By Vincent Kalu
The promoters of Bayelsa Oil Company Ltd with its Joint Ventures Partners, Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited and Century Exploration and Production Limited, have appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene and restore the Atala Oil Field (OML 46) belonging to them.
Recall that the Hon Minister of State for Petroleum and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) awarded the field to Halkin Exploration and Production Limited without knowledge of the true facts surrounding the development of the Field by the Joint Venture Partners.
In a press statement signed by the management of Bayelsa Oil Company Ltd, and its Joint Venture Partners, Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited and Century Exploration and Production Limited, the JV debunked newspapers publications that the said oil field was awarded to Halkin Exploration and Production Ltd on grounds of its investment in reviving the Field and transfer of 41% interest of BOCL in the Field to Halkin Exploration and Production Ltd.
The statement emphasised: “We restate that the Joint Venture Partners of BOCL – Hardy Oil Nigeria Limited and Century Exploration and Production Limited are indigenous companies owned by Nigerian entrepreneurs holding 20 percent and 29 per cent stakes, respectively, in the said Marginal Field with a State Enterprise-Bayelsa Oil Company Limited (a company wholly owned by the Bayelsa State Government) as the Operator, holding a controlling 51 per cent stake on behalf of the Bayelsa State Government.
The JV Partners further stressed that: “It is pertinent to state here that Atala Marginal Oil field (OML 46) has been developed, crude oil produced and sold from the same field at different stages of test crude production. Royalties on crude oil sold from the field had been paid to the Federal Government severally before the field was revoked under very strange and suspicious circumstances.
“At present, the Joint Venture Partners have invested massively in bringing the Field into production of Test Crude preparatory to commencement of commercial production. The revocation of the asset has put into jeopardy the entire efforts and resources pumped into the development of the Field by the JV Partners. Most of these funds were secured through loans from banks in respect of which Atala Field (OML 46) Joint Venture Partners are still repaying with huge interest.
It is against the significant milestones achieved regarding the joint operations at the Atala oil field that full Production Permit was awarded to them by DPR in August, 2018.
The statement further added: “Currently, there are about 20,700 barrels of unevaluated crude oil at Atala Field. Consequently, Atala JV Partners executed Crude Handling Agreement (CHA) with Excel Exploration and Production Limited to handle Atala crude, as well as using their pipeline for transporting Atala crude to Shell Petroleum Trans Forcados pipeline. BOCL had also executed Sales and Purchase Agreement with Shell Trading Company in respect of the remaining crude oil at Atalalocation.eld Development Plan (FDP) was submitted to DPR in 2017 and there are ongoing reviews in relation to drilling Atala wells 2, 3, & 4.
“Several Community Development Projects executed across the Host Communities. All Royalties and NDA made to date is US $160, 545.18. Logistics support base in Kidney Island, Port Harcourt and Warri. Consistent payment of National Data Registry Fees.
“The above stated milestones clearly and unequivocally support our position that the revocation of the Atala Marginal Field by DPR was in error and consequently caused to, in league with the other ten revoked Marginal Field Operators, write to Mr. President for a review of the revocation. We understand that the letter was given sympathetic consideration by Mr. President, who remarked, ‘the ten (10) revoked marginal fields be re awarded on discretionary basis to qualified companies with consideration given to the previous operators of the respective fields subject to the demonstration technical/financial capacity and payment of applicable good and valuable consideration (GVC).”
The JV Partners denied any investment in the development of the field or revival of the field by Halkin and challenged it to prove its claims of having spent $60,000,000 in reviving the oil field and the purported Farm -in Agreement with her conveying the transfer of 41 per cent of BOCL equity, which it presented to secure the award of the Field in its favour.
The JV Partners maintained that: “These claims by Halkin in the Atala Marginal Field is therefore spurious, fraudulent, deceitful and an attempt by the desperate Company and its faceless sponsors, who will soon be unmasked in the fullness of time, to hijack benefits arising from the sweat and hard work of the Atala JV Partners.”