•The president should let NNPC and oil companies do their job as they deem fit
If we had thought that the era of politics trumping geo-scientific considerations in the arcane world of oil exploration was gone with the past, last week’s reported directive by President Muhammadu Buhari to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to fast-track oil exploration in the North obviously shows how far the nation is yet to go in that regard. At a parley with the Bauchi State Governor, Mohammed Abubakar, in his office last week, the new Group Managing Director, NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, reportedly informed his visitor of the president’s directive to the NNPC to fast-track oil exploration in the North.
Said he: “We have exploration activities on the frontier basin; that is in the Chad; and also there are some areas close to the Kolmani River where Shell had made indicative discovery of hydrocarbons and Mr. President has directed me to go into that area to reprove and further explore the magnitude and prospects of those finds.
“We are taking steps to get into those regions. We will reinvigorate the Frontier Exploration and see how they collaborate with the NNPC that is holding Block 809 where some of the finds have been found. We will also do the same at the DPR for the other blocks that have not been assigned, and work towards proving the prospects of that region.”
The idea of the president seeking to fast- track the exploration of potential oil wells would ordinarily be in order, coming at a time the nation is in dire need to grow its oil reserves. Moreover, given the nation’s near total dependence on oil for its revenue, the bulk of which comes from the restive Niger Delta, extending exploration activities beyond the traditional boundaries, especially where those reserves are of proven commercial yield, has become particularly urgent.
Beyond these, we understand that the case has long been made for exploration activities in the Chad Basin, particularly with neighbouring countries of Chad, Niger and Sudan, with similar structural settings with the Chad Basin making significant discoveries. Among these are those in Doba, Doseo and Bongor – in Chad with over two billion barrels (Bbbls) reserves; Logone Birni in Southern Chad and Northern Cameroun with over 100 Bbbls; and Termit-Agadem Basin in Niger with over 1Bbbls. Asides, it is equally known that the NNPC New Frontier Exploration Services Division has done a lot of preliminary work on the basin and the signs appear to be positive. Indeed, we recall that the immediate past administration actually sought to put together a comprehensive framework to drive the process.
All of these, we must admit are on record. So, it is not entirely true to suggest that the president seeks to re-write the books. And we must not also admit that the president, being the de facto petroleum minister, would have more than a passing interest in the activities in the petroleum industry.
Yet, a presidential directive in the circumstance would seem entirely needless.
If we may ask: why was a similar directive not issued for other frontier sedimentary basins like Anambra, Bida, Gongola/Yola and those along the Middle/Lower Benue trough?
Assuming it was truly issued by the president, why issue a directive that leaves little room for discretion by the national oil corporation, even if in the long run the realities on ground dictate an alternative course of action? Will the president as the directing authority bear the responsibility should things go wrong?
On the whole, it is clear that the presidential order may be easily misconstrued, particularly at a time like this.
As it is, the NNPC as indeed any interested exploration company should be allowed to do their jobs at the pace dictated by funding and other operational exigencies while the government restricts its role to either creating the conducive environment or supplying the tools to get the job done. That way, the operators can be held to account when things do not go as they should.
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