Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. has signed agreements with joint ventures led by Chevron Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC accommodating third-party financing of its cash commitments for oil and gas development.
The agreement involving the NNPC-Chevron Nigeria Ltd. JV covers $780 million remaining to fund development of Sonam natural gas field, in which Chevron Nigeria has invested $1.5 billion.
Chevron expects the shallow-water project, tied to the Escravos Gas Plant, to produce 215 MMcfd of natural gas and 30,000 b/d of liquids.
Of the amount in the agreement, $380 million will cover NNPC’s 2016 cash commitment.
The rest will support drilling of seven wells in Sonam field on Oil Mining License (OML) 91 and the Okan 30E nonassociated gas well on OML 90 as well as completion of associated facilities.
The other agreement, with third-party financing totaling $1 billion, will allow the NNPC-Shell Petroleum Development Co. JV to conduct 156 “development activities” in 30 fields over 12 OMLs in the Niger Delta, NNPC said.
A first phase of the work will include 128 “rigless activities” and 10 workovers. A second phase will further develop EA and EJA shallow-water fields with the drilling of 14 wells and the workover of 3 wells.
