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Total
Signs Agreement to Farm Into Offshore OPL 257
03-13-2008
Total announces that it has
signed an agreement with Nigeria’s Conoil Producing Limited to farm into the
deep offshore OPL 257 license with a 40% interest. Conoil remains the operator
with a 50% interest, and a local company holds the remaining 10%.
The Nigerian government has approved this transaction.
Covering an area of 372 square kilometres, OPL 257 is located some 150
kilometres offshore, in water depths ranging from 1,600 to 1,800 metres. It lies
south of OML 130, where the Akpo and Egina fields, operated by Total, are
situated, and north of the Joint Development Zone administered by Nigeria and
Saõ Tomé and Principe.
Total will be the technical advisor. Conoil started its activity in 1984 and
currently operates six licenses in the Niger Delta. The partners of OPL 257 will
jointly conduct further exploration, appraisal and development works of any
commercial discovery.
No wells have yet been drilled in the license. The work commitment for the first
exploration period, which ends in 2011, comprises the acquisition and processing
of 400 square kilometres of 3D seismic and the drilling of two exploration
wells. In the second exploration period, which will be for a duration of five
years, the work commitments cover the acquisition of a further 100 square
kilometres of 3D seismic and the drilling of five exploration and/or appraisal
wells.
Total has been operating in Nigeria for 50 years. Developing the country’s deep
offshore resources is one of the Group’s main growth drivers in Africa,
particularly the Akpo field in OML 130, which Total operates. Akpo should come
on stream during winter 2008-2009 and reach a production plateau of 225,000
barrels of oil equivalent per day. Development studies are ongoing for Egina,
also located in OML 130.
Total’s offshore operated production in Nigeria comes currently from the OML 99,
100 and 102 blocks as part of a joint venture with NNPC. The main fields are
Amenam, Ofon and Odudu area fields.
In addition, Total also has a significant equity production in Nigeria from its
participations in non-operated ventures, particularly SPDC JV (10% Total,
onshore and shallow offshore) and SNEPCO JV (12.5%, deep offshore, Bonga field),
as well as in Nigeria LNG (15%).
Total is committed to the use of local content in its activities, following the
example of the programme that will be implemented for the recently launched Usan
project. The Group continues to develop the expertise of Nigerian companies in
deep-offshore project-related work. This is particularly the case in the Niger
Delta region, from which more than half of Total’s Nigerian employees come and
where the majority of the Group’s operations in the country are located.
The development of Total’s presence in Nigeria, combined with growing production
volumes in Angola and the Republic of Congo should enable Total to strengthen
its leading position amongst oil majors in Africa.
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