Total petroleum receipts – the sum of earnings from liftings and other petroleum proceeds from the Jubilee and TEN oil fields – stood at US$362.58million as at September 2017, data from the Ghana National Petroleum Commission (GNPC) have shown.
The figure, which indicates an astronomical surge from the US$172.91million realised in the same period of 2016, was raised from the 5,795,014 barrels that were lifted from the crude oil producing fields.
Also, the total volume of gas that was transported from the two fields to the Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC) within the period under review was 20,545.44mmscf.
Lead Petroleum Engineer at the GNPC, Albert Longdon-Nyewan, told the B&FT that the strong revenue performance was due to additional liftings from the TEN Field in 2017 as well as increased pricing of crude.
“In 2016 it was only the Jubilee Field, but this year we were able to increase production with the coming onstream of the TEN Field; also, pricing is everything in terms of revenue generation,” he said.
Last year, the Jubilee and TEN fields produced about 160,000 barrels per day; but according to Mr. Longdon-Nyewan, projection for this year is pegged at 70,000 barrels per day, in the hope that the Sankofa project will bring in additional volumes.
Allocation of receipts
Out of the total US$362.58million, GNPC was allocated US$126.67million – comprising equity financing cost and its share of the net carried and participating interest.
A total of US$135.81million was transferred into the petroleum funds for the period ending September 2017. Out of this, the Ghana Heritage Fund received US$40.74million while the Ghana Stabilisation Fund received US$95.07million.
The total amount transferred in 2017 from petroleum liftings and related proceeds to the ABFA was US$127.09million, while the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) received US$6.92million.
Performance of the GPFs
The total net profit on the Ghana Petroleum Fund for January to September 2017 was US$7.03 million.
Out of this, the Ghana Heritage Fund contributed US$5.20million compared to US$4.04million in 2016, while the Ghana Stabilisation Fund contributed US$1.83million compared to $0.65million in 2016.
Since quarter-three of 2017, the GPFs have netted US$25.94million in profit – with the GHF and GSF contributing US$19.59million and US$6.34million respectively.
Planned FPSO shutdown
The first of three planned shutdowns of the FPSO Kwame Nkrumah on the Jubilee Field is expected to begin on Friday, February 2, 2018.
These planned shutdowns are expected to make way for operators of the oil field to embark on a general maintenance exercise on the vessel.
Mr. Longdon-Nyewan indicated that the shutdowns are to allow for the Jubilee Field FPSO Turret Remediation Project and other maintenance works to help restore the facility to its original health.
“We expect three shutdowns this year to allow for liftings, maintenance and also the spread mooring; by October 2018, the FPSO will be restored to its original health,” he said.
