Page 16 - AfrOil Week 36 2021

AfrOil NEWS IN BRIEF AfrOil

DOWNSTREAM are site suitability, approval to construct and on delivering the drilling campaign that we
licence to operate. “If you don’t have these perti- recently raised money for, and we are pleased
DPR seals 59 illegal LPG nent approvals, you are not supposed to operate that this contract award brings us a step closer
an LPG facility in Nigeria,” she said.
to achieving this. We look forward to keeping
plants in Lagos gal and unsafe LPG facility within their locality spud date.”
our stakeholders appraised we get closer to the
She also advised Nigerians to report any ille-
The Department of Petroleum Resources, Lagos to the DPR for the regulatory agency to take nec- Chariot, September 7 2021
Zone, said on Friday that it sealed off 59 illegal essary action.
cooking gas plants in the state from January to DPR, September 4 2021 Aquaterra Energy signs
June this year.
The Assistant Director, Operations, DPR, three-year Angola platform
Lagos Zonal Office, Olubunmi Ogundare, dis- SERVICES
closed this during a surveillance operation she contract with supermajor
led in Alimosho Local Government Area of Chariot signs rig contract
the state. She said the affected LPG plants were Aquaterra Energy, a leader in global offshore
sealed for not complying with the prerequisite for Anchois gas appraisal energy engineering solutions, has secured a mul-
safety standards and operating without perti- ti-million-dollar master engineering and design
nent approvals. Eight gas plants located at Idimu, well offshore Morocco service agreement with a supermajor to deliver
Ikotun-Egbe, Ipaja and Igando were sealed by multiple Sea Swift platforms over a three-year
the agency at the end of the operation. AIM-listed Chariot, the Africa focused transi- period. The platforms will be destined for off the
Ogundare said the move was part of the agen- tional energy company, has signed a contract coast of the Cabinda Province, offshore Angola.
cy’s oversight duty of monitoring activities of with Stena Drilling, one of the world’s foremost Won through a competitive tender process,
companies operating within the industry across independent drilling contractors, to use its Stena Aquaterra Energy stood out due to its breadth
the value chain. She said the LPG plants were Don drilling rig for the planned Anchois gas of platform delivery experience in West Africa,
shut down for various reasons including oper- appraisal well within the Lixus licence, offshore previous experience with the same client, and
ating within densely populated areas and other Morocco. dedication to providing local content. Work
unapproved locations for gas business. Drilling operations are anticipated to com- has already begun on the first platform, which
Ogundare said the surveillance, which she mence in December 2021 and are expected to will be engineered for a 20-year production
described as a continuous exercise, was aimed take up to approximately 40 days. life in approximately 75 metres of water. Aqua-
at curbing the proliferation of LPG facilities and Appraisal drilling objectives: Unlock the terra Energy’s Sea Swift solution was chosen for
ensuring safety of lives and property of Nigeri- development of the discovered sands by con- its flexible design, which supports minimised
ans. According to her, it will also help to sanitise firming the gas resource volumes, reservoir installation times, and for its ability to be fabri-
LPG facilities in Lagos State by enforcing stand- quality and well productivity. Provide a future cated in-country.
ards in their operations. production well for the development of the field. To support decarbonisation initiatives, the
She said: “Those identified illegal LPG facil- Potentially deepen the well into additional low- initial platform will be equipped with solar pan-
ities contravened the DPR guidelines for the risk prospective sands with the aim of establish- els, which will allow the supermajor to power the
establishment of LPG refilling plants and retail- ing a larger resource base for longer term growth. platform purely from renewable energy. Aqua-
ers outlets in Nigeria. You cannot operate LPG Adonis Pouroulis, Acting CEO of Chariot, terra Energy will manage the entire project scope
plant without applying for pertinent approval commented: “The signing of this contract is an via its in-house engineering and design teams
from DPR. For you to get this approval, you important moment in our planned drilling cam- and will work alongside in-country partner
must go through three phases, which take place paign for the Lixus Licence offshore Morocco. to ensure that an increasing level of local engi-
in stages from setting up the LPG facility, con- We anticipate drilling commencing in Decem- neering is provided to the projects and to enable
struction and commencement of operations. ber, with the well expected to take up to 40 days Aquaterra Energy to develop the resident skills
According to Ogundare, the three approvals to drill. As a team, we have been keenly focused base engineers.
“We’re extremely proud to have won this con-
tract. Throughout the pandemic, we have proven
ourselves as a reliable partner that can deliver
results and provide economic value in adverse
conditions,” comments Stewart Maxwell, Tech-
nical Director at Aquaterra Energy.
Stewart continues: “It’s exciting to be able
to deliver a platform of this scale that will be
entirely self-sufficient and powered by renewa-
ble sources. We’ll also be looking to optimise the
design to use less steel and maximise in-coun-
try logistics, as we do all we can to embrace our
transitioning energy sector and reduce carbon
emission impacts. West Africa is an important
region to us and we want to continue increasing
our work here, as well as sharing our skills and
knowledge with local engineers and partners.”
Aquaterra Energy, September 7 2021

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