Plans are underway to restart oil production at OML 55 l in Kula community in Rivers State.
The facility was shut down in 2016 following accumulated loss of crude oil to theft, and vandalism of transnational pipelines that deliver crude oil from Kula to Bonny terminal.
Giving insight into the planned resumption in Port Harcourt at the weekend, the Lead Consultant of the project, Vincent Ajiro, said the nation lost about 5.5 billion barrels of crude from June 2016 to April 2022, which he described a colossal loss if converted to the current price of crude oil of $80 per barrel.
To resuscitate the facility and commence production, Ajiro explained that rather than exporting productions of OML 55 to Bonny Terminal again and incur 80 per cent of losses of oil that pass through the channel to illegal refiners, a terminal known as ‘Belema Sweet Export’ would be set up in Kula by the Belemaoil Producing Limited to prevent damages and give room to other assets within the area.
He said: “The Belema Sweet Export Terminal is geared to change the narrative, it will prevent losses and ensure we get value from our resources, which can be used to further develop the community and Nigeria as a whole.
“The idea of the project is to maximise the value. Before now, the production goes to the Bonny Terminal through the Nembe Creek Trunkline but because of sabotage, theft, and inaccuracies, there have been losses, so there is no point losing value through transportation when it is possible to export crude from Kula.
“Our target is to have about 80 million barrel storage capacity in the next few years in Kula, but we are starting with one million capacity and then move on to nine million capacity storage.”
Also, Manager, External Relations and Corporate Affairs, at Belemaoil, Mr. Samuel Abel-Jumbo, said the idea was developed by Tein Jackrich, the founder of Belemaoil Producing Limited.
The move, according to him, will create jobs for communities, and increase power generation because the gas facilities will produce enough electricity to power the generators for constant power supply to the people and improve their living standard.
The Amanyabo of Kula Kingdom, Dr. Kroma Eleki, said though it is a gigantic project, it will come on stream soonest.
“This project will increase the economic standard of the people, a business will flow and, when completed, there will be job for our people, economic growth, tourism and so many amenities will come in,” he said.
