ExxonMobil is intensifying its focus on advanced technology and integrated technical operations as it seeks to extract greater value from Nigeria’s deepwater oil and gas resources.
The company believes Nigeria still holds significant opportunities across producing fields, discoveries awaiting development and resources yet to be found, but says unlocking their full commercial potential will require sophisticated technology and stronger collaboration across technical disciplines.
Subsurface General Manager at Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, Nathan Harts, outlined the company’s position during a technical and business meeting of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists in Lagos.
Harts said successful development of increasingly complex offshore resources requires companies to integrate expertise across different disciplines rather than approach exploration and production as separate technical functions.
ExxonMobil, he said, is applying advanced technologies and integrated workflows to its Nigerian portfolio with the objective of improving development efficiency and controlling costs.
The company believes the approach could generate additional value not only from assets already producing but also from discoveries awaiting development and future exploration opportunities.
The strategy reflects ExxonMobil’s increased emphasis on deepwater operations in Nigeria following the sale of its onshore and shallow water interests to Seplat in 2024 for about $1.28 billion.
Its attention has since shifted more strongly towards offshore assets.
The company announced a $1 billion Final Investment Decision commitment in July aimed at revitalizing the Usan deepwater field, where its Nigerian offshore operation holds a 30 per cent interest.
ExxonMobil is also working with partners to advance other deepwater opportunities towards investment decisions.
Harts said technology alone would not determine the success of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, stressing the importance of knowledge sharing among operators and professionals.
He said technical organizations such as the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists provide an important platform through which expertise can be shared across the industry.
The Lagos meeting focused on the application of seismic inversion, forward seismic modeling and geomodelling to field development.
For ExxonMobil, greater integration of such technologies could become increasingly important as Nigeria attempts to attract new offshore investment, improve production and commercialize resources in more technically challenging environments.
