2,150 barrels per day milestone as Qua Iboe hits first oil

NIGERIA’S largest oil and gas producer, Oando Energy Resources (OER), the upstream subsidiary of Oando PLC, has reached yet another milestone with the commencement of petroleum production from its Qua Iboe Field.

It achieved the feat in spite of the slump in oil prices, the impact on global economies and investor confidence in the oil and gas sector being at an all-time low. In 2003, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) awarded 24 marginal fields to 31 indigenous companies; initiated by the Federal Government to grow production by expanding the scope of engagement in the upstream sub-sector through indigenous participation. However, reports indicate that this proactive initiative is yet to make a significant impact on Nigeria’s petroleum sector, worsened by the present terrain of a slump in oil prices.

At present, only eight of the 24 marginal fields awarded are fully operational with the rest still grappling with financial and technical challenges, this redundancy is further aggravated with the continued decline in oil prices. With austerity measures being implemented by the government as part of the oil price shock, local players are increasingly seeking methods to enhance the economic productivity of their operations via a diversified portfolio.

Oando Energy Resources holds a 40% working interest in the field. In its capacity as technical services provider, the company, together with the operator and 60% owner, Network Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited (NEPN), brought the field from conceptualisation, through development, to first oil in a matter of 2 years, a record time for fields of this nature in Nigeria.

Following the completion of the Maximum Efficiency Rate (MER) testing, commercial oil production from the field’s reservoirs has now commenced at 2,150boepd.