The government-owned oil corporation of Nigeria, NNPC Ltd, announced on Thursday that it has renewed a production-sharing agreement with Total, China National Offshore Oil Corp., and others, which was a significant step toward resolving disagreements over a deepwater oil block in the Niger Delta.
At a distance of more than a thousand meters from the Niger Delta, is Oil Mining Lease 130. The Preowei finding is located in the block along with the active Akpo and Egina fields.
The agreements will clear the way, according to a statement from NNPC, “to firm up final investment decision on the Preowei amounting to USD$ 2.1 billion.”
According to NNPC, the agreements would, in accordance with the new law, change the oil mining lease into a petroleum mining license.
Due to widespread petroleum theft, pipeline vandalism, and underinvestment, Nigeria has suffered from low oil production. Oil firms in the nation are focusing on deepwater projects rather than onshore operations.
