The National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency( NOSDRA) has verified an oil wellhead leak at Oil Mining Lease( OML) 18, operated by an indigenous operator, Eroton Exploration and Production Limited.
OML 18, which produces and exports crude through the 97 kilometre Nembe Creek Trunkline( NCTL), is located near the corridors of the export line in Rivers State.
Residents said the installation had been discharging oil and gas into the littoral terrain for the past one week.
Idris Musa, Director- General of NOSDRA, verified the oil painting, gas leak on Saturday, stating that NOSDRA had entered a report on the incident and sweats were being made to plug the oohing oil well.
“ The company reported and oil recovery is underway. sweats are on to stop the source which is a font, ” Mr Musa said.
Also, a notification report by Odianosen Massade, Corporate Communications Lead of Eroton indicated that the incident occurred on June 15, while a site assessment visit was carried out on June 23.
The oil establishment said that primary findings indicated that the incident was due to suspected vandalization.
“ This is to bring to your attention the loss of control of Cawthorne Channel well 15 resulting to oil spill, ” the company said.
CAWC015L/ S is a binary string well which started production in May 1977. The shorts string was shut- in in 1988 due to high gas oil rate( HGOR), while the long string doused out and the well quit in 1991.
“ The spill started on the 15th of June 2022 and incontinently an exigency response procedure was actuated.
“ The operations platoon snappily visited the point for primary disquisition and discovered that the wellhead was vandalised.
“ It was also observed that the wellhead platform was removed, and this will compound the difficulties in gaining access to the wellhead.
“ Our platoon of Well Engineers are working with contractors and assessing the safest procedure that will be needed to bring the well under control.
“ We've actuated our oll spill exigency response plan and thunderclaps have been stationed for mitigation in the area as a primary constraint procedure.
“ announcements have also been transferred out to all the applicable Regulators( NOSDRA, NUPRC & RSMENV).
“ A Joint Investigation Visit( JIV) by all stakeholders is planned for this week although this is subject to readiness and vacuity of the crucial stakeholders.
“ Our operations platoon is covering the site, commenced oil recovery and are prepared to respond to any escalation, ” Eroton stated.
A similar incident was reported on November 5, 2021 at near OML 29 operated by Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production discharged further than,000 barrels of crude oil for some 32 days before the leak was plugged.
Eroton and Aiteo acquired their assets following the 2015 divestment by Shell Petroleum Development Company from some of its onshore assets.
The two Nigerian companies assumed operator status in the joint venture arrangement with the Nigerian Petroleum Company.