*Set to inaugurate 12mmscfd LPG plant by year end
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Green Energy International Limited (GEIL), one of the marginal oilfields operators in Nigeria, at the weekend disclosed that it plans to expand its current crude oil production capacity to 25,000bpd in the second phase of the development of its asset.
Speaking at the company’s exhibition and end of year party in Abuja, Chairman of the oil firm, Prof. Anthony Adegbulugbe, stated that part of the plan is also to officially open a 12MMSCFD modular Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) extraction plant and 6MW power generating plants by the end of Q4, 2022.
He noted that in terms of field development, Green Energy had established that the conventional approach of piping gas from a remote field needed to be replaced with a less orthodox technique.
By achieving this, Adegbulugbe stated that the company succeeded in eliminating the need for expensive pipeline and compression since the gas utilisation facility is located within the field.
Furthermore, he explained that a modular, scalable option with a small footprint plant that is quick to deploy and easy to relocate remains the most preferred associated gas utilisation solution for stranded and small fields.
“I am very excited about our next phase of expansion which is to take the field’s production to 25,000 bpd. Our previous track record of delivering on our goals through meticulous planning and excellent execution gives me immense confidence to embark on this.
“I am pleased to let you know that we are on track to commissioning the 12MMSCFD modular LPG extraction plant and 6MW power generating plants by the end of Q4 2022.
“This scale of modular LPG plant will be the first to be installed in the country; an achievement that demonstrates we are undaunted by hitherto serial number one exploits.
“It is our intention to showcase this success within the industry as our contribution to ameliorating the perennial associated gas flares that have bedevilled the several stranded pockets of oil fields in the Niger Delta, thus supporting our government’s aspiration of combating this malaise,” Adegbulugbe stressed.
He stated that Green Energy had conceptualised the Otakikpo phase two campaign to include the field’s production and provide a platform for future development by drilling two additional wells.
The critical objectives of the campaign, he said, were to achieve an incident-free operation, meet geological and production objectives and deliver reliable and fully functional wells.
He added that the well delivery team exceeded the corporate’s expectations on all the objectives, explaining that two wells were successfully executed without any Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) incident.
Despite the fact that there had not been any drilling activity on the Otakikpo field over the past 36 years, the chairman noted that the company was able to overcome the well-documented well delivery challenges encountered by small to midsize indigenous operators in the Niger Delta.
According to him, the successful removal of deposited wax and debris from the pipeline contributed remarkably to the company’s operational excellence performance by increasing pumps throughput, reducing evacuation time by up to 24 hours and minimising wear and tear of the export pumps.
Throughout the year, Adegbulugbe noted that the operations crew maintained a 100 per cent production uptime without a single minute of unplanned shutdown.
“We have also developed very aggressive plans to considerably increase production from the field with the potential to spend up to $750 million within three years,” he pointed out.
He disclosed that the development of the onshore terminal and export infrastructure was in line with the company’s corporate strategy of developing and installing an efficient evacuation/export system at Otakikpo thus reducing overall operating expenses per barrel of oil.
We also plan to make the Otakikpo field a crude processing and export hub by providing access to fit-for-purpose evacuation & export infrastructure for the several stranded fields in the Eastern Niger Delta area.
“There are over 20 stranded fields in close proximity to the terminal that will benefit from the enhanced access to readily accessible and cost effective route to the market,” he said.
Adegbulugbe noted that the company achieved an exceptional safety milestone of 5 million manhours without Lost Time Incident (LTI) since commencement of operation in the field.
“This shows that we do not only lead the pack in terms of field development, but we are also blazing the trail on safety performance in the industry,” he explained.
