The House of Representatives on Tuesday asked the Federal Government to immediately commence exploration work in the Bida Basin.
The House stated that this was to ascertain the availability of hydro-carbon in commercial quantity in the area.
While adopting motion on notice by Rep Saidu Musa Abdullahi (APC, Niger), the House said the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited should take steps to conclude the geophysical survey already started by the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) in the Bida Basin.
ATTENTION: Click “HERE” to join our WhatsApp group and receive News updates directly on your WhatsApp!
Abdullahi recalled that during a visit to the Niger State governor, Abubakar Sani Bello in 2020 to unveil the 2D Seismic Data Acquisition in the Bida Basin, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) announced that the NNPC had commenced oil exploration activities in the area. The said exploration could add Forty (40) billion Barrels to Nigeria’s oil reserves by 2023.
He said as the agency responsible for the Frontier Exploration Services, the Group Managing Director of NNPC said in-depth Geological and Geochemical studies revealed a strong presence of hydrocarbon-bearing indicators confirmed as oil and gas-bearing formations.
Abdullahi added that the Seismic Data Acquisition Contract on the identified areas to determine the volume of the hydrocarbons in the Bida Basin has already been awarded to Integrated Data Services Limited and the China National Petroleum Corporation International Nigeria Limited by the NNPC Management.
According to the Lawmaker, the discovery of oil in another region is good news for the country’s energy sector, adding that the volume of oil in the Bida Basin is established and exploration activities commence fully, Nigeria may, soon, overtake Libya, the country with the largest oil reserve in Africa.
He expressed confidence that the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and its relevant agencies would expedite action for the continuation of the oil exploration activities at the Bida Basin Niger State and other Basins in the Country.
He said President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the NNPC Management to fast-track oil exploration across the country, following Shell’s discovery of hydrocarbons in the Chad Basin and Kolmani River.
He disclosed that the NNPC heeded President Buhari’s directive on the Chad Basin, however, the people of Niger State were anxious about the slow pace of oil exploration activities in the Bida Basin.
