TotalEnergies, the operator of Nigeria’s OML 58 onshore license with a 40% stake, along with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Ltd (NNPCL, 60%), has made the Final Investment Decision (FID) to develop the Ubeta gas field.
The OML 58 license, located about 80 km northwest of Port Harcourt in Rivers state, includes the Obagi oil field and the Ibewa gas and condensate field, both in production. Gas production from OML 58 is processed at the Obite treatment center and supplied to Nigeria’s domestic gas market and the Nigeria LNG (NLNG) plant.
The Ubeta gas condensate field, also part of OML 58, will be developed with a new 6-well cluster connected to the existing Obite facilities via an 11 km buried pipeline. Production is expected to start in 2027, reaching a plateau of 300 million cubic feet per day (about 70,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, including condensates). Gas from Ubeta will be supplied to the NLNG liquefaction plant on Bonny Island, which is expanding its capacity from 22 to 30 Mtpa. TotalEnergies holds a 15% interest in NLNG.
Ubeta is a low-emission, low-cost development that leverages existing OML 58 gas processing facilities. The project’s carbon intensity will be further reduced with a 5 MW solar plant under construction at Obite and the electrification of the drilling rig. TotalEnergies and NNPCL are committed to enhancing local content, with over 90% of manhours worked locally.
“Ubeta is the latest in a series of projects by TotalEnergies in Nigeria, following Ikike and Akpo West. I am pleased we can launch this new gas project, made possible by the Government’s recent incentives for non-associated gas developments. Ubeta aligns with our strategy of developing low-cost, low-emission projects and will boost the Nigerian economy through increased NLNG exports,” said Mike Sangster, Senior Vice President Africa, Exploration & Production at TotalEnergies.
