Oil Exploration in the North
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www.yesneko.com Oil Exploration In The North BY AKPO AVBOVBO A communiqué issued at the just concluded meeting of 57 senators from the North on April 23, 2001 advocated the need for the Federal Government to intensify exploration for petroleum in the sedimentary basins (Sokoto, Benue and Chad Basins) located in Northern Nigeria. The communiqué once more revealed the pervasive ignorance and emotions when discussing national issues in Nigeria. If any of the senators had worked in the petroleum industry, they would have realised that there are criteria normally used in assessing the suitability of a sedimentary basin for petroleum exploration. For the uninitiated innumerates, five criteria are used in assessing a sedimentary basin, which I shall refer to as the magic five. The magic five are the presence of source rocks, reservoir rocks, seals, paleotemperatures and traps. I will discuss the magic five in simplistic terms so that readers will be able to distinguish between tuwo and tapioca. The presence of source rocks with adequate organic material of various types determines whether oil or gas will be sourced in the process of hydrocarbon generation. Simply put, if you introduce garri into hot water, there is no way amala will be produced in place of eba. Reservoir rocks ensure that hydrocarbons generated are accommodated in pore spaces that exist between grains in the subsurface. Those states that are planning an association of granite producing states should note that their rocks cannot be hydrocarbon bearing since granites do not have pore spaces except when fractured and can only bear hydrocarbons when juxtaposed to sedimentary source rocks. Granite bearing states should woo construction companies like Julius Berger and Strabag for patronage but should realise that in an eponymous Niger Delta state, slag residues from a steel plant and sedimentary gravels could be used in road building. Seals which are normally without pore spaces ensure that hydrocarbons in reservoir rocks are kept in place and prevented from migrating to the surface and subsequent loss. No wonder our ancestors used to keep water in clay pots although the late Ladi Kwali in Suleija could not explain the storage mechanism of a clay pot. Paleotemperatures or ancient temperatures are responsible for generation of hydrocarbons from organic matter with a sequential product cocktail from heavy oil to light oil to wet gas and finally dry gas which may not be of economic value. If our senators who are supposed to have paid aides did a little research work, they would have known that out of the 25 exploratory wells drilled in the Chad Basin, only two wells encountered dry gas which was not of economic value. They would have also discovered in the neighbouring Niger and Camerounian sector of the basin, none was found in the Nigerian sector, because of ancient volcanic activities which destroyed any oil generated, leaving only vestiges of dry gas. They would have also saved us from their embarrassing communiqué if they had discussed the oil issue with one of their colleagues, Senator Victor Oyofo who is a petroleum geologist with experience spanning over three decades. Do our senators not know that one of their colleagues is a petroleum geologist? Or if Senator Oyofo is interested in military matters, will he not seek the opinions of Senators David Mark, Tunde Ogbeha, Brinmo Yusuf, and Ike Nwachukwu who are all retired army generals? It seems our senators do not visit us at www.yesneko.com www.yesneko.com communicate or network among themselves. The trap ensures that oil sealed in place does not migrate and be lost. An analogy is the Braithwaite tank that keeps water in place. Hydrocarbons will therefore not be generated or kept in place or if any of the magic five is missing in the geology milieu. The Sokoto Basin centred in the neighbouring Republic of Niger has a maximum thickness of about 1,000 meters in the Nigerian sector, which is less than 1,500 meters for it to generate hydrocarbons. However, the Sokoto Basin contains limestone and gypsum that can sustain the cement factory operating in Sokoto State. The Benue Basin that extends from Makurdi to Kaltungo bears marked geologic similarities to the Chad Basin to its north-east. The pervasive volcanic activities in the two basins has made large hydrocarbon accumulations impossible. However, salt deposits in the Benue Basin could be exploited as a feedstock for the petrochemical industry. Some of the earlier wells drilled in the Chad Basin encountered beds suspected to be uranium, which could be traced to the surface and exploited. Also all water wells drilled during the drilling campaign in the Chad Basin could be harnessed for large scale maize farms each of which could be at least three kilometres in diameter and also create watering holes for livestock. Our dear Northern senators should therefore know that after spending almost two billion dollars, the Federal Government through NAPIMS – NNPC’s realised the futility of further exploration in the Chad Basin. The harvest of dry holes during the Chad Basin drilling campaign was not a result of the often repeated archaic shibboleth of Southern sabotage that has corrupted and constricted political development in Nigeria, but the work of nature. Multinational companies such as Chevron, Elf and Shell operating in the same area have also drilled three dusters thereby confirming NNPC’s unsuccessful campaign, although persistency will require Musa to strike a rock to produce oil. Pressurizing the Federal Government to intensify exploration activities in the North amounts to throwing money into a black hole. Instead, more emphasis should be on labour intensive agricultural projects that will reduce the number of panhandlers and urchins roaming the streets. It should be noted that most rich countries in the world do not have natural resources. Possession of natural resources does not confer riches on a country. Japan, which is a world leader in steel production does not have iron ore deposits. The North could be the food basket of Nigeria if its leaders encourage agriculture and de-emphasis reliance on the Federal Government. The same advice is also applicable to the South. Akpo Avbovbo is a consultant geologist September 2001 visit us at www.yesneko.com.