NUPRC Reports Fire Incident at NNPC Well, Rapid Response Deployed to Contain Spill

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) on Saturday said the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) had reported a fire incident at one of the wells operated by one its units, NNPC 18 Operating Limited.

In a statement signed by the NUPRC’s Head, Public Affairs and Corporate Communication, Olaide Shonola, the commission stated that the NNPCL had already deployed a rapid response team to tackle the spill.

“A fire incident has been reported at Akaso 4 wellhead operated by NNPC 18 Operating Limited. The incident which has extended along the adjacent riverbank is reported to have occurred on August 2, 2024 at about 11:12 pm.

“NNPC 18 Operating Limited has confirmed that a rapid response emergency team has been deployed to secure the well, address the incident and isolate the affected area using spill containment materials.

“This is to prevent further spread and contamination of the environment. They are also planning to start the oil recovery process immediately,” the NUPRC added.

Specifically, the industry regulator stated that the company had deployed a Naval Houseboat within the incident area and established community surveillance to monitor the situation.

The cause of the incident was not yet known, the commission said, but added that a joint investigation with relevant stakeholders was being planned to determine the cause and the area of impact.

However, the NUPRC statement added that it was important to note that the Akaso Well 4 had been out of operation for a significant period of time.

Also, the NUPRC said that the fire at the company’s Alakiri Well 9T, which started on February 23, 2024, was still raging.

The contractor engaged to deal with the situation, Kenyon International West Africa Company, it pointed out, was facing some challenges in putting out the fire.

“They are now planning to deploy the total oxygen extraction method instead of the heat extraction method currently being deployed. The equipment fabrication is 100 per cent complete and the contractor is awaiting mobilisation from the well owners. Contractor personnel are on-site monitoring the incident.

“A meeting with the management of NNPC 18 Operating Limited is planned to review the safety and integrity of its operations. We will provide further updates on the incident as soon as they are available,” the upstream regulator stated.

Meanwhile, Nigeria has added a new crude grade known as Utapate, as Africa’s biggest oil producer strives to return output to pre-pandemic levels, Bloomberg has reported.

A subsidiary of state-owned NNPC and venture partner Natural Oilfield Services Ltd. loaded the first export cargo last month, according to people familiar with the matter. They declined to be identified because the information isn’t public, the report said.

Utapate, a light, low-sulphur oil from the Niger Delta region, is one of several dozen grades produced in Nigeria. The Utapate terminal produced almost 19,000 barrels a day in June, according to Bloomberg calculations from regulatory data. Output could reach 50,000 barrels a day by the end of the year, according to one of the people.

NNPC didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Natural Oilfield Services declined to comment.

The Suezmax Front Seoul loaded Utapate on July 24 and is now headed for Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg showed. The grade will be processed in Europe and Asia, with the first shipment directed to Spanish refiner Repsol SA.

Nigeria’s total crude and condensate production was about 1.5 million barrels per day in June, the highest since February, regulatory data showed.

Emmanuel Addeh

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