Shell’s move on Bonga Southwest/Aparo is a major boost for Nigeria’s deepwater oil sector

Following the news that Royal Dutch Shell and its partners are now set to commence the tendering process for the development of Bonga South West/Aparo (BSWA) deepwater oil project offshore Nigeria,

Cao Chai, Upstream Oil & Gas Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view on the deepwater project:

“The agreement between Shell Nigeria Exploration & Production Company (SNEPCo) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is a key step towards a final investment decision (FID) for BSWA. It will open further opportunities in the deepwater oil and gas sector in Nigeria, whilst creating significant benefits for the state. BSWA, located in in OML 118, OML 132 and OML 140, will be the first major deepwater project in Nigeria since Egina, which started development in 2013.

“The FID for BSWA was initially set for 2014; however, it has faced various delays due to the oil price crash in the same year, as well as the high costs associated with deepwater developments and a dispute over the key commercial terms of the related production sharing contract (PSC). BSWA has the potential to produce approximately 150,000 to 200,000 barrels of oil per day, which will account for around 10% of Nigerian crude oil production.
“BSWA fits in with Shell’s renewed focus on deepwater projects, with the company sanctioning a significant number of deepwater projects in Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico over past few years. Shell is also well established in Nigeria with the deepwater Bonga Complex already in production and a large portfolio of onshore assets, most of which were granted license renewals last year.”