President Buhari Commissions First Oil Drills In Northern Nigeria

OGUNMOKUN OLAMIDE ABEEBLAH

President Muhammadu Buhari officially inaugurated the Kolmani Development Project to explore and refine crude oil  in Northern Nigeria 

The project was inaugurated on Tuesday Morning at the Presidential Flag-off Ceremony of Kolmani Integrated Development Project, at the Kolmani oil field site, Alkaleri in Bauchi State. 

The project is executed through the Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 810 and 809  to drill oil in Northern Nigeria. 

President Buhari noted that NNPC Ltd and its partners have attracted an investment of $3 billion to the project while the Kolmani River oil field is significant to find oil outside established Niger Delta basins. 

The President also added that the successful discovery of the Kolmani oil and gas field has finally broken the jinx, citing that the discovery emanated from the government’s charge to NNPC to restrategize and expand the oil and gas exploration footprint to Anambra, Dahomey, Benue, and Bida basins.

Buhari also noted that similar exploration activities are ongoing in other basins. 

“We are pleased with the present discovery of 1 billion oil reserves with huge potential for more deposits as we diversify exploration efforts. The discovery attracts investments to Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources and would provide benefits, including energy, food, financial security, and social economic development for Nigeria,” he said.

He noted that huge capital requirements were needed for the project due to the landlocked location and that he instructed NNPC Ltd to utilize its power and portfolio to derisk the project to attract much-needed resources. 

“I look forward to the successful delivery of Kolmani Integrated Development Project, which would be a pillar in Nigeria’s economy,” he added.

NNPC stated that in 2019 they applied cutting-edge technologies and area surveys to de-risk exploration in frontier basins, meaning that frontier exploration is yielding positive results today in Kolmani. 

The Kolmani 809 and 810 POL is at the Gongola basin between Bauchi and Gombe states.  

The NNPC noted that Nigeria must accelerate to 3 million bpd by 2032. 

The Group Managing Director, New Nigeria Development Company, Alhaji  Shehu Usman, said the discovery of hydrocarbon in commercial quantity has been achieved.

He noted that the order given by President Buhari in 2016 to commence exploration in Benue is responsible for the discovery of oil in commercial quantities in Northern Nigeria.

Usman stated that the discovery ends doubts that there could be oil in the North, and also ended stagnation and growth of Nigerian oil wells. 

He added that only NNPC assured interest in the frontier basins, and the determination of NNPC to drive the desires has led to this historic success.

The NNDC boss stated that the impact will bring value creation for host communities starting with strategic partnerships, and also crude and gas uptake from the field.

He stated that more of such partnerships should be forged to open up the north for oil and gas exploration. 

The NNPC revealed that commercial prospects started 30 years ago with Shell, but were abandoned as no significant outcome was achieved.

It was revived through Kolmani River 2, 3, and 4 to explore deeper targets, flagging off the first phase in 2019 that led to the discovery of 1 billion barrels of oil and 500 billion cubic feet of gas. 

Also accompanying is a  petrochemical refining site with an oil refinery of 120,000 bpd, a gas processing site of 500 million cubic feet per day, and also a 300 MW power plant.