Nigeria has commissioned its first wholly owned Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessel near the Bonny export terminal as part of the Federal Government’s plans to improve nation’s crude oil export infrastructure.
A news report from Reuters indicated that the 2.2-million-barrel capacity FSO was designed to boost crude oil transportation and production from Oil Mining Lease 18 and surrounding assets in the country’s Eastern Niger Delta region.
Similarly, the vessel is also expected to reduce reliance on pipelines and mitigate risks associated with oil theft and vandalism.
The FSO Cawthorne was developed by Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd, which holds a 55% interest in OML 18, Sahara Group, Eroton Exploration & Production, and Bilton Energy.
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In a statement issued by Sahara Energy revealed that the FSO vessel remained stationed offshore Bonny, the export point for Nigeria’s high-grade Bonny Light crude oil.
The company’s Head of Commercial and Planning at Asharami Energy, a Sahara Group company, Tosin Etomi, maintained the vessel would help reduce carbon exposure from barge movements and enhance evacuation safety.
Converted from a Very Large Crude Carrier, the double-hull vessel, is designed to receive, store, and offload crude oil to export tankers, addressing long-standing logistical constraints such as limited barge capacity, siltation at berthing slots and delays in ship-to-ship transfers.
It is expected to support OML 18’s 2025 production target of 50,000 barrels per day.
