An energy expert, Victor Ekpenyong, has advocated the need for the Federal Government and oil companies to leverage the expertise of Nigerian firms to check oil theft and increase oil production.
He said it was for the government to raise oil production beyond current levels to take advantage of increased oil prices at the international market.
Ekpenyong,Chief Executive Officer of Kenyon International West Africa Limited, said that although the nation was capable of producing up to 2.5 million barrels of crude per day, the activities of oil thieves and vandals who always attack oil installations have forced operators to shutdown vandalised assets.
According to him, indigenous oil services firm had developed a homegrown solution to oil theft and vandalism, adding that the solution which the company refers to as Idle Well Management Solution, which is currently being deployed in some oilfields and has proved cost-effective and efficient.
He said the solution includes installation of anti-theft devices on wellheads that makes it impossible to steal crude or vandalise wellheads.
He expressed optimism that if the solution was adopted across the oilfields, oil production would take an upward swing and enable Nigeria benefit from the rising oil prices.
He said his company’s package to secure oil installations relies on idle well management practice which helps to monitor idle wells, preventing them from vandalism and theft.
He added: “Nigeria has the capacity to produce nearly 2.5 million barrels of oil per day, but now, it struggles to produce one million plus barrels a day. Some of the factors that caused the plunge in production are vandalism and oil theft. This has inevitably led to some Nigerian companies shutting down their operations.
“To salvage the situation, government needs to conduct a situational analysis. From the information we have seen so far, the country previously produced more oil and we should enquire why our oil-producing capacity is plunging as the days go by. Now that oil is above $100 per barrel, we should take advantage of it and maximise our revenue. Our government needs to devise plans on how to safeguard oil and gas assets and conduct community engagement.
“Currently, we have a lot of tech-savvy youth in the country and in community engagement, citizens can proffer some tech-solutions to these problems we face. Young people can develop applications that can track vandals. This can be potentially beneficial to both oil companies and the citizens as well.”
He also advocated that industry regulatory agencies should ensure that oil companies are following the industry-recommended procedures and international best practices.
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