Shell’s Bonga Southwest/Aparo major boost for Nigeria’s deepwater - GlobalData

Vienna, Austria -- An oil and gas analyst has described the decision by Royal Dutch Shell and its partners to commence the tendering process for the development of Bonga South West/Aparo, BSWA, deepwater oil project offshore Nigeria as a major boost for the country's deepwater development.

Cao Chai, upstream oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, noted that the development would open further opportunities in Nigeria's deepwater oil and gas sector.

“The agreement between Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is a key step towards a final investment decision (FID) for BSWA. It will open further opportunities in the deepwater oil and gas sector in Nigeria, whilst creating significant benefits for the state. BSWA, located in in OML 118, OML 132 and OML 140, will be the first major deepwater project in Nigeria since Egina, which started development in 2013.

“The FID for BSWA was initially set for 2014; however, it has faced various delays due to the oil price crash in the same year, as well as the high costs associated with deepwater developments and a dispute over the key commercial terms of the related production sharing contract," he said.

BSWA has the potential to produce 150,000 to 200,000 barrels of oil per day, which will

account for about 10 percent of Nigeria's crude oil production.

Chai added: “BSWA fits in with Shell’s renewed focus on deepwater projects, with the company sanctioning a significant number of deepwater projects in Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico over past few years.

“Shell is also well established in Nigeria with the deepwater Bonga Complex already in production and a large portfolio of onshore assets, most of which were granted license renewals last year.”