Atala Oil Field: NUPRC Under Fire In Senate Over Wrongful Re-allocation

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), came under fire and scrutiny  in Senate last Friday over alleged revocation and wrongful re-allocation of the Atala Marginal Oil field (OML 46)  owned by the trio of Bayelsa Oil Company Limited, owned by Bayelsa state government; Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited and Century Exploration & Production Limited to Halkin Exploration & Production Company Limited (Halkin E&P).

Consequently, the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, on the grounds of Petitions before it from  Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited,  directed the management of NUPPC to produce the written directive from President Muhammadu Buhari, being the minister of Petroleum directing it to allocate the field to Halkin  E&P.

Trouble over the oil field started on April 6, 2020 when the then regulatory agency, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), revoked the operating licence of the Atala JV Partners on the Marginal Oil Field over alleged inability to bring the Atala Field to production

But the trio of BOCL , Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited  and Century Exploration and Production Limited (CEPL) , kicked against the revocation on the grounds that as original operators of the oil field , explorations and productions have  been made and royalties paid into  the account of the federal government of Nigeria  and that as at the time the field was purportedly revoked, the JV-partners have an outstanding 20,700 barrels of crude on the site.