DPR offers Rano, Matrix, others marginal oil field licences

The Department of Petroleum Resources on Monday awarded marginal oil field licences to a number of indigenous oil firms including A.A. Rano, Shafa Exploration, Matrix Energy and Vhelblerg Exploration

Other are Sigmund Oil Field, Emadeb Energy, Casiva Ltd, Duchess Energy and Duport Midstream.

The award came a year after 2020 marginal field bid round began with 591 companies applying to win 57 oil fields on offer.

The oil fields are located onshore, swamps and offshore.

The DPR estimates that Nigeria would produce additional 100 million barrels of crude oil from the 57 fields, in the coming years.

The DPR Director/CEO, Auwalu Sarki, said at the award ceremony in Abuja that the fields would boost Nigeria’s daily oil production capacity beyond the current three million barrels per day.

He said after undergoing lengthy and vigorous process, 161 companies were shortlisted as potential awardees out of which 50 per cent met all conditions.

He noted that the department would not abandon the companies after the award but would work with them to ensure immediate development and attainment of first oil in record time.

He said, “The journey began exactly one year ago, June 1, 2020 with the launching of the bid round registration portal. The portal eased the registration and application process and ensured a transparent exercise.

“It also provided the platform for the virtual data room. It is important to state that the industry-enabled National Data Repository provided all the requisite technical and logistics support for the successful conduct of the exercise.”

He said the DPR would ensure that the indigenous companies face minimal challenges from the International Oil Companies, the original lease owners for the fields.

He explained that the challenges that hindered the attainment of full development of the last marginal fields award 17 years had been considered and tackled.

He added that of the 24 fields awarded in 2003, 11 fields remained undeveloped locking in over 40 million barrels of oil.

Sarki said, “With the lessons of the previous exercise we want to refocus, change the approach, we have developed strategy to ensure you (the companies) and the awarded fields achieve early development.

“The DPR will continue and guide all of you every step of the way. For instance, the guiding template for working agreement has been drafted for joint awardees and discussions have reached advance stage between DPR and lease holders on the farm out agreement.”

The DPR boss expressed optimism that the development of the oil fields would stimulate job creation because “all the awardees have to recruit people which mean more taxes and revenue to government and at the same time it enhances the GDP because the contribution of the industry to the GDP is very low.”

Chairman of Vhelblerg, Bank Anthony Okoroafor. Who spoke on behalf of other winners, expressed gratitude to the DPR for holding a transparent bid exercise.

He said, “It was open to everybody; there was communication established with everybody and they did their own work very well.”

He urged the DPR to support the winning firms by talking to the IOCs to allow the operators use their facilities if considered the most effective options.