Over the past decades, Nigeria’s oil fields have been deteriorating in production because of excessive exploration, and to this effect it currently witnesses a drop in oil production in the country as most of its aging oil fields now battle declination. The oilfields in Nigeria are scattered across the country’s land mass, but are constantly pressured with no lookout for new sites or field expert recovery methods. Statistics hold that over 80% of Nigeria’s crude oil production stems from oil fields that have been producing for more than 30 years.
Apparently, this is now a challenge, considering it threatens the stability of Nigeria’s most treasured export product. Unlocking hydrocarbons from reservoirs leveraging Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technologies would drastically improve Nigeria’s oil fields from the current base of 20-30% to high figures as 60-70%, according to the type of reservoir type.
The Challenge: Aging Reservoirs and Declining Output
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has provided data indicating that Nigeria’s oil production has decreased consistently over the past decade, declining from more than 2.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2012 to below 1.3 million bpd in some parts of 2023. A large primary driver for the decrease has been the increasing age of infrastructure, depletion of reservoirs, and delayed investments to redevelop the producing fields. As reservoir pressure declines in mature fields, this has significant adverse effects on recovery efficiency. In many of Nigeria’s legacy fields, such as Agbami, Bonga, and Forcados, the conventional primary and secondary methods (natural flow, gas lift, and waterflood) have been done to capacity.
The EOR Prize: Tapping Stubborn ReservesEnhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) methods are specifically created to attempt to remove the residual oil left in the reservoir from conventional oil recovery. EOR currently represents approximately 3% of total oil production worldwide, but this is expected to increase as mature basins become the primary influence on production. In Nigeria, EOR is still underutilized, but, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has expressed an increased interest in resuming EOR in brownfields.
Modern EOR technologies for Nigeria
Chemical Injection: Surfactants, polymers, and alkaline agents are injected to reduce interfacial oil-water tension and enhance the mobility of oil. The pilot polymer flooding test conducted by Chevron in Escravos was reported to have improved oil recovery efficiency by as much as 15%.
Gas Injection (CO₂, Nitrogen, Natural Gas): CO₂ injection will improve sweep efficiency and contribute to pressure maintenance. Although Nigeria has no pipeline for distributing CO₂, CO₂ piloting projects existing in the Niger Delta have revealed good news of CO₂ increasing recovery by up to 25% in deep reservoirs.
Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery (MEOR): It is the injection of specific bacteria or nutrients to mobilize oil that is entrapped. Small-scale MEOR field tests have been accomplished at Nigerian universities and PTDF-funded researchers. Positive results were seen for those in the fields of the Anambra Basin.
Thermal recovery: This is best suited for heavy oil fields. With mostly light sweet crude reserves in Nigeria, this has less application locally but it has potential in some of the inland basins.
Industry Adoption and Case Studies
Shell Nigeria has launched a full-scale EOR screening program across its mature onshore fields.
Total Energies has indicated that its future investments in Nigeria will focus on deepening EOR application and integrating it into its Net Zero 2050 goals.
NPDC has partnered with local firms to trial polymer flooding in marginal fields, reporting incremental recoveries of up to 12–18%.
Constraints Slowing Down EOR in Nigeria
Even though there’s a lot of potential, several challenges are holding back the widespread use of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) in Nigeria:
High Capital Investment:
EOR projects can set you back anywhere from $6 to $20 for each additional barrel recovered — that’s quite a hefty price tag, especially in a market where oil prices can be so unpredictable.
Infrastructure Gaps:
There’s a noticeable lack of a national framework for capturing and transporting CO₂.
Technical Expertise:
Right now, Nigeria is quite dependent on foreign technical consultants to assess and implement EOR projects.
Regulatory Hurdles:
While the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021 has made strides toward a more inviting investment climate, it still falls short in offering specific incentives for EOR initiatives.
A Way Forward
To truly tap into the full potential of EOR, Nigeria needs to carve out a clear path forward:
- Establish a National EOR Strategy that aligns with the PIA.
- Create Tax Incentives and R&D Grants for operators who are diving into EOR projects.
- Build up CO₂ Capture and Storage (CCS) Infrastructure that supports decarbonization efforts.
- Encourage Local Capacity Building by teaming up with institutions like the University of Port Harcourt, Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun (FUPRE), and PTDF.
Conclusion
As Nigeria’s upstream sector contends with production decline and the challenges of energy transition, Enhanced Oil Recovery is an available strategic lever for sustaining output and realizing optimum value from existing assets. With the right balance of policy, innovation, and investment, EOR has the potential to push Nigeria’s average recovery factor from its 27% present level to well over 50%, potentially releasing billions of barrels of stranded oil. Through this, Nigeria not only gets secure its energy revenues but also gains increased resilience in a rapidly changing world energy market.
Mr. Oluwasegun Onasanya is a seasoned oil and gas professional with extensive experience in Nigeria’s upstream sector. Currently serving with one of the leading multinational oil corporations (Chevron), he has built a reputation not just for operational excellence but also for his insightful commentary on industry trends. Recognized as a thought leader in the energy space, Mr. Onasanya is passionate about driving innovation and efficiency in the sector.
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