The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says it has signed a
$3.15 billion Financing and Technical Services Agreement between
Sterling Oil Exploration and other partners for the development of Oil
Mining Lease (OML) 13.
The corporation disclosed this in a statement signed by its Group
General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Ndu Ughamadu, on Tuesday
in Abuja.
He said the other partners are Energy Production Company Limited
(SEEPCO) and the exploration and production arm of NNPC, the Nigerian
Petroleum Development Company (NPDC).
He said the move was part of the quest by the NNPC to increase the
nation’s crude oil reserves and daily oil production to three million
barrels per day.
OML 13 is 100 per cent owned by the NPDC and is located in the Eastern
axis of the Niger Delta covering a total area of 1987km².
He said the Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPC, Mele Kyari, had
described the funding arrangement as “a game changer to oil and gas
project financing in Nigeria”.
He expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for approving the
transaction, adding that OML 13 held strong potential both for the
petroleum industry and the nation’s economy.
Explaining the terms of the financing, Mr Kyari disclosed that the
federal government is expected to earn over $10.2 billion in royalties
and taxes from the project over the next 15 years.
Also NNPC would earn over five billion dollars after payment of the
entire financing obligation.
The GMD advised the management of NPDC to develop a strong community
engagement strategy to forestall any crisis that could hinder
operations.