were originally part of the Texaco/NNPC JV (Chevron JV) but were included in a package of assets that were divested in 2015. FIRST E&P bought the blocks, and in 2017 entered an agreement to develop the fields with Schlumberger. Schlumberger’s role was that of technical service provider and financier.

The Anyala and Madu fields are discoveries with a combined STOIIP of more than 450 million bbl and GIIP of more than 800 Bscf. First E&P holds a 40 percent interest in the licenses and is the operator of the asset, while NNPC holds the remaining 60 percent.