Yemisi Izuora
ExxonMobil is working towards investing billions of dollars in deepwater oil projects in Nigeria, signalling renewed confidence in the country’s upstream sector.
The oil major disclosed this during a visit to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC )as part of activities marking 20 years of the Erha deepwater project, according to a statement on Thursday from the spokesperson of NUPRC, Eniola Akinkotu.
Speaking during the visit, the Senior Vice President, Deepwater, ExxonMobil Upstream Company, Mr Hunter Farris, said the company was encouraged by Nigeria’s improved investment climate, which informed its decision to “renew our vows to Nigeria”.
He noted that the Production Sharing Contract on Erha had been extended to 2042, adding that the company was undertaking extensive life extension works to restore the Erha Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel to peak performance.
Beyond Erha, Farris said ExxonMobil was preparing for potential new investments in the Usan field, which would involve “drilling a handful of wells”, as well as the Owowo deepwater project.
On the Owowo project, he said, “There are about a billion barrels of developed resources, of between $7bn and $8bn, that we are progressing, looking into an FID as early as next year.”
He also highlighted the Bosi oil and gas field, located adjacent to Erha, which he said could attract fresh capital investment of between $15bn and $16bn if developed with a new FPSO and pipeline infrastructure.
Farris stated that the proposed investments demonstrate that the company is “getting back in business and we’re serious about what we’re doing”.
He added that ExxonMobil was positioning itself to take advantage of what he described as the golden age of deepwater development or the rejuvenation of deepwater operations in Nigeria.
The ExxonMobil executive further commended Nigeria’s improved regulatory environment, noting that it has significantly enhanced the ease of doing business in the country.
In her response, the Commission Chief Executive of the NUPRC, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, welcomed the company’s renewed commitment to investing in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. “To hear that FIDs are likely next year is very exciting, and rest assured, we are willing to support you,” Eyesan stated.
She added that the commission would continue to encourage and safeguard petroleum investments, particularly those aligned with the interests of the Nigerian people