-By Gideon Osaka
Nigeria’s hope of increasing its oil production has received a boost as Eland Oil and Gas PLC, an oil and gas production and development company operating in West Africa with an initial focus on Nigeria, has announced that first production from the Gbetiokun oilfield was achieved through the early production facility (“EPF”) at oil mining lease, OML 40.
Following mobilisation of the EPF to the Gbetiokun field and completion of all pre-commissioning checks throughout July, the field was said to have come on stream on 31 July 2019. In line with expectations, initial gross production will rise to approximately 12,000 barrels of oil per day (“bopd”) (net: 5,400 bopd) from the Gbetiokun-1 and Gbetiokun-3 wells over the next seven days. The EPF will process all reservoir fluids produced under the initial phase of the Gbetiokun development. The facility has a nominal capacity of 22,000 bopd, which will allow for production from the additional Gbetiokun development wells being drilled in 2019. Evacuation of processed crude will be through shuttle tankers from Gbetiokun to the injection point on the main OML 40 export pipeline. The Gbetiokun facilities and process have been designed in a modular fashion, allowing for the evacuation of increased levels of production over the coming 12 to 18 months beyond 22,000 bopd, while the permanent export solution is progressed. Furthermore, this evacuation process allows the company to export through an alternative export terminal should its primary export route be hindered. Speaking on the development, George Maxwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eland, said: “We are delighted to reach first oil from the Gbetiokun field. The team has worked hard, and I am proud we have delivered significant production from a second oil field within OML 40, marking a significant expansion and de-risking of our production base. Gbetiokun will deliver additional cash flow for Eland and we are excited for the development of the licence going forward, with the further infill drilling on Gbetiokun and Opuama and the near-field exploration of Amobe prospect in 2019.”
