With the execution of the Ubeta Field Development Project by Total Energies Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) there are fresh hopes of job opportunities for thousands of job seeking youths in the country, according to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
Apart from the job opportunities, the nation’s economy will also be revived. This was the position of the Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Felix Omatsola Ogbe, at the signing of the Final Investment Decision (FID) by the project promoters and their contractors.
The Ubeta Field Development Project is being developed under Oil Mining License (OML) 058, with an expectation to produce 300 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd).
Expected to commence production in 2027, the facility, located about 80 kilometres northwest of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, would feed and secure gas supply to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Train-7 Project at Finima, Bonny Island, currently undergoing capacity expansion from 22 to 30 metric tonnes per annum (mtpa).
The project will also enable capacity utilization and substantial human capacity development (HCD), Research and Development as well as opportunities for banking, insurance, legal, and other services, he assured.
He stated that “the approval of the final stages of the Nigerian Content Plan for this project” was one of the first acts he performed on his assumption of duty in December 2023.
Among salient elements of the Nigerian content plan for Ubeta Field Development facility is the domiciliation of “100 per cent of its project management man-hours in Nigeria,” same for “Front End Engineering Design and Detailed Design,” which will be domiciled 100 per cent in Nigeria, with COREN-licensed engineering companies as preferred executors.
In addition to these, the project will give first consideration to in-country manufacturers that have valid Nigerian Content Equipment Certificate from the Board, regarding material procurement, while fabrication and construction are also to be significantly handled by well-established fabrication yards in the country.
Represented by the General Manager, Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, Esueme Dan Kikile, Ogbe said the NCDMB had effectively aligned its processes “to shorten the oil industry’s contracting cycle to six months or less to engender speedy development of new projects, contribute to increased oil production, and improve the national economy.”
According to him, the Board provided “timely approvals for all the requests and documents submitted by Total Energies E&P,” in line with the Service Level Agreement (SLA) introduced by the Board in the oil and gas industry. The Board has also “complied fully with the Presidential Directives aimed at ensuring cost competitiveness and meeting project schedules of oil and gas projects.”
He equally assured that NCDMB would continue to serve as a business enabler for the oil and gas industry and beckoned on industry stakeholders to continue working together to achieve the objectives set for the industry by President Bola Tinubu.
Senior Vice President Africa, Total Energies E&P, Mr. Mike Sangster, in his remarks, expressed delight with the grounds covered on the Ubeta Project, noting that it fits perfectly with his company’s “strategy of developing low-cost and low-emission projects,” and that it would boost the Nigerian economy through higher NLNG exports.
