Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has officially unveiled its latest crude oil grade, the Utapate crude oil blend, before the international crude oil market to boost the country’s foreign currency revenue generation.
The Spokesperson of NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday.
During a ceremony held at the Argus European Crude Conference in London, United Kingdom, on Wednesday, the Managing Director, NNPC E & P Limited (NEPL), Nicholas Foucart, described the introduction of the Utapate crude oil blend into the market as a significant milestone for Nigeria’s crude oil export to the global energy market.
“Since we started producing the Utapate Field in May 2024, we have rapidly ramped up production to 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) with minimum downtime.
“So far, we have exported five cargoes, largely to Spain and the East Coast of the United States, while two more additional cargoes have been secured for November and December 2024, representing a significant boost to Nigeria’s crude oil export to the global market,” he said.
He added that since its introduction into the global market, the Utapate crude oil blend has enjoyed a positive response from the international crude oil market due to its highly attractive qualities.
Foucart said the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 13, fully operated by NEPL and Natural Oilfield Services Ltd (NOSL), a subsidiary of SEEPCO Ltd, boasts a huge reserve of 330 million barrels of crude oil, 45 million barrels of condensate, and 3.5 tcf of gas.
“We have a number of ongoing projects to increase our production from the current 40,000 bopd to 50,000 bopd by January 2025 and 60,000 bopd to 65,000 bopd by June 2025. Essentially, we are targeting opportunities to increase production to 80,000 bpd by the end of 2025,” Foucart added.
On his part, the Managing Director of NNPC Trading Limited, Lawal Sade, said the pricing structure of the Utapate crude oil blend is similar to that of Amenam crude, as it is a light sweet crude that is highly sought after by refiners across the world due to its low sulphur content, efficient yield of high-value products, API gravity, and other similarities.
Recall that in July 2024, NNPCL and its partner, the Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company (SEEPCO) Limited, introduced the Utapate crude oil blend following the lifting of the first cargo of 950,000 barrels, which headed for Spain.
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