Eni has begun production from the Obiafu 41 onshore discovery onshore the Niger Delta, 3 weeks after completion.
Gas from the discovery, which holds approximately 28 billion m3 of gas and 60 million bbl of condensate, will be processed at the Eni-operated Ob-Ob plant and sent to the Eni-operated Okpai power plant, the first independent power plant in Nigeria. The plant is undergoing an upgrade to double its capacity from 500 megawatts to 1 gigawatt. It said in a statement that, once the upgrade is complete, it will generate 20% of Nigeria’s national electricity production. Approximately 30% of Eni’s Nigerian gas production supplies the domestic market.
Eni said that its integrated model, under which the various disciplines work in parallel from the exploration phase, and synergies with existing production facilities, were properly leveraged, enabling a record time-to-market from discovery. At the end of ramp-up, production will reach a capacity of about 3 million m3/D of gas and 3,000 B/D of condensate.
The Italian operator announced the discovery in late August. NNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) owns 60% of the field, with Eni and Oando owning 20% each. Its presence in Nigeria covers 30,049 km2 in the onshore and offshore areas of the Niger Delta.