Page 12 - AfrOil Week 10 2020

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PROJECTS & COMPANIES
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UGANDA
UGANDA’S National Environment Man- agement Authority (NEMA) has acknowl- edged CNOOC Uganda, a subsidiary of China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC), for its completion of a report on plans to develop the Kingfisher oilfield.
On March 9, NEMA’s executive director Tom Okurut awarded a certificate of approval to CNOOC Uganda, noting that the state-con- trolled Chinese company had wrapped up its environmental and social impact (ESIA) study for the Kingfisher project. The issuance of the certificate lays the groundwork for the Chinese company to take the next steps towards devel- opment of the Kingfisher licence area, Ugandan media reported.
Zhao Shunqiang, the president of CNOOC Uganda, hailed NEMA’s move. “This is a great milestone for CNOOC Uganda Ltd and the development of the oil and gas project in Uganda,” he said. “It is a step closer to a final investment decision and realisation of [Ugan- da’s] first oil.”
For his part, Okurut said that CNOOC Uganda and its partners in the Kingfisher project would help Uganda achieve its aims on several fronts. “We are pleased to issue this certificate in line with the principle of sustain- able development,” said Okurut. “NEMA shall continue to maintain an efficient mechanism for sustainable environment and natural resource management.”
The Chinese company began work on the ESIA document after joining the Kingfisher project in 2013. It spent several years collecting data and reviewing potential challenges and then submitted its conclusions to NEMA in December 2018 for review, recommendations and then approval. The agency duly took that final step in November 2019.
According to the Ugandan press, this pro- cess allowed the company to make the changes needed to bring its work plan into compliance with certain provisions in the 2019 Ugandan law known as National Environment Market Act no. 5.
Meanwhile, CNOOC has also held a series of public hearings and consultations in the Hoima and Kikuube districts. It did so in a bid to learn
about stakeholders’ concerns, as these areas will be the most heavily affected by oil development operations.
Next steps
Now that the Chinese company has secured the government’s approval for the report, it is reportedly ready to move towards starting work on vital infrastructure for the project – feeder pipelines, yards and parking areas, work camps and a central processing facility (CPF). It may not be able to take that step quickly, though.
CNOOC is one of three shareholders in a licence area known as Block 3A, which includes the Kingfisher and Tilepa oilfields. The other two are Tullow Oil (UK/Ireland) and Total (France). Tullow spent years trying to negotiate a farm-out deal that would allow it to hand part of its share over to its partners, but talks broke down last year amidst disagreements over the amount of taxes due on the sale of part of Tullow’s stake.
As a result, the parties were not able to meet their deadline for making a final investment decision (FID) on the upstream project. In turn, Total suspended plans for the construction of a $3.5bn export pipeline that would pump Ugan- dan oil to Tanzania’s coast. Meanwhile, King- fisher is no longer likely to reach the stage of first oil by 2022, as previously anticipated. ™
CNOOC is one of three shareholders in the Kingfisher oilfield (Photo: Tullow Oil)
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It will use crude oil from the Ibigwe field, a WPO-operated field that is currently yielding about 7,000 bpd, for feedstock. Additionally, it will sell most of its production on Nigeria’s domestic market.
The second phase of the refinery will have a throughout capacity of 25,000 bpd and will pro- duce diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, kerosene and LPG. WR&P is due to hold a ceremony marking the
start of construction work on this larger facility in May, around the same time that it marks the completion of the first-phase unit.
The WPO subsidiary is the majority owner of the refinery project, while the NCDMB holds a 30% stake. WPO is active in Nigeria’s upstream sector and has been a participant in multiple rounds of the state-backed marginal rounds programme. ™
Uganda approves ESIA study for Kingfisher
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 10 11•March•2020