Crude oil swap hits 39.6bn litres in four years

TRACKING____The Nigeria’s crude Direct Sale Direct Purchase (DSDP) contract, otherwise known as oil swap, has hit 39.6 billion litres in the last four years.

This, a data of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) obtained by New Telegraph at the weekend showed, came as about 129 local and foreign trading and marketing firms warmed up for 2020/2021 crude lifting contracts, which would be made open in less than 60 days.

“The DSDP scheme was introduced in 2016. Since its inception, until March 2019, about 29.5 million metric tons (39.6 billion litres) of petroleum products were supplied under the scheme, representing over 90 per cent of the national requirement,” the document read.

The new contracts, the document stated, is to be for one year, effective October 1, 2020, till September 30, 2021.

“The contract tender process will comprise technical and commercial bid submission respectively, followed by the evaluation and shortlisting of the bidders, then commercial negotiations with prequalified companies and engagement of the successful consortia/companies by NNPC.

“Under the 2020/2021 DSDP arrangement, the consortia/companies that emerge winners shall, over the contract period, offtake crude oil and in return, deliver corresponding petroleum,” the document read.

Top on the list of those warming up for the 2020/2021 crude lifting contracts, according to an industry source, are the firms that were announced winners in the 2019/2020 deals.

These companies/consotia include the Trafigura PTE LTD./A. A. Rano Nig. Ltd; Sahara Energy Resource Ltd; MRS Oil & Gas Company Ltd and BP Oil International Ltd./AYM Shafa Ltd; Vitol SA/Calson-Hyson.

Others are Total Oil Trading SA/Total Nig. Plc.; Litasco SA/Britania-U Nig. Ltd./Freepoint Commodities; Mocoh SA/Mocoh Nig. Ltd.; Gunvor International B.V./AY Maikifi Oil & Gas CO. Ltd.; Cepsa S.A.U./Oando Plc; Mocoh SA/Mocoh Nig. Ltd; Duke Oil Company Inc; and Litasco SA/Brityania-U Nig. Ltd./Freepoint Commodities.

The list also included Bono Energy Ltd./Eterna Plc./Arkleen Oil & Gas Ltd./Amazon Energy; Matrix Energy Ltd./Petratlantic Energy Ltd./UTM Offshore Ltd./Levene Energy Development Ltd; Asian Oil & Gas PTE Limited./ Eyrie Energy Ltd./ Masters Energy Oil & Gas Ltd /Casiva Ltd; and the Mercuria Energy Trading SA/ Barbedos Oil & Gas Services Ltd./Rainoil Ltd./Petrogas Energy.

Between 2015 and 2017, the NNPC lifted a total of 2.13 billion barrels of crude oil, with 2015 being the winning year that brought in 780.69 million barrels.

These figures fell to 668.58 million barrels in 2016, but picked up by the end of 2017, with 686.67 million barrels of crude recorded. This put average production at 1.88mbpd, coming short of the 2.2mbpd as budgeted.

According to the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, crude oil production was predicted to increase to 2.2 mmbbls/d at the end of 2017; however, 1.89 mmbbls/d was recorded at the end of 2017.

These figures from an entire country are in stark contrast when compared with Texas, a southern state in the United States, which produces an average of 4.01 mmbbls/day of crude.

Meanwhile, the refineries have been a bright spot for the NNPC; their combined capacity utilization rose from an abysmal 4.84 per cent in 2015 to 18.15 per cent in 2017.

The Port Harcourt Refinery (PHRC) emerged from a N4.3bn losing streak in 2015 to record N29.5 billion and N20.6 billion in profits in 2016 and 2017 respectively.

But its peers in Kaduna (KPRC) and Warri (WRPC) had a less than stellar record, losing a total of N69.7 billion and N36.billion respectively between 2015 and 2017.