Issues on Natural Resources In SE/SS Nigeria

Opinion November 26, 2016 admin

By Osita Mordi IKWERRE versus IGBO – oil and gas production Many Ikwerre people often claim that Igbos like to “claim them” because of...

By Osita Mordi

IKWERRE versus IGBO – oil and gas production

  1. Many Ikwerre people often claim that Igbos like to “claim them” because of the massive oil and gas resources in their land. The Igbos who according to them lack natural resources like oil and gas, want to annex Ikwerre (as well as Ogba and Ekpeye who they now claim to be their relatives) and forcefully assimilate them as Igbos in order to selfishly exploit their resources. For this reason, I decided to carry out some research myself. Are we really parasites? Is Igbo land “dry” as the usual narrative suggests? We know that Imo, Abia, Anioma, Anambra and Enugu all have oil and gas resources. What is the quantity of oil and gas from these areas and is it comparable to what is produced from Ikwerre land and other Igbo speaking areas of Rivers State? This is what this write-up tries to answer.  Nigeria has proven reserves of about 37 billion barrels for oil and 187 tcf of gas. As a member of OPEC  and because our oil reserves of 37 billion barrels when compared to other members like Saudi Arabia is relatively “small”, we are compelled therefore to produce maximally some 2.4 million bopd of oil. Saudi Arabia has 250 billion barrels; it thus can produce over 8 million bopd.
  2. Of the 2.4 million bopd; one third of it comes from the big deep offshore fields. These fields includes Agbami (which Mrs Folorunsho Alakija , has some interests and produces over 200,000 bopd); Akpo ( which TY Danjuma has some interests and produces over 180,000 bopd) ; Erha operated by ExxonMobil with some 200, 000 bopd ; Bonga operated by SNEPCO or which Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company produces over 200,000 bopd. The remaining ones are Abo, Okpoho/Okono and Agbara all operated by ENI-AGIP subsidiaries contributing no less than 50,000 bopd. In total these fields all in the Ocean (deep offshore) produce no less than 800,000 bopd. The 13 per cent derivation does not cover these fields. These fields are the ones mainly sustaining Nigeria considering the crisis in the Niger-Delta area.
  3. The balance of 1.6 million bopd is distributed (approximately) as follows Akwa-Ibom (about 480,000 bopd); Delta (about 380, 000; hosting Erha ); Rivers (about 340,000 bopd; hosting Akpo and Okpoho/Okono) ; Bayelsa (which hosts Agbami and Bonga; some 300; 000 bopd) while the balance of approximately 100,000 bopd comes from Ondo, Edo, Imo and Abia States. Ondo hosts the Abo field.  Now lets look at the states and compare with the Ikwerre-Ogba-Ekpeye area.  These production rates

IMO (including parts of Egbema clan which had been merged to Rivers State)

The following are the production rates of the fields from the area.

  1. AHIA (5 wells) 4,300 bopd  and 1.4 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  2. EGBEMA (3 wells) 3,000 bopd ;1 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  3. JISIKE ( 4 wells) 4,400 bopd; 1.6 bscf annually of gas (source: DPR)
  4. OGUTA (13 oil wells) 7,500 bopd; 14 bscf annually of gas (source: DPR)
  5. IZOMBE (9 wells) 1,750 bopd ; 3 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  6. OSSU (5 wells) 1,750 bopd ; 2.2 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  7. IBIGWE (4 wells) 3,000 bopd; 0.06 bscf of gas (Waltersmith’s website and DPR)
  8. EGBEMA WEST (5 wells) 4,100 bopd; 1.6 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  9. MBEDE (23 wells) 9,700 bopb; 65.2 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  10. EBOCHA (19 wells) 8,200 bopd ; 39 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  11. ALINSO (1 well) ; 0.6 bscf of gas and 1,000 bopd (source: DPR)
  12. UGADA(1 well) 1,000 bopd; 1 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)

NOTES

  1. In the list of the oil fields, Nos 8,9, and 10 belong to Egbema part of Rivers State. It contributes some 22,000 bopd of oil to Rivers State with gas production even more impressive (about 105.8 bscf annually). The gas is exported via the Bonny LNG. For what is now defined as Imo State, oil production stands at 27,700 bopd and gas at 24.9 bscf annually. Total for what I can conveniently brand as “Imo sphere of influence” is 49,700 bopd and gas production at 130.7 bscf annually.
  2. The major companies operating in the area are Shell(or SPDC) at Ahia, Oguta, Egbema, Ugada and Egbema West . Seplat operates Jisike while Addax is in charge of Izombe and Ossu. An indigenous company Walter Smith operates Ibigwe and the Nigerian Agip Oil Company operates Mbede, Alinso and Ebocha. Akri also operated by NAOC had been ceded to Rivers following the Supreme Court case between Oguta and Ndoni communities.
  3. The oil and gas producing areas are concentrated in Ohaji/Egbema and Oguta LGAs which discoveries in Orsu, Ngor Okpala, Oru West and East and adjoining areas.
  4. Owerri, was the original host of Shell-Nigeria before it relocated to Port Harcourt.
  5. Egbema clan comprising of 16 villages from the figures is well-endowed in oil and gas resources.

PROSPECTS

Imo has lots of prospects which would transform her into one of the major oil and gas producing regions of Nigeria.  The following points gives a clearer picture.

  1. In OML 53 operated by Seplat, apart from Jisike , the undeveloped oil and gas fields includes Ohaji, Heoma , Odinma; Emeabiam and Alaoma.
  2. In OML 16 where the Ibigwe oil field lies hosts other undeveloped oil and gas fields and these includes Oguali, Ukpichi and Ikwegbu fields.
  3. OML 153 – Izombe extends into this block and other fields include Ilomba, Anuri and Ihuo. Note that Ihuo was the first field drilled in Nigeria. With modern drilling methods as well as a greater emphasis on gas, Ihuo could perhaps be brought into production.
  4. In the AHIA oil block, other discoveries include Oboyi, Aggah, Nkissa, Alubi, Amapu (an enormous gas field), Sombreiro River (an oil field), and Assa.
  5. In OML 20, is the Oforola oil discovery near Egbema operated by Shell which hs not been developed.
  6. OML 124 operated by Addax and covering an area of 300 km2. It hosts the Ossu and Izombe fields. A third field named NJABA has been discovered and indications suggest that it’s a big find.
  7. OPL 277 with 4 wells drilled so far and operated by the Indian company, Sterling Global indicates an enormous find named AGU. It is hoped by 2017, it will be brought into production with an initial rate of 6,000 bopd.

 

 

IKWERRE LAND

Now let us take a closer look on Ikwerre land (covering some 2,000 km2 of territory and hosting parts of the Port Harcourt metropolitan area). The following are the fields in the area

  1. RUMUEKPE (1 productive well) 800 bopd and 0.035 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  2. MININTA (6 wells) 14,200 bopd and 3.5 bscf of gas  (source: DPR)
  3. OBELE (2 wells) 800 bopd and 0.43 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  4. AGBADA (35 wells) 22,000 bopd; 4.36 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  5. ELELENWA (3 wells) 7800 bopd ; 1.13 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  6. OGBELE (6 wells) 4,000 bopd; 1 bscf of gas annually(source: DPR and company’s website)

These are the fields in Ikwerre land. Now let us take some notes.

  1. The total production is about 49,000 bopd of oil and gas production stands at 10.455 bscf of gas annually. Considering that Nigeria produces some 4,000 bscf of gas annually, Ikwerre land does not contribute up to 1 per cent of the total. The oil production is much more impressive.
  2. Rumuekpe, Minita , Obele and Ogbele lies in Emohua LGA; Elelenwa (covering Apara and Akpor fields) lies in OPA (Obio-Akpor-Port Harcourt) and Agbada lies in Ikwerre LGA and its hosted by Igwuruta and Aluu communities primarily.
  3. All Ikwerre fields are operated by Shell (or SPDC) except Ogbele which is operated by a company called Niger Delta Petroleum Exploration Company.

 

PROSPECTS

  1. The Ubima field is presently being developed by Eland oil and gas. Ubima hosts 4 wells and covers an area measuring 65km2. According to the company website, Ubima can produce 2,000 bopd of oil daily which could be increased with time. Reserves in the field is about 30 million barrels.
  2. There is a possibility that the importance of Ogbele would be enhanced with more drilling. But Ogbele is largely a gas province. And the gas to oil ratio is really high. Near Ogbele is the the Omerelu field which is also being developed by the same company. Three wells had been drilled. Just like Ogbele it is mainly a gas field. The development of the Ogbele and Omerelu fields will push the gas production rate from Ikwerre land significantly.
  3. Other discovered leads and fields within Ikwerre land includes Umuanwa; Nroo; Izomini; Ogbodo; Apani , Walima , Emohua and Isoba.

 

OGBA

This is the “Golden Boy” of the upland Igbo-speaking areas of Rivers State and considering its area of less than 600km2, there is a good reason for calling the area that. Let us look closer to the level of production from the area.

  1. EREMA (2 wells) 450 bopd ; 0.14 bscf of gas (source DPR)
  2. OBAGI (60 wells) 18,000 bopd ; 12 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  3. OLO (4 wells) 1,700 bopd; 0.9 bscf (source: DPR)
  4. IBEWA CONDENSATES ( 10 wells) 6,400 bopd ; 32.3 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  5. IBEWA Oil (1 well) 1,000 bopd; 5 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  6. OBAGI DEEP (1 well) 2,000 bopd; 7 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  7. OBAGI GAS CAP (1 well) – no oil but produces 2 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  8. EBEGORO (6 wells) 5,450 bopd of oil; 9.8 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  9. IDU (10 wells) 19,200 bopd of oil; 19.9 bscf of gas annually(source: DPR)
  10. OBRIKOM (12 wells) 5, 100 bopd; 25.79 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  11. OMOKU WEST (1 well) 800 bopd ; 2.53 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)

 

NOTES

  1. Two major multi-national companies operate in Ogba land namely NAOC and Totalfina. The fields from No1 to 7 lies primarily in the part of Ogba land called EGI and Totalfina operates here while No 8 to 11 lies in Igburu and Usomini areas and NAOC is the main concern in the axis. Obrikom hosts the enormous OB-OB gas plant though the bulk of the gas used in the plant comes from Obiafu (in Ndoni).  Oil production is about 60,100 bopd. While gas production is even more impressive with 3 per cent of the total gas produced in Nigeria.
  2. To get a better picture of what ONELGA contributes to Rivers State, let us add up what Ndoni, Ogba and Egbema clans produce. We get no less than 104,000 bopd of oil and as well as over 350 bscf of gas annually from just one LGA. Considering that Rivers now produces about 340,000 bopd of oil, ONELGA alone contributes some 30 per cent of the total.
  3. The prospect for developing new fields in Ogba land is low. However, Ogba fields are prolific and would produce for many years to come.

EKPEYE

Unlike their Ogba cousins, Ekpeye land is “underachieved” at least when it comes to oil and gas production. The following are fields in Ekpeye land and there is a possibility that some of these fields possibly spill over to the Ijaw-Engenni area.

  1. UBIE (4 wells) 1,400 bopd; 0.84 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  2. OSHI (16 wells) 12,500 bopd; 41.8 bscf of gas (source: DPR)

 

NOTES

  1. Total production for oil from Ekpeye land is 13,900 bopd of oil and gas is 42.64 bscf which is more than what comes from Ikwerre land. Adibawa which is operated by Shell has been placed as part of Engenni-Ijaw.
  2. Ubie is operated by Shell while Oshi is by NAOC.
  3. Prospect is high since there are a few oil and gas leads in the area. In addition, the fields in this area like Ogba land are quite prolific and will keep producing for a long time to come.

ETCHE

Etche does not belong to the Akalaka (originally comprising of Ogba and Ekpeye but now includes Ikwerre perhaps to justify their non-Igbo origin) group but it is important to research into the Etche area in order to get a better picture and make the right comparison. The following belongs to Etche kingdom.

  1. NKALI (4 wells) 1,900 bopd ; gas production at 5.125 bscf annually (source: DPR)
  2. OTAMINI (2 wells) 1,300 bopd; 0.6 bscf annually of gas (source: DPR)
  3. UMUECHEM (4 wells) 2,500 bopd; 1.2 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  4. IMO RIVER (32 wells) 8,000* bopd; 1.3 bscf* of gas (source: DPR)

 

NOTES

  1. All fields are operated by Shell.
  2. The total production is put 13,700 bopd and gas production is at 8.225 bscf annually. For the Imo River field, there is an asterisk. It is shared with Abia State. The rule of thumb is to give one-third of the production to Etche and two-thirds to Ukwa West (Ndoki) area of Abia State. So Etche gets one-third of the 24,100 bopd of oil and 4 bscf of gas from Imo River oil and gas field.
  3. The prospect from Etche is very good especially in gas production. The following are undeveloped gas fields in Etche namely Onyika, Amadioha, Odagwa and Ola. The oil fields which has not been developed includes Isu and Owu(operated by Seplat).

 

ABIA

We include Oyigbo LGA lumped to Rivers State in 1976 as part of Abia State and honestly, it ought to be a part of Abia State. The natives of Oyigbo, Ukwa East, Ukwa East as well as parts of Akwa Ibom are all Ndoki people. Bonny which is now classified as Ijaw has strong ancestral and cultural links with Ndoki.  Let us examine the fields in the area I had designated as Abia.

  1. IMO RIVER (32 wells) 16,100* bopd; 2.6 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  2. ISIMIRI ( 4 wells) 3,200 bopd ; 1.55 bscf of gas (source: DPR)
  3. OBIGBO N (30 wells) 22,000 bopd; 24 bscf of gas (source: DPR)

 

 

NOTES

  1. Total production is over 41,300 bopd for oil and gas production is 28.15 bscf which is more than what is produced from Ikwerre land.
  2. All are operated by Shell and apart from Oloibiri, this part of Nigeria, at Owaza and Afam were where the first area oil and gas discoveries were made and exploited in the history of the oil industry in Nigeria. Oloibiri was discovered in 1956 while Afam and Owaza was discovered in 1958. Whereas, the Oloibiri fields are long dried up, the Owaza and Afam fields are still producing oil in remarkably high levels and leads from the area indicates that these fields are very prolific and would last for many more years.
  3. While No1 and 2 belongs to Abia State; Obigbo N belongs to Oyigbo, Rivers State. The area is operated by Shell.

 

 

PROSPECTS

  1. Enormous! Notice that Ukwa West is the only LGA producing oil in Abia presently. But oil has been discovered by Shell in Ugwunagbo and Ukwa East LGAs and the fields so-discovered had been designated. These include Obegu, Obuzor and Akanu fields in Ugwunagbo; Ohuru and Akwete fields in Ukwa East; Umuokwor, Umunteke and Owo fields in Ukwa West (Nnana Nwafor, 2008).
  2. In Oyigbo LGA, the main undeveloped find is the Nzuaku
  3. An indigenous company named Millenium Oil and Gas is developing the OZA field which has 4 wells and lies in Ukwa East. Akirika-Obu, an Ndoki community claimed by both Akwa-Ibom and Abia States is believed to have enormous reserves of oil and gas.

 

ANAMBRA and ENUGU

This is the new frontier as far as exploring the enormous oil and gas resources in Igbo land is concerned. The following points should be noted.

  1. A lot of drilling had been carried out across the area confirming the massive oil and gas resources in the area. But none of these fields is being exploited to the extent leading to export of oil and this is why Anambra is not getting the 13 per cent derivation. Most of the work carried is still exploratory and focused mainly on developing the gas resources of the area and feed it to industries and homes in the area.
  2. The company Orient Petroleum which Anambra State has some interests operates the OPL 915 and OPL 916 The OPL 915 has five wells some possibly spilling over to Kogi State(Ibaji) and Uzo-Uwani . These are the ANAR 1-5 wells. All have been confirmed to have oil and gas resources.
  3. In the OPL 916 block, discoveries include the Nzam, Okpo and Alo fields all in Anambra State. It falls under where Orient Petroleum is operating.
  4. There is also the OPL 917 covering Igbariam, and Ajire oil fields which has 337 bscf in reserves of gas and 56 million barrels of oil. Iji the third field in this block belongs to Illah town in Anioma. These are initial reserves and will greatly increase with more explorative activities. These fields belongs to the Nkporo shale region of the Anambra basin (Anyiam, Onuoha, 2014) and we will look at the potentials of shale oil and gas reserves and leads across Igbo land.
  5. There is also OPL 907 comprising of Akwukwe, Mbala and Ugwueme A significant part of this block falls under Enugu State. Discovered reserves include 183 bscf of gas and 31 million barrels of oil at the initial level.
  6. There is also the OPL 905 which largely falls under Enugu State and has a major find at Amansiodo. Reserves are also estimated at 337 bscf and oil at 56 million barrels. This falls mainly under the Awgu shales region (Onuoha, Anyiam, 2014)
  7. There is no reason not to believe that parts of Ogbaru as well as Ihiala all in OPL 228 do not have oil and gas in significant quantities considering the fact that neighboring parts of Delta and Imo have these resources. There is also the OPL 914 in the Nsukka area (especially the Uzo-Uwani area).
  8. Seven Energy (along with Afren-now defunct) operates OPL 917 and OPL 907.Considering that Afren which Mr Lukman had interests had collapsed under pile of debt, development of these fields may be stalled. But there is hope considering that the owner of Seven Energy is an Igbo ( Mr Philip Iheanacho) and may have some personal interests and of course sentiments to exploit these fields mainly for gas.
  9. Seven Energy also has joint development deals with companies like GTPL and Suntera to develop the OPL 905.
  10. The prospect for Anambra and Enugu is good especially for gas production.

ANIOMA

The following falls under Anioma.

  1. ASHAKA (5 wells) 6,700 bopd; 1.7 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  2. KWALE (13 wells) 4900 bopd; 42 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  3. OKPAI (7 wells) 3,000 bopd; 6.4 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  4. UMUORU (3 wells) 2,200 bopd; 0.8 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  5. BENEKU (2 wells) 2,700 bopd; .8 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  6. UMUSADEGE (13 wells) 20,000 bopd; 0.1 bscf annually(source: DPR and company’s website)
  7. OKWUIBOME-ANIEZE (13 wells) 12,000 bopd; 1.3 bscf annually(source: DPR)
  8. EGBEOMA(8 wells) 2,000 bopd ; 0.5 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  9. EBENDO (7 wells) 6,500 bopd; 0.71 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  10. IGBUKU-UMUSETI (5 wells); 4,500 bopd; 0.1 bscf of gas annually(source: DPR)
  11. ODUGRI (1 well) 300 bopd; 1.1 bscf gas (source: DPR)
  12. AGWE (2 wells) 500 bopd ; 6.3 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  13. OBIAFU(33 wells) 16 000 bopd; 104 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  14. AKRI ( 10 wells) 6,400 bopd; 20.3 bscf of gas annually (source: DPR)
  15. OGBOGENE(2 wells) 2,400 bopd; 0.18 bscf of gas annually(source: DPR)

 

NOTES

  1. 15 oil fields are identified here and they are operated by many companies. Ashaka, Kwale, Okpai, Umuoru, Beneku, Akri, Ogbogene, Odugri and Agwe are all operated by NAOC or AGIP. Umusadege is operated by Midwestern Oil and Gas; Okwuibome-Anieze is operated by the Indian company Sterling Global; Egbeoma is operated by Platform Petroleum while Ebendo is operated by Energia.
  2. The Ndoni fields lying within the present Rivers State are No 12, 13, 14, 11, and 15. Agwe falls a bit into Delta State just as Umuoru falls a bit under Rivers. It is assumed that production spilling to each other respective state cancel themselves out. However, Ndoni is an integral part of Ndokwa land. The letter “N” in Ndokwa is derived from Ndoni.
  3. All of these fields lie within the old Aboh division or Ndokwa Land. Thus Ndokwa land is the richest oil producing part of Igbo speaking area with 90,100 bopd of oil (25,600 bopd comes from Ndoni area annexed to Rivers in 1976). Gas production is also impressive. Its almost 193 bscf or about 5 per cent of all the gas produced in Nigeria. This area also hosts the Kwale gas gas and power generation plant.
  4. Okpai is the oil city of the Anioma people. Oil has been exploited in the town since 1963 and it hosted the kidnapping and killing of some Italian oil workers during the civil war (1967-70).
  5. Until a decade ago, oil production in Anioma part of Delta was modest with only four fields namely Kwale, Okpai, Beneku and Umuoru. But the new ones are Umusadege, Egbeoma, Ebendo, Ashaka and Igbuku-Umuseti.
  6. It is also important to note that the Anioma town of Onyah partly owns the Samabri East in Bayelsa State. That part of Anioma was ceded to Bayelsa State in 1976 and it covers villages such as Osekwenike and Abuetor. This probably covers about one-third (with some 4 wells) of that field. The production from Samabri fluctuates from as high as 12,000 bopd in some years to less than 6,000 bopd in other years. This adds an additional 2,000 to 4,000 bopd of oil to the production level from Anioma land.

PROSPECTS

  1. Very good. Considering the fact that the newly developed oil and gas fields are still being increased.
  2. There is the NAOC’s OPL 135 with finds at Nsukwa, Adofi River(Ossissa), Inyi Creek (Umuobalachi clan), Isheagu and Oko as the main fields. NAOC intends to develop these fields and use them as feedstock for the Brass LNG plant which is being built in Bayelsa state.
  3. Pan Ocean is currently developing OML 147 which covers the following discovered oil and gas fields namely Obi-Anyima(Abavo); Ute-Erumu; Ejeme, Nemomai and several others. A flow station is being built presently in Owa-Alidinma. With pipelines connecting OML 147 to OML 98 where the company also operates.
  4. The large Ogume gas field lies mainly in Seplat operated block. It has not been developed. There are several fields in the Ndokwa axis of the block.
  5. Chrous Energy was operating the Matsogo(gas), Amoji and Igbolo fields but had to sell them to Swift Oil for future development.
  6. Newcross, another company operates the OPL286 which covers several parts of Ndokwa land too. The Ikilibi or Utagba field lies within this block. It is awaiting development.
  7. OML 26 covers the lower part of Ndokwa East. Three main fields namely Aboh, Ovo, Ogbogu and Idhereki has been discovered in this block. It was originally operated by Shell but with Afren (who took over) bankrupt, the development of these fields is on hold. But based on a publication by Afren, the block has an inferred oil reserve of over 600 million barrels. Two thirds lies in the in the Ndokwa East areas. Some of the names of these fields sound Isoko because some of the host communities are Isoko settler communities in Ndokwa East.
  8. OPL 206 which covers the Enuani-Ika area was given to MKO Abiola’s Summit Oil. But with the political crisis and the death of the politician, the area was not exploited to determine the quantity of the resources in the area. Initial drilling at Ubulu-Uku indicates a large quantity of gas. The period of exploration given to Summit Oil had elapsed; therefore the prospect is not certain for now. A part of OPL 917 falls under Anioma as the Iji field in Illah.
  9. Parts of the Ndokwa East bordering Isoko such as Onyah and Ase had also been drilled and are awaiting exploitation.

 

 

CONCLUSION

  1. The claim by some Ikwerre people that Igbos are parasites is unfounded and baseless. Considering the kind of “noise” some of them make, one would assume they rank No1 in Rivers State or even in Nigeria. With only 49,000 bopd of oil, it produces just half of what comes out of Anioma land. Imo State (including the entire Egbema land) produces as much oil as Ikwerre land and when we consider the production of natural gas, Imo produces 7 bscf of gas compared to only 10.455 bscf which is sourced from Ikwerre areas.
  2. Imo with Egbema land restored to it produces just as much oil as Ikwerre land. Ikwerre land on the other hand has little gas and its contributing almost nothing to the Bonny LNG unlike the “Igbos” , they often like accusing of different vices. Imo has a lot of potentials. As many as 19 oil and gas fields remain undeveloped. If we assume all these fields are developed and each is producing some 2,500 bopd of oil, that adds another 50,000 bopd of oil into the coffers of the State. Some of the finds such as the Njaba had been designated as ENORMOUS. Ikwerre land on the other hand cannot boast of such finds. Ogbele and Omerelu are mainly gas fields and operators cannot exploit the fields maximally if there are no infrastructure to process the gas (the same problem in Egbeoma field in Ukwuani). Ubima field is small compared to most of the fields around.
  3. Abia also has rich prospects too. Recall only Ukwa West is currently producing. Enormous finds had been discovered in Ukwa East and Ugwunagbo LGAs. The quantity of oil and gas in Abia share similar features with the resources found in the onshore areas of the present Akwa-Ibom State. Anambra and Enugu are mainly for gas.  According to official sources which was highlighted during the administration of ex-Gov Mbadiniju, Anambra alone could host well over 1 trillion cubic meters of gas (corresponds to over 30 trillion scf of gas).
  4. Anioma producing over 90,000 bopd. If Anioma was a state, it would rank in the fifth position in Nigeria. What is interesting is that at least two new oil blocks are presently being developed in the area which will push production even higher in the area and this now extends beyond the prolific Ndokwa area.
  5. Ogba remains very remarkable for the quantity of oil and gas from its area. Covering only 600 km2, it produces over 60,000 bopd. What this implies is that Ikwerre land if it is truly endowed with oil like the Ogba, (as claimed by some of its elites) it would produce no less than 200,000 bopd. Yet Ogba people do not make the kind of noise we often hear from our Ikwerre neighbors. Ogba however seem to be drilled than virtually any other area in the Igbo speaking world.
  6. Opobo which is a mixed Igbo-Ijaw community hosts part of the enormous Amenam-Kpono field which lies offshore. Further into the ocean, a part of the giant Akpo field probably lies deep offshore of Opobo kingdom. Amenam-Kpono alone produces over 60,000 bopd of oil.
  7. If we add the production rates of the “upland” mainly Igbo speaking areas of “Akalaka” and Etche as well as Ndoni-Egbema and Ndoki, it reaches some 200,000 bopd which is over 55 per cent of the source of Rivers oil wealth. Rivers does not gain from the 13 per cent derivation from the Akpo oil and gas field.
  8. The 13 per cent derivation does not cover all the oil fields in Nigeria. The big deep offshore ones are not considered. The money goes straight to the distribution pool.
  9. The figures here were largely sourced from official NNPC bulletin and in some case from the websites of the companies operating in the area. The rates of production often fluctuate but calculation was based on SUSTAINED production levels between mid 2015 to early 2016 before this present spate of attack by militant groups in parts of the oil producing area.
  10. When we add oil production from the Akalaka and Igbo groups together, it amounts to almost 318,000 bopd. This is IMPRESSIVE and it contradicts the claims of some Ijaw groups who assign to the Ijaw nation more than what they actually contribute in Nigeria.
  11. Until 1976, the Obolos never called themselves Ijaw but with their transfer to Rivers from the old Southeastern State (later Cross River State), they became Ijaws. The result is increased Ijaw nationalism which manifests itself in the demand of an OIL RIVERS state which the handlers claim will include Eastern Obolo and Ibeno LGAs of Akwa Ibom State. But this is impossible since they have no legal titles to those areas; all courts including the Supreme Court and the West African Court of Appeal had given the radical titles to Ikot-Abasi and Eket peoples of the larger Ibibio nation rights over those areas. This means that not a drop of the oil produced from the present Akwa Ibom State can be claimed to as what is produced as Obolo and by extension Ijaw area.
  12. In Delta State, production from the Urhobo-Isoko area had dwindled following the exit of Shell from the state. Most of the indigenous companies led by the NPDC are far from reaching the output which had been the case with Shell. The only area with multinational companies in operation in the area remains parts of Isoko land where AGIP operates the Ole and Irri fields which produce respectable quantity of gas in particular. Seplat which is not doing badly after it took over some Shell assets in Delta State, seem to be expanding production in the Oben axis in Edo (Benin) more than the Urhobo area. The fields being developed are the Okporhuru(Edo) as well as the Ubaleme and Mosogar fields in Delta but the level of production for now is modest compared to the prolific Oben oil and gas field in Edo State. Oil production in this area is about 60,000 bopd which is about half of what it was producing when Shell was in the area. This does not mean that the wells in the area is drying up; far from it.
  13. Oil from the Ijaw area excluding Warri comes mainly from the following fields namely Forcados/Yokri; Afremo; Beniboye; Benisede ( largely in Bayelsa) and Tuomo. Okan seems to partly fall as offshore Burutu-Ogulagha-Ijaw area but for convenience I will treat the field as part of Warri division. Oil production from these fields is well over 60,000 bopd over 80 per cent of it from Forcados/Yokri. For Warri division it’s a bit tricky.
  14. There are three Ijaw enclaves in Warri division and none has claims to the fields offshore which is exclusively Itsekiri. The three Ijaw enclaves are Gbaramatu, Ogbe-Ijaw/Isaba/Diebiri and Egbema. Shell was the dominant operator in the area but they pulled out and the result is that the production from these originally Shell-Nigeria operated fields is modest. Chevron partly operates in the Gbaramatu and Egbema areas but it is marginal compared to the Itsekiri area. Another factor is the boundary adjustment carried out by Obasanjo which led to the transfer of over 10 Itsekiri villages to Ondo State as well as the oil fields located therein those communities. The result is that Ondo production rose significantly. Meren a major offshore oilfield lying offshore Itsekiri area was transferred to Ondo. Some 10 years ago, Meren alone produced well over 60,000 bopd but production is gradually falling (probably on account of age) and the attention is now on the Okan field which now produces a lot of oil.
  15. Basically, the rule of thumb is to allocate the production from Itsekiri and Ijaw areas of Delta State equally. Since production from this axis of the state is about 260,000 bopd; this would mean both the Ijaw and Itsekiri areas are producing some 130,000 bopd apiece. Note that this rate of production is considerably lower than what it normally produces (this was over 450,000 bopd when Ibori was Governor). But the pull out of Shell as well as Totalfina in 2003 from Delta State has brought the level of production considerably lower. Another reason is the transfer of mainly Itsekiri crude oil production to Ondo (no less than 40,000 bopd).
  16. Both Erha and Abo fields lie offshore of Itsekiri and Ilaje areas and the production from these fields is well over 200,000 bopd. Now, we are getting a clearer picture. If we consider the production from the Igbo speaking Akalaka-Ikwerre and Igbo speaking areas (almost 318,000 bopd); Akwa Ibom (480,000 bopd); Urhobo-Isoko-Itsekiri area( about 200,000 bopd now but was over 400,000 bopd normally before the pull out of Shell and Totalfina from Delta State); Edo and Ondo (over 70,000 bopd) as well as the Erha and Abo fields, we get over 52 per cent of the oil production in Nigeria which does not lie within the “Ijaw” area. This is despite including Obolo, Opobo (which is mixed-Igbo), Abua; and other places which do not speak Ijaw language but for the sake of convenience is now called Ijaw. Thus claims often made by some Ijaw nationalist groups that the produce over 70 or in some cases 80 per cent of the oil in Nigeria are unfounded and baseless and should be disregarded.
  17. Oil does not guarantee wealth and economic development. If oil is such an indicator for prosperity, Venezuela which has over 400 billion barrels of oil reserves will not have her citizens protesting over lack of essential commodities including toilet paper. The richest resource remains human capital which Igbo land has in abundance. Compared to the Akalaka-Ikwerre area, the Igbo area produces over 195,000 bopd of oil to about 123,000 bopd. Even if we decide to remove the Anioma and Etche areas out of the Igbo classification, production stands at over 90,000 bopd which is not bad. Therefore any claim by most Ikwerres who now say they are not Igbos and that Igbos are attempting to “steal” their oil should not be taken seriously.
  18. Production for gas is even more impressive. Imo produces some 130.7 bscf (bscf means billion standard cubic feet); Abia produces some 28.15 bscf; Etche with some 8.225 bscf and Anioma with 193 bscf of gas. This totals about 360 bscf or some 9 per cent of the total gas production in the country. The reserve for gas is far greater than this and this is non-associated gas reserves. Ikwerre land on the other produces just 10.455 bscf which is more than 35 times less than what is derived from Igbo areas. Now let us remove the Anioma and Etche areas and compare again. Total for Igbo land is almost 159 bscf which is more than 15 times of what is derived from Ikwerre land. Ekpeye produces some 42.64 bscf and Ogba land produces about 120 bscf. These two groups which are actually the Akalaka groups jointly produce almost 163 bscf. It seems the Ahoada area stretching to the Egbema and Ndokwa areas have enormous gas resources. This is why AGIP gets its gas destined for export at the Bonny LNG plant from this area. Ikwerre land on the other hand produces virtually nothing.
  19. Ebonyi is believed by colonial documents to have reserves of tar sands or bitumen. But Ebonyi is better identified as one of the three most important states with solid minerals in Nigeria. Others are Kogi and Nasarawa. Minerals include Silver, Copper, Lead, Zinc, Marble, Coal, Limestone, Barites and many more. And wait, Shale oil and gas.
  20. Shale oil and shale gas reserves are potentially even larger than the conventional sources. The most prolific shale basins in Nigeria (the Benue-Trough) lies within the present borders of Ebonyi, Enugu,  Abia  and even parts of Anambra, and Imo states spilling over to Benue and Taraba states. From these shale basins such as the Ezeaku, Awgu, Nkporo etc, it is likely that billion of barrels of oil and trillion of cubic meters of gas are in this area. No one knows the quantity since there had never been a deliberate attempt to fully explore it. But from the leads at Igbariam, Ajire, Amansiodo, Iji and other places, the quantity is massive. Shale oil and Gas from America is the reason for the fall of the prices of oil and gas globally. Luckily, Igbo land has the greatest share of such potentially shale regions in Nigeria covering over 30,000 km2 of territory. It is possible that the reported presence of tar sands in parts of Ebonyi State is most likely shale oil and gas.

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