Hot SourcePeter Uzoho
In a landmark deal coming after 40 years of discovery of the HI gas field in 1985, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo), a subsidiary of Shell Plc, together with Sunlink Energies and Resources Limited, have taken a final investment decision (FID) on the HI gas project offshore Nigeria.
Shell disclosed this Tuesday in a statement issued in London, saying when completed, the project will supply 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscf/d), approximately 60,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day at peak production, to Nigeria Liquefied NaturalGas (NLNG) where Shell has 26.5 per cent interest.
The oil major stated that the development of the asset would boost feedstock supply to NLNG which produces and exports liquified natural gas (LNG) to global markets.
Shell also said that production was expected to begin on the HI field before the end of this decade -2030.
“Following recent investment decisions related to the Bonga deep-water development, today’s announcement demonstrates our continued commitment to Nigeria’s energy sector, with a focus on Deepwater and Integrated Gas,” Shell’s Upstream President, Peter Costello, said in the statement.
“This Upstream project will help Shell grow our leading Integrated Gas portfolio, while supporting Nigeria’s plans to become a more significant player in the global LNG market”, he added.
The HI project is one of the major upstream projects long anticipated by both the operators and the federal government to boost Nigeria’s gas production and help to power the nation’s economy through increased domestic gas supply and utilisation.
According to the statement, the increase in feedstock to NLNG, via the Train 7 project that aims to expand the Bonny Island terminal’s production capacity, is in line with Shell’s plans to grow its global LNG volumes by an average of 4-5 per cent per year until 2030.
The oil major further said the development of the HI field would also bolster NLNG’s contribution to Nigeria’s national economic development goals, including jobs in construction and operations.
Shell said the HI field was discovered in 1985 and lies in 100m of water depth around 50km from the shore.
It stated that the current estimated recoverable resource volumes of the HI project were approximately 285 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe).
Shell explained that the HI project was part of a joint venture between Sunlink Energies and Resources Limited (60 per cent) and SNEPCo (40 per cent).
It said the production associated with this project will be reported through Shell’s Upstream segment.
It added that the project consists of a wellhead platform with four wells, to be installed at the HI field location, a pipeline to transport the multiphase gas to onshore at Bonny, and a gas processing plant at Bonny, from where the processed gas will be transported to NLNG and the condensate to the Bonny Oil and Gas Export Terminal.
The statement further highlighted that the estimated peak production and current estimated recoverable resources presented above were 100 per cent total gross figures.
“Current estimated recoverable resource volumes are a P50 estimate under the Society of Petroleum Engineers’ Petroleum Resources Classification System. P50 means there is a 50 per cent probability of the estimate being lower and a 50 per cent probability of being higher.
“This project contributes to Shell’s Capital Market Day 2025 commitment to deliver upstream and integrated gas projects coming on stream between 2025 to 2030 with a total peak production of more than 1 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). This also supports Shell’s intent to grow top line production across our combined Upstream and Integrated Gas business by 1% per year to 2030.
“LNG plays a key role in the energy transition, producing less greenhouse gas emissions than coal when used to generate electricity, and less emissions than petrol or diesel when used for transport fuel.
“Shell took a final investment decision on the Bonga North project in December 2024 and recently increased its stake in the Bonga field, consistent with the company’s intention to be a continued disciplined investor in Nigeria’s energy sector through its Deep Water and Integrated Gas businesses”, the statement said.
