The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Corporation Dr Maikanti Baru, has said that plans have been concluded for the commencement of drilling in Kolmani River Well 2 on January 19, 2019.
In a New Year message to staff, he explained that activities would resume in the Chad Basin as soon as there was sufficient green-light from security agencies on the situation in the enclave.
The move was to avoid the kidnapping of NNPC engineers like it happened in 2018 by Boko Haram insurgents.
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Recall that a statement from the NNPC had in 2016 announced that it had embarked on a more rigorous exploration for oil in the Gongola and other inland basin using the latest seismic data gathering technology.
The statement signed said that on the Chad Basin exploration, the GMD observed that the corporation planned to drill four wells in areas that it has acquired 1, 961kmsq 3D seismic data out of 3,550kmsq planned.
He said NNPC would be going into the deeper Maiduguri sub-basin to acquire more 3D seismic data as soon as normalcy returns to the Chad basin.
“While waiting for normalcy to return to the Chad Basin, we have stepped up efforts in the Lower Benue trough. So far, we have acquired 20km of 2D data out of the planned 455km 2d seismic data,” he added.
The GMD described as “saddening” last year’s unfortunate incident which claimed the lives of some University of Maiduguri staff working on the Chad basin exploration as well as the loss of one of the corporation’s staff working on the Benue Trough exploration.
“I pledge on behalf of the NNPC that their sacrifice shall not be in vain. There is no better way to honour the efforts of our gallant heroes than to continue the good work they died for,” he added.
