ABUJA, Nigeria, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Nigerian drilling contractor SeaWolf Oil Services Ltd. deployed its first indigenous jack-up rigs to offshore fields to explore for oil and gas.
SeaWolf Oil Services said it was moving into Nigerian waters for the first time in its history, Nigeria's Next newspaper reports.
Remi Okunlola, a co-founder of SeaWolf, said he was "pleased" with "the first Nigerian-owned rig to ever operate in Nigeria waters."
Nigeria holds some of the largest natural resource deposits in Africa. Oil reserves are estimated at 36.2 billion barrels of proven oil reserves while gas deposits are estimated at 184 trillion cubic feet.
The energy sector, however, is plagued by underdevelopment and chronic militant activity in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, the main militant group in Nigeria, called off an October cease-fire agreement at the end of January.
Violence and political instability are costing the oil-rich country dearly in terms of production. Production levels dropped nearly 30 percent in recent years, costing the government $1 billion a month in lost oil revenue.
Royal Dutch Shell, meanwhile, announced in January it was offloading three production licenses and related equipment in the Niger Delta to domestic
No comments:
Post a Comment