Shell Commences ‘Skeletal’ Loading of Crude Oil from Trans-Forcados Pipeline

After months of repairs, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has restarted the Trans-Forcados crude export pipeline with the completion of the loading of the first tanker – Astro Perseus, at the Forcados terminal, THISDAY has learnt.

The crude oil tanker, it was learnt, has been scheduled to depart to Takoradi in Ghana.

The Trans-Forcados pipeline was first attacked by the Niger Delta Avengers in February 2016, the first attack on a subsea pipeline in the country.

A spill that occurred on February 14, 2016 on the subsea crude oil export pipeline, had forced Shell to declare force majeure on Forcados liftings a week later.

Attempts to repair the 48-inch pipeline were frustrated by further attacks by the militants.

For instance, the pipeline resumed exports in October 2016 after it was repaired but was shut down in November after the militants bombed the subsea facility for the second time.

But an official of one of the companies that feed crude into the Forcados stream told THISDAY on condition of anonymity at the weekend that ‘skeletal’ loading had resumed at the facility with the loading of the first tanker – Astro Perseus.

According to him, a second crude oil tanker, Densa Orca, had arrived at the Forcados export terminal since May 22, at the instance of Vitol, which will load crude within the first week of June.

“After Vitol, other oil trading companies such as Oando and Sahara Energy will likely load the next cargoes. Liftings have not resumed fully as the pipeline is still being text-run; it is still a sort of skeletal loadings. That is why Shell has not lifted the force majeure declared after the bombing incident in February 2016,” he explained.

Before the militant attacks, the Forcados stream accounted for between 200,000 and 240,000 barrels per day of Nigeria’s crude exports.

SPDC and other upstream companies operating in the western Niger Delta evacuate crude oil and condensates through the pipeline to the export terminal.

Companies that were hit by the bombing of the subsea pipeline included Shell, Seplat, Shoreline Resources Limited, Neconde, First Hydrocarbon Nigeria (FHN) and NPDC.

The Group Managing Director of Obijackson Group, the parent company of Neconde, Mr.Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi told THISDAY recently that the company was producing between 51,000 barrels per

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited have signed a Service Level Agreement (SLA), committing to compliance with the provisions of the Nigerian Content Act and timely approvals of documents.

The Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr. Simbi Wabote and the Managing Director of NLNG, Mr. Tony Attah signed on behalf of their organisations in Abuja. The SLA, first of its kind to be entered between a regulator and another entity in the oil and gas industry would be adopted as the template for managing documentations, contracting and expatriate quota between the Board and international and local operating companies.

The agreement obligates NLNG to submit to the NCDMB documents like the Quarterly Job Forecast, Nigerian Content Plan, Bidders List, Nigerian Content Evaluation Criteria, Nigerian Content Technical Bid among others.

By the terms of the agree- ment, the Board has to respond on specific timelines and should the Board fail to respond in accordance with the provisions of the SLA, NLNG can proceed with its tendering process.

Speaking at the event, Wabote acknowledged that NLNG’s operations are time sensitive, adding that the SLA would ensure that “NLNG is not exposed to violations and NCDMB is not a blocker to the business.” He said the SLA was a key strategy of shortening the contracting cycle, cutting the cost of projects and improving compliance with the Nigerian Content Act.

Speaking further, Wabote explained that activities of the NCDMB impacts on the business of the NLNG while the company’s operations also influence how the Nigerian Content Act is viewed by stakeholders.

He also canvassed for greater collaboration between the two organisations, requesting for NLNG’s support towards the development of a dry dock facility in the Niger Delta region, to cater for the maintenance of big vessels, including LNG carriers.