Yemisi Izuora
Lekoil has said that the Otakikpo oil field will spud first oil in the later part of the year.
Field development was delayed due to safety concerns.
The company said during the week that it plans to produce first oil from the Otakikpo offshore field after resolving the identified challenges.
Drilling operations at the Otakikpo-002 well were temporarily halted, pending repairs and replacement of equipment, after the rig crew noticed a potential critical safety issue around the crown block of the rig used to drill the well.
No injuries were recorded and any costs relating to the replacement of the rig equipment will be carried entirely by the drilling company, not Lekoil.
As a consequence of this interruption, first oil is now expected to flow from Otakikpo-002 well by the end of the third quarter of 2015.
Lekan Akinyanmi, Lekoil’s CEO, in a company statement, said, “Phase 1 operations at Otakikpo are underway and we look forward to announcing first oil by end of 3Q 2015. Safety remains our key priority and we will continue applying the highest standard to our operations. The company would like to thank shareholders for their continued support.”
Otakikpo is located in a coastal swamp location in oil mining lease (OML) 11, adjacent to the shoreline in the south-eastern part of the Niger Delta.
Lekoil was awarded a 40 percent economic interest in Otakikpo via a farm-in agreement and joint operating agreement signed on May 17, 2014 with Green Energy International Limited.
The Otakikpo field development plan consists of two phases. Phase 1 includes the recompletions of two wells, Otakikpo-002 and Otakikpo-003, and Phase 2 covers the subsequent incremental development of the rest of the field with a new central processing facility and seven new wells due to come on stream during 2017.