By Francis Ogwo
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has completed modalities to commence oil exploration in the Lake Chad Basin of Borno State.
This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timiprye Sylva, on Monday after meeting with the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, and Commander of Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), Major-Gen. Ibrahim Yusuf, at Maimalari Cantonment, Maiduguri.
According to Sylva the commencement was made possible with the restoration of normalcy in the basin by Nigerian Army.
Sylva said: “The NNPC has seen a lot of prospects in the Chad Basin to commence exploration and drilling activities. That is why the Corporation is collaborating with the Army to resume oil exploration.”
The minister added that plans are underway to ensure safety of exploration workers and drilling activities in the area while applauding the Army for their efforts in restoring peace
“The Army has done a great job. They continue to perform in the Northeast. We wanted to commence exploration and drilling activities there, because we believe that the relative peace in this area is enough for us to continue drilling activities in the northeast.
“As you may well know, we have found oil in Gombe State, and we believe that there is a lot of oil to be found in Chad Basin.”
Recall that commercial activities in the region has been plagued by the insecurity posed in the area by insurgents.This has also led to expatriates leaving the region en masse.
The Nigerian Army on their part have been counting their losses in the fight against the dreaded terrorists.
