Nigerian Petroleum Development Co. (NPDC) has issued a request for expressions of interest (EoI) on the development of two licences in Nigeria’s northeast.
NPDC, the upstream unit of Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. (NNPC), invited companies to act as financial and technical providers for an integrated development of OPLs 809 and 810.
The two licences are in the Gongola Basin, in the Upper Benue trough. The trough extends for around 1,000 km from the Bight of Benin to Lake Chad.
The Nigerian company said it had discovered “huge commercial quantities” of oil and gas in the Kolmani River.
However, the blocks are more than 700 km from the coast, posing challenges to export options.
Instead, NPDC has proposed an onsite midstream refinery and power plant. This would allow it to use these resources for local needs. Ultimately, this development would “create an industrial hub” to provide economic benefits and employment.
Bidders should register interest by September 15, at 12 noon by providing initial details to the Nigerian Petroleum Exchange (Nipex). Companies should submit documents by October 12.
Up- and midstream
Interested companies would carry out a number of tasks in order to drive this plan forward. In the upstream, 738 square km of high-resolution 3D seismic needs to be merged and reprocessed. This would provide further insights into areas of interest in the Kolmani Main and Kolmani South-east fields.
Bidders would also carry out field studies for the fields, drill wells and sidetracks, develop upstream facilities and operate assets.
In the midstream, the plan involves a 150 MW power plant and a 50,000 barrel per day condensate refinery.
Companies must meet various eligibility criteria. They must provide audited accounts for the last four years and have a combined average turnover of $1 billion. They are also required to disclose links to NNPC and NPDC.
NPDC drilled the Kolmani River 2 well in 2019 and the Kolmani River 3 earlier this year.