Introduction
Lagos — Nigeria’s premier deep-water company, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) this month conducts a turnaround maintenance of the country’s first deep-water development, Bonga.
Writing on this, Precious Okolobo, a public affairs commentator, highlights the contributions of Shell’s deep-water operations in Nigeria to the development of the country.
The turnaround maintenance being executed by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) at Bonga field is another milestone in the operations of an asset that has delivered value to Nigeria and other stakeholders since it came on stream in 2005. The turnaround maintenance is a detailed review of facilities and processes with a view to revitalising them for continuous optimum use.
The exercise will focus on the giant Floating, Production, Storage, Offloading (FPSO) vessel which handles production at the field. The crude oil produced at Bonga field is offloaded to tankers through the FPSO while the gas is piped to LNG plant. The turnaround maintenance, the 7th since the field began production, will, among other things, help to further deepen deep-water technology in Nigeria as many indigenous companies and personnel will play key roles. Nigerian suppliers and service providers will also be heavily involved as they were in previous maintenance activities.
Shell, a world leader in deep water, set up SNEPCo in 1993 to explore for oil in the Gulf of Guinea. Long before then, Shell had pioneered oil and gas production on land through the operations of what later became known as The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC.) The company exported the first shipment of oil from Nigeria in February 1958.
The deep-water zone is, however, more complex as freezing temperatures, water pressure and pitch darkness make oil and gas production in that area a major technical and environmental challenge. Many years after, Shell’s bold move has delivered tangible benefits to the Nigerian state, as SNEPCo, with the support of NNPC Ltd, and the co-venture partners –TotalEnergies, Nigerian Agip Oil Company, and ExxonMobil – has safely and efficiently produced oil and gas from Bonga and related fields, launching Nigeria into the league of deep-water producers.
Bonga, named after a local fish species, increased Nigeria’s oil capacity by 10 percent when it began production, and has since produced more than 950 million barrels of oil since 2005. The field has the capacity to produce more than 200,000 barrels of oil a day and 150 million standard cubic feet of gas a day. Oil production has gone side by side with contributions to the Nigerian purse. Last year, SNEPCo remitted $562 million in corporate tax and payments to government, and another $23 million to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC.)
Following from the success of Bonga, SNEPCo implemented the Bonga North West project, achieving first oil in 2014. Bonga North and Bonga South West Aparo are two potential developments. SNEPCo’s exploration activities have inspired several significant discoveries of oil and gas over the last two decades, including the Bolia and Doro fields, in which it has 55% interest. Today, nearly one-third of Nigeria’s deep-water oil and gas production comes from Bonga and the non-operated Erha fields.
The operations at Bonga have resulted in the creation of a generation of deep-water professionals, suppliers and service providers, with SNEPCo awarding major engineering and construction contracts to indigenous companies. In one example, the manufacture and rebuild of hydraulic flying leads and refurbishment of old subsea trees are being carried out in-country by wholly indigenous companies.
The efforts of SNEPCo to develop Nigerian content predate the enactment of the Nigerian Content Act in 2010. The efforts have seen Bonga evolve as a Nigerian venture delivered by Nigerians using expertise and best-practice provided by Shell. Some 96% of the staff of SNEPCo are Nigerian, and since 2005, the Managing Director of the company has been Nigerian, with Mrs. Elohor Aiboni, currently the first female in the role.
Social investments, especially in education and health, are a key part of SNEPCo’s operations. It’s National University Scholarship, delivered in conjunction with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, has supported over 490 Nigerian students since the programme was launched in 2016. Another postgraduate scholarship programme introduced in 2017 enables graduates from any Nigerian state to obtain a master’s degree in oil and gas-related disciplines from leading universities in the United Kingdom. Late last year, Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Trust Fund presented an award to SNEPCo for consistent contributions towards the growth of the public tertiary education sector. In 2019, the company launched the Vision First Initiative, taking medical eyecare to various parts of the country. The latest outreach in the programme was held in Lagos two months ago with more than 2000 people benefitting.
The contributions of SNEPCo to Nigeria’s development were lauded by the Group General Manager of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Mr. Bala Wunti, who led his leadership team on a visit to Bonga field last month ahead of the turnaround maintenance. Mr. Wunti described Bonga operations as “best-in-class.” It is the same spirit of excellence that will guide the safe and timely execution of the turnaround maintenance at the Bonga field and help ensure Shell continues to deliver dividends to Nigeria and other stakeholders through its deep-water operations.
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