It is now obvious that the euphoria that greeted the inauguration of oil exploration in Kolmani oil field in 2022, by then president Muhammadu Buhari is becoming short lived, more like sound and fury signifying nothing.
From all indications, work has stopped at the field. No exploration activity is presently going on. Yet neither the federal government through the ministry of Petroleum Resources nor the NNPCL, the state-owned oil company, have provided reasons for the deplorable situation.
Most Nigerians, especially residents of Bauchi and Gombe states who are the immediate beneficiaries of this exploration, believe the government ought to explain why exploration activities have since been halted at the Kolmani oil field.
As a newspaper, we are of the opinion that the federal government is in a position to tell Nigerians why work is not ongoing at the Kolmani oil field that is projected to yield 120,000 barrels of oil per day, has a gas processing plant capacity of up to 500 million standard cubic feet per day, a power plant of up to 300-megawatt capacity and a fertiliser plant of 2,500 tons per day?
Experts claim that there is evidence suggesting that there are over one billion barrels of oil reserves and 500 billion Cubic Feet of Gas within the Kolmani area. Because it was scheduled to comprise upstream production, oil refining, power generation and fertiliser, the Kolmani project is widely believed to have enormous benefits for the nation.
We are persuaded to argue that with all the loud noise about electric vehicles and transition from fossil fuels to alternative energy, petrol is and will for decades to come, remain relevant. This fact makes it imperative for the federal government to either resume work on the oilfield or provide cogent reasons why work on the Kolmani oil field has been halted.
As a newspaper, we find it difficult to understand why work on an oil and gas field that attracted $3 billion investment and marked a culmination of the long years of search for oil and gas in the Upper Benue Trough should halted. Except if we are to believe that it is being preserved as a strategic reserve. Still, we think the nation has a right to know.
This oilfield, with all its potential, is seen as a way opener for energy, financial and food securities with far reaching positive impacts on the nation’s economic development. Based on the Production Sharing Contract (PSC), the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) will serve as the concessionaire of the blocks while the duo of the NNPC Exploration and Production Limited (NEPL) and New Nigeria Development Company Limited (NNDC) are the contractor parties.
This is an initiative that is expected to come with it the establishment of a refinery, fertiliser plant, power plant and associated oil and gas processing facilities all of which will undoubtedly boost energy security for Nigeria while also providing jobs opportunities for many.
The Kolmani Integrated Development Project of Oil Prospecting Licenses (OPLs) 809 and 810 at the Kolmani field site, overlaps Bauchi and Gombe States and is a novel partnership that will see the trio of Africa Oilfield Movers Ltd consortium, New Nigeria Development Company (NNDC) and NNPC E&P Ltd (formerly NPDC) producing and monetising the field.
In another phase of the project, there would be a downstream oil terminal/depot for offtake and distribution of the white products coming out of the refinery and further development of the integrated project. Reflectively, what culminated in the discovery of oil at the Kolmani field started in the 1990s when Oil Prospecting Licenses (OPLs) 809 and 810 were initially awarded to Shell and Chevron respectively as part of their frontier obligation under the Production Sharing Contractual (PSC) Agreement on Oil Mining Licenses (OMLs) 118 and 132 for consolidated cost recovery.
The fact that though the nation relies heavily on proceeds from crude sales, current oil output is below the 2024 budget target of 1.78 million barrels per day (mbpd). This underscores the need for concerted efforts to intensify oil production in Kolmani and Ebenyi-1 oil wells located in Gombe and Nasarawa states respectively.
Therefore, with all the expected benefits, there is the need to resume work on the Kolmani oil field. And if there is a cogent reason why work cannot continue, the government should come clean by offering full disclosure to Nigerians.
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