Energy
Floating LNG Project: UTM Solicits NCDMB’s Equity Investment, Approvals
UTM Offshore Limited, promoters of Nigeria’s first Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) facility has requested the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to invest equity in the project and to accelerate key approvals that would fast-track the project’s development.
The Corporate Communication Department of the NCDMB conveyed this in a statement.
According to the statement, the request was made on Wednesday at the Nigerian Content Tower in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State when the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe hosted the management of UTM Offshore Limited led by the Group Managing Director, Mr. Julius Rone.
The target completion date of the FLNG project is 2028 and it hopes to contribute about 450,000 tonnes of liquified petroleum gas (LPG), otherwise known as cooking gas per annum to the domestic market.
“This,” the statement had it would “assuage Nigeria’s average demand of about 1.5 million tonnes of LPG per annum and reduce the dependence on the importation of LPG.”
According to the GMD the UTM is a 100 percent indigenous company, and the floating LNG project will optimise Nigeria’s stranded gas offshore, enhance energy transition, promote domestic consumption of cooking gas, and aid technology transfer, among other benefits.
He invited the NCDMB to take equity in the project, hinting that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Delta State Government were already partners on the project given its importance to Nigeria’s energy security.
The GMD described the FLNG as another confirmation of the capability of Nigerians to develop projects of world-class standards.
He announced that roadshows were being planned for Uyo and Abuja in April 2024, to showcase the Nigerian Content opportunities in the project and to engender increased participation of Nigerian oil and gas services companies.
The UTM Offshore boss thanked the Board’s Management for facilitating the project’s progress, just as he solicited greater synergy with his company on all aspects of Nigerian Content implementation and overall development of the project.
Providing further details, the Technical Manager of the FLNG, Engr. George Amara stated that the project’s target total production is 2.72 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), with LNG accounting for 1.81 MTPA, LPG taking up 0.45 MTPA, and condensate making up 0.25 MTPA.
He commended NCDMB for approving key stages of the development, including Pre-Front-End Engineering Design (Pre-FEED), the Pre-FEED Nigerian Content Development (NCD) Plan, and the Front-End-Engineering Design (FEED) NCD Plan.
Other accomplishments include the Engineering Procurement Construction NCD Plan, the training of three indigenous engineers for Pre-FEED Nigerian Content Development, and the engagement of 13 Nigerian engineers for the FEED NCD scope as well the engagement of Nigerian engineering firms for different aspects of the project.
He affirmed that UTM FLNG would utilise Nigerian fabrication yards for in-country activities, adding that an inspection of prospective yards in Lagos and Calabar had been completed.
He hinted that the project was going into the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation & Commissioning (EPCIC) stage, which is very critical, hence the need to update the NCDMB and request speedy approval for the EPC NCD Plan.
In his response, Engr. Ogbe, expressed delight with the progress recorded on the UTM FLNG and assured that the Board will provide all the required approvals. He urged the company’s Management to “be proactive. Let us know whatever challenge or obstacles that you encounter” assuring that the Board would do all that is within its powers to assist the company and others showing resourcefulness.
On the request for equity investment, the ES promised to consider the application with the Board’s management and to escalate the proposal to the Board’s Governing Council for further consideration.
He also promised that the Board would participate in the Nigerian Content roadshow, to explore opportunities for other Nigerian firms on the FLNG project.
Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Ltd (SNEPCo) rode on new wells, optimized reservoir and optimal facility management to produce more oil at Bonga in 2023 than the previous one, a review of operations has shown.
Biztellers reports that Nigeria’s first deep-water development produced some 138,000 barrels of oil per day (boepd) in 2023 compared to around 101,000 in 2022.
The improvement, Biztellers gathered, was driven by drilling of new wells, optimising reservoir and facility management and excellent asset management, inter alia.
Managing Director, SNEPCo, Elohor Aiboni, said, “Bonga continues to justify the investments and hard work that led to its discovery.
“The uptick in production is the result of commitment by staff, continuous improvements in production processes and maintenance and the support of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPC) and our co-venture partners – TotalEnergies Nigeria Limited, Nigerian Agip Exploration and Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited.
“Working together, we will continue to power lives and deliver value to all stakeholders.”
Recall that Bonga began production in November 2005 through the 225,000-barrels-per-day capacity Bonga FPSO, anchored 120 kilometres offshore. The FPSO exported the 1 billionth barrel of oil last year.
The operations have resulted in remittance of taxes and royalties to the Government of Nigeria to finance development, development of indigenous contactors and service providers, and a wide-ranging social investment portfolio which has improved lives across the country.
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has reassured industry stakeholders that oil and gas service companies that have established capacities in the country will continue to enjoy patronage.
The Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe made this commitment on Friday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State when he led officials of the Board and Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) to visit companies that deliver pipe coating and related services.
The team visited Brightwaters Energy Limited, formerly known as Willbros Nigeria Ltd, Solewant Nigeria Limited and Pipe Coaters Nigeria, managed by Tenaris Nigeria Ltd.
According to the ES, the visits were to assess the companies’ facilities and determine how the Board can galvanize the industry to patronise them.
He underscored the importance of getting first-hand information on in-country capabilities before making key decisions on oil and gas projects. He insisted that operating companies must support and patronise local oil and gas service companies in compliance with the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.
Ogbe emphasized that activities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry must be used to create employment opportunities for the nation’s teeming youths and help to resuscitate the economy, in line with the aspirations of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu.
The Chief Executive Officer of Brightwaters Energy Limited, Scott Gregory thanked the ES for leading the visit while highlighting that Brightwaters carried out Nigeria’s first pipe coating in 1962.
He recalled that the facility had 3,000 employees some years back, executing various spheres of oil and gas projects. He conveyed the management’s aspiration to return the
firm to those high-performance levels and sought the Board’s support to win oil and gas projects that would resuscitate the sprawling facility.
“We feel that we can be a positive contributor to Nigeria through the capacities that we have. We want to bring real, true value to the table,” he added.
He admitted that the coating facility had suffered downtime, but assured that the plant would be up and running within 60 days of the award of a new contract.
The Chairman of Tenaris Nigeria, Dr. Ernest Nwapa welcomed the NCDMB’s team to PCNL’s facilities.
He commended the efforts made by the agency to push local content in the industry, attributing it to the good culture that had been established at the Board over the years.
Nwapa, who was the pioneer Executive Secretary of the NCDMB expressed delight that some of the oil and gas projects that had been pending for nearly ten years were now being developed and expressed hope that existing local capacities would be maximized in the execution of those projects.
The team was taken around the company’s facilities and shown the various equipment of PCNL in readiness for the award of new contracts.
Nwapa pledged the commitment of the company to meet the expectations of clients as well as allow them to participate in the supervision of the work in their factory.
The PCNL facility covers an area of 160,000 m2 in the Onne Free Trade Zone. The company offers Anticorrosion, CWC, Thermal Insulation, Internal and Bends Coating plants as well as Double Jointing and Anode Installation Facilities.
At Solewant Group, an EPCI and Pipe Coating Company, the NCDMB delegation was shown round the company’s facilities as well as the new investments, such as the 5mega watts generators, procured to guarantee power supply to the facility.
Accompanying Engr. Ogbe on the facility visits were the Director Projects Certification and Authorization Division (PCAD), Engr. Abayomi Bamidele, General Manager PCAD, Engr. Maurice Iwhiwhu, Special Technical Assistant (STA) to the Executive Secretary, Engr. Mofe Megbele, Deputy Manager, Corporate Communications, Mr. Obinna Ezeobi, and other staff members of the Board.
The SPDC team was led by the General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Mr.Lanre Olawuyi.
The NNPC Exploration and Production Limited (NNPC E&P Ltd), NNPC Ltd’s flagship upstream subsidiary, and Natural Oilfield Services Ltd (NOSL), a subsidiary of Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Ltd (SEEPCO), has announced the successful commencement of oil production at Oil Mining Lease (OML) 13 in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.
Biztellers reports that the production commenced on the 6th of May 2024 with 6,000 barrels of oil with expectations to be ramped up to 40,000 barrels per day by May 27th, 2024.
The first oil flow from OML 13 is a historic milestone in the partnership between NNPC E&P Ltd and NOSL, highlighting their dedication to driving growth and development in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, which remains a vital component of the nation’s economy.
The achievement does not only signify the culmination of rigorous planning and execution by the teams involved, but also represents a new era of economic empowerment and development opportunities for the host communities.
Furthermore, for Nigeria, the first oil from OML 13 holds some significance as it contributes to the country’s efforts to increase its oil production capacity, which is crucial for meeting domestic energy needs and driving economic growth.
The NNPC E&P Ltd and NOSL partnership is also committed to operating in a manner that is safe, environmentally responsible, and beneficial to the local communities.
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