Nigeria’s crude oil export rises as Shell lifts force majeure on Bonny terminal

Oredola Adeola

The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) has lifted the force majeure on the Bonny export programme with effect from Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

This was revealed by a spokesperson of SPDC in a statement on Wednesday.

EnergyDay gathered that the force majeure was declared on March 3, 2022, following a significant decline in crude receipts at the Bonny oil and gas terminal.

The spokesperson said, “The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), operator of the SPDC joint venture, has lifted the force majeure on the Bonny export programme with effect from Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

“The force majeure was declared on March 3, 2022, following a significant decline in crude receipts at the Bonny Oil and Gas Terminal”.

Shell had in November 2022, lifted force majeure declared on oil export programme from the terminal following a leak on the 150,000 b/d Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL), one of two pipelines that feed crude to the Bonny Light terminal.

The Bonny Light crude oil programme was set at 95,000 barrels per day (bpd) in November and 123,000 bpd in December.

The grade reaches the export terminal via two pipelines – the NCTL and the Trans Niger pipeline.

Based on this development SPDC JV is projected to produce more than 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) due to enhanced exploration and production activities.

EnergyDay gathered that SPDC JV’s assets include 340 producing oil wells consisting of 97 land, 181 west and 62 central assets, and 56 producing gas wells (10 lands, three west and 43 central assets). A network of approximately 4,000 km of oil and gas pipelines and flow lines.

The assets include 10 gas plants, two major oil export terminals, Bonny and Focados and an additional export facility a shallow water Floating Production Storage and Offloading Vessel christened `Sea Eagle’ currently stationed off Bayelsa coastline.