Sustainable PSC terms will drive Nigeria’s deep offshore investment, says Total

Deputy Managing Director, Deep Water, Total Upstream Nigeria Ltd., Ahmadu-Kida Musa, yesterday in Abuja, said the country must put in place sustainable Production Sharing Contract (PSC), and gas terms to drive continued investment in the nation’s deep offshore oil and gas sector.

Speaking at the Nigerian Content Seminar, as part of the ongoing Nigeria Oil and Gas Conference & Exhibition (NOG), Musa revealed noted that six out of the 18 topside modules of the Egina FPSO were fabricated, lifted and fully integrated in-country.

He also noted that sustaining such efforts can engender building a full EPSO in the next eight years provided Nigeria had the right policies and investor-friendly laws.

According to him, with some large deepwater discoveries such as Bonga South West or Owowo, still to be developed in Nigeria, sustainable PSC and Gas terms are imperative, as fundamental requirement for the growth of the country’s deep offshore.

Musa added that favourable terms would enhance efforts, as private operators are focused on reducing the cost of new deepwater projects to ensure their sustenance and bring value at $50 per barrel.

The DMD, who said the development of new projects was critical to maintaining industry capacities, said: “As the industry moves even further offshore, the need for this know-how cannot be over-emphasised.

Nigeria must move up to a level where it is able to meet the competency needs of other new entrants within the Africa sub-region and be considered as a technological hub for the region.

“Nigerian Content in the Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry, through careful legislation and government policies could also have great impact in other sectors of the economy, including: Information & Communication Technology/Telecommunication, agriculture, engineering and construction, manufacturing, transport and storage, power, finance, etc.

“The next frontier is very broad and filled with opportunities. But it is also lined with a lot of challenges that I believe are surmountable. Let’s take the bold steps and decisions that we all require to move into the next phase.”

Musa said the Egina FPSO, currently in Lagos, would in the coming weeks, sail away to Egina field, which is located in oil mining lease, OML 130, approximately 150 kilometres offshore Port Harcourt.

“It is the deepest offshore development carried out so far in Nigeria, in water depths of over 1,500 meters and the project is designed to produce 200,000 barrels per day of oil at plateau.

In addition to the oil, the Egina field will produce gas. Associated gas will be partly re-injected into the reservoir to maintain reservoir pressure, and partly channelled to supply the domestic gas market,” he added.

Musa said driving local content in Nigeria has had multiplier effects, especially in the areas of revenue retention, job creation, skill development and others.