Shell resumes operations at Bonga oil field

Shell Nigeria says it has resumed production at 225,000 barrels per day at Bonga field, a development that will boost Nigeria’s oil production and output.

Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) had shut down the Bonga deepwater oil field for turnaround maintenance on March 4.

Earlier in April, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had said that Nigeria’s oil production was 1.55 million barrels per day as against the 2 million barrels announced by Ibe Kachikwu, minister of state for petroleum resources.

A statement by the company said that maintenance work on the field was completed on schedule, April 8.

According to a March report by the ministry of petroleum resources, oil production dropped to 1.6 million per day from 2.1 million barrels partly due to the shutdown of the field.

The Bonga field produces 200,000 barrels per day out of the 225,000 barrels capacity of the field, which it operates under production sharing contract (PSC) with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

According to Shell, the turnaround maintenance involved, inspections, recertification, testing and repair of equipment as well as engineering upgrades with Nigerian companies and subsea professional playing key roles.