…As Nigerdock commissions project
By Adewale Sanyaolu
Efforts by the Federal Government to increase oil production through its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Total Upstream, may have received the desired boost as the completion of the Ofon Phase 2 Wellhead Platform will increase oil production from 25,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 65,000bpd.
The disclosure was made by the Managing Director/Chief Executive, Total Upstream Companies in Nigeria and Chairman, Nigerdock Nigeria Plc, Messers Nicolas Terraz and Anwar Jarmakani at the sail away of Ofon Phase 2 Wellhead Platform, held at the Snake Island Integrated Free Zone (SIIFZ) in Lagos, Monday.
‘‘The delivery of the new well-head platform that we are celebrating today will now pave the way for the drilling of additional wells and ramp-up production to 65,000bpd of oil and three million cubic meters of gas per day. This delivery is therefore a key milestone in the Ofon 2 project execution,’’ Terraz said.
He maintained that Ofon 2 has opened a new chapter in the development of Nigerian content, noting that the project is the first ever with so many facilities manufactured in Nigeria under an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract awarded in 2011 to Nigerdock.
The Total Managing Director explained that the Ofon Phase 2 project was launched by the NNPC-TEPNG JV with objectives to stop routine gas flaring and monetise associated gas from Ofon field, increase Ofon oil production from 25,000 to 65,000 by drilling 24 new wells and implementing gas lift activation.
Others include the development of additional reserves with water injection to maintain reservoir pressure, ensuring increased oil recovery, and improvement of operating conditions on site with the installation of new living quarter platform and various facilities’ upgrades.
Jarmakani disclosed that during the construction of Ofon 2 well-head platforms, the company achieved over five million man-hours of productivity without a Lost Time Incident.
He stated that during the peak of projects, Nigerdock had over 5,000 highly trained professionals employed, saying unfortunately as the projects are reaching their close-out, the number will continue to reduce.
‘‘A consistent work programme must be developed for champions of industry like Nigerdock so we can keep employing the youths of this nation and train them to be leaders in their trade and craft. With this approach, we will be able to have a more sustainable investment model and we can be more competitive and economical in our market.
“We at Nigerdock have been doing this for over a decade and we want to take this opportunity to showcase our capability and our alignment with these objectives. However, to do so, there is need for a consistent flow of work. A stop-start programme will keep us and the rest of the nation uncompetitive and we will never reach our full potential,’’ he stated.
The Nigerdock boss lamented that there is a serious lack of effective and efficient engineering services in-country which causes escalating costs when work has to be outsourced overseas, informing that Nigerdock currently provides engineering services and management as demonstrated by the performance of Ofon 2 project and will be a major enabler of improving the current in-country deficiencies.