Construction of the Pipeline: Export Niger-Benin The Ministers of Petroleum of Niger and of Water and Mines of Benin in Koulélé, on the oil block of Agadem

The Minister of Petroleum of Niger, Mr. Mahamane Sani MAHAMADOU, and the Minister of Water and Mines of Benin, Mr. Alone SEIDOU ADAMBI, performed, from March 09 to 11, 2023 at Coulélé on the oil site ofAgademin the Diffa Region, a field visit to the various infrastructures under construction as part of the Niger-Benin Export Pipeline project(PENB). Visits to the installations and bipartite meeting constituted the menu of this trip to the heart of the oil exploitation zone of Niger.

Arrived Thursday 09 Mars 2023 in the early followingnoon, the two Ministers and their respective delegations were welcomed at the airstrip of Jaourowhich houses the camp of CNPC, the company that exploits Niger’s oil from the bloc ofAgademby the Governor of the Diffa Region, Mr. SmaineYounouss. The two delegations then headed straight for Coulélé, where they spent the night in the camp of the CPP company in charge of the construction of the pipeline facilities.

It was on the morning of March 10 that thees members of two delegations ont visit several construction sites you pipeline including in particular that of the initial station of the Project, from which all oil production will beemined towards the port of Sème au Benin, as well as the construction site for the installation of high voltage lines supplying the oil wells with energybut also the construction site for surface infrastructure that will increase crude oil production from the current 20,000 barrels/day to 110,000 barrels/day by the end of the year..

The two ministers then chaired the meeting of the Inter-State Committee steering of the construction project of the Niger-Benin Export Pipeline(PENB), an exchange framework mis in place within the framework of the bilateral agreement signed on January 23, 2019 between the Republic of Niger and the Republic of Benin, relating to the construction and operation of a transport system hydrocarbons by pipeline.

At the of the mission, the members of the two delegations pu s’soak up the progress of the work of construction du Pipeline Niger-Benin, traveling together with thepipe laying work for the pipeline as well as that of theothers infrastructures of surface at the level of pumping stations and treatment units have reached, to date, an achievement rate of 75%.

Note that theare works of oncurrent side will make it possible to pass the production current crude oil from 20,000 barrels/day to 110,000 barrels/day grace in particular to commissioning of 109 new deposits on the block Agadem. Therefore, it is specified, theThe pipeline should be operational in time, especially during the last quarter of this year.

The Interstate Committee management of the Pipeline construction projecte Export Niger-Benin is responsible, among other things, for monitoring of the implementation of the Bilateral Agreement; of follow-up with the competent authorities of each Party of the implementation of procedures and the execution of all due diligence with a view to making available to the Carriers the land necessary for the Transport System ; but also of the evaluation and establishment of the list of products, materials, materials and equipment necessary for the Transport System, in accordance with the regulations in force in the States Parties.

Note on the Niger-Benin Export Pipeline

These are THE significant oil reserves of Nigerwe note, which required la construction d’un pipeline to allow to transport them for sale in international markets.

This is how thee Niger, Benin and the group Chinese CNPC agreed through a bilateral agreement and bipartite conventions so that the export pipeline follows a Niger-Benin route.

This pipeline will be 1950 km long (1275 km in Niger and 675 km in Benin) from the initial station located at Agadem in Niger to the terminal of Sèmein Benin. With a diameter of 20 inches, it will consist of 8 pumping stations (6 in Niger and 2 in Benin), 59 valve stations, from an oil terminal to Sème (with a capacity of 2 million barrels storage) of which two subsea pipeliness of 15 kilometers will be intended to load tankers with a capacity of one million barrels.

The pipeline will have a nominal capacity of more than 100,000 barrels per day and the amount of investment amounts to 2.1 billion dollars. the state from Niger is a 15% shareholder in the pipeline.

This gigantic infrastructure project straddling Niger and Benin will be lhe longest pipeline in Africa. Launched on September 17, 2019, the consconstruction progress normally. The completion rate of the work is currently 75%. They will be completed during this year 2023 to allow the first delivery of crude off the port of Sème.

It should be noted that in addition to CNPC, two other oil companies also operate on other blocks in Niger. This is the Group Sonatrach (SIPEX) and the Savannah Company Energy.Both, in the active research phase, have made significant discoveries over the last 3 years: SIPEX on the block Camphor (border with Algeria) and Savannah on R3 (CNPC rendering).

As a result, the 3 oil companies that have carried out intensive research activities since their installation in Niger have all made significant discoveries.are on different basins. These successes are very encouraging for Niger, which wishes to attract new investors to carry out quarantine search operationsoil blocks still free that he has. To do this, Niger has a quality Petroleum Data Center (CDP) located in Niamey, open to potential investors wishing to carry out pre-studies on the basis of previous work (40,000 km of 2D seismic and 13,000 km2 of seismic 3D, data from 388 wells, 57,000 km of magnetic-gravimetry, etc.).

Par KAÏLOU PANTCHO Maman (Communication Manager MPe)