ABUJA, Nigeria, April 3 (UPI) -- Nigeria could generate as much as $66 billion through the right investment climate for deep-water oil developments, energy companies said.
Oil companies Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Shell and Total said multinational companies may be able to produce 900,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from deep-water reserves by 2020. They said deep-water oil projects in Nigeria could generate $66 billion in investments, Nigerian newspaper ThisDay reports.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said Nigerian oil production fell last year from its 2.1 million-barrel-per-day average for 2011. Sabotage targeting onshore oil pipelines has presented operational challenges.
ThisDay reports that large oil companies have expressed concern that legislation under consideration in Nigeria may thwart potential deep-water development. They said it would cost $100 million on average per well to work in Nigeria's deep waters compared with $15 million for onshore.
Nigeria is the No. 7 oil producer among the 12-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. ThisDay reports that the Nigerian government provides about half of the investments needed for onshore work but nothing for deep-water developments.
