Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) has started oil production from the first well at the Bonga North West deep-water development off the Nigerian coast. The Bonga project, which began producing oil and gas in 2005, was Nigeria’s first deep-water development in water depths over 1,000 metres. Oil from the Bonga North West sub-sea facilities is transported by a new undersea pipeline to the existing Bonga floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) export facility. The Bonga FPSO has been upgraded to handle the additional oil flow from Bonga North West which, at peak production, is expected to contribute 40,000 boe/d (14.6 mboe/year), helping to maintain the facility’s overall output.
The Bonga project is operated by SNEPCo, which holds a 55% stake. The other project partners are Esso (20%), Total (12.5%) and Nigerian Agip (12.5%) under a Production Sharing Contract with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.