Abstract:Sedimentary basins of Northern Nigeria comprise the Middle and Upper Benue Trough, the southeastern sector of the Chad Basin, the Mid-Niger (Bida) Basin, and the Sokoto Basin. Organic geochemical and organic petrologic studies indicate the existence of potential source rocks in the Benue Trough and the Chad Basin, with coal beds constituting major potential source rocks in the whole of the Benue Trough. The generation and production of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons from coal beds presently is world-wide indi… Show more
“…socio‐environmental impacts) affected Note : The ‘ NFISB States’ shown are by no means definitive because further geological findings and political exigencies ultimately determine the NFISB boundary The geological map of N igeria from which Figure 1 derives can be found in Obaje et al . (, 228)…”
The deliberate damaging of oil pipelines (interdiction) is a key problem in the global petroleum industry and tends to have a strong spatial identity. It also has local, national and international implications for energy security and susceptible environmental receptors. This paper specifically focuses on Nigeria, a country often affected by complex environmental problems associated with oil and gas activities. Partly because Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in Nigeria was only promulgated in 1992, there has been no specific study of pipeline interdiction and how it could be better addressed in future EIAs, especially at river crossings where oil pollution is usually significant. Therefore through a careful collation of data from different sources, this paper for the first time aims to: (1) evaluate how pipeline interdiction has been addressed in sampled EIAs; (2) assess interdiction trend per unit of pipeline length over a 16-year period; (3) identify points on pipeline river crossings that are especially sensitive to oil spills. A linearly-weighted equation was used to estimate interdiction per 1000 pipeline kilometres per year. River network and pipeline shapefiles were geoprocessed in ArcGIS 9.2 to identify river crossing locations and the spatiotemporal trend of interdiction was plotted. Key findings include: (a) high interdiction rates per 1000 pipeline kilometres ranging from 1.4 to 735 per year; (b) at least 115 pipeline river crossing locations exist in Nigeria and constitute potential oil-spill hazards; (c) these hitherto unavailable pipeline river crossing data unsurprisingly show the majority of such locations are within southern Nigeria. These results should guide future oilfield developments, including oil production and transportation facility projects, through efficient scoping and mitigation strategies. We argue that there is a need for systematic requirements to effectively address the anticipation/mitigation of future pipeline impacts in EIAs to better support oil spill contingency planning and reduce environmental problems.
“…socio‐environmental impacts) affected Note : The ‘ NFISB States’ shown are by no means definitive because further geological findings and political exigencies ultimately determine the NFISB boundary The geological map of N igeria from which Figure 1 derives can be found in Obaje et al . (, 228)…”
The deliberate damaging of oil pipelines (interdiction) is a key problem in the global petroleum industry and tends to have a strong spatial identity. It also has local, national and international implications for energy security and susceptible environmental receptors. This paper specifically focuses on Nigeria, a country often affected by complex environmental problems associated with oil and gas activities. Partly because Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in Nigeria was only promulgated in 1992, there has been no specific study of pipeline interdiction and how it could be better addressed in future EIAs, especially at river crossings where oil pollution is usually significant. Therefore through a careful collation of data from different sources, this paper for the first time aims to: (1) evaluate how pipeline interdiction has been addressed in sampled EIAs; (2) assess interdiction trend per unit of pipeline length over a 16-year period; (3) identify points on pipeline river crossings that are especially sensitive to oil spills. A linearly-weighted equation was used to estimate interdiction per 1000 pipeline kilometres per year. River network and pipeline shapefiles were geoprocessed in ArcGIS 9.2 to identify river crossing locations and the spatiotemporal trend of interdiction was plotted. Key findings include: (a) high interdiction rates per 1000 pipeline kilometres ranging from 1.4 to 735 per year; (b) at least 115 pipeline river crossing locations exist in Nigeria and constitute potential oil-spill hazards; (c) these hitherto unavailable pipeline river crossing data unsurprisingly show the majority of such locations are within southern Nigeria. These results should guide future oilfield developments, including oil production and transportation facility projects, through efficient scoping and mitigation strategies. We argue that there is a need for systematic requirements to effectively address the anticipation/mitigation of future pipeline impacts in EIAs to better support oil spill contingency planning and reduce environmental problems.
“…Nigeria's current petroleum and gas reserves are put at 35 billion barrels (bbls) and 170 trillion standard cubic feet (Tcf) respectively (Obaje et al, 2006) and her current production stands at 2.5 million barrels per day (bbl/d) (NTA International Network News, Monday 27 th August, 2012). The above figures call for caution and the need for a continuous and more aggressive exploration strategy to find more oil if the nation will continue to rely on crude oil exportation as one of her major foreign earnings.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Previous workers (e.g. Obaje et al, 2006) had used samples from the first set of and the only drilled boreholes within the Benue Trough to date the Formation and their results put the Formation as the Maastrichtian age. The boreholes are Kolmain-River-1 drilled by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO) in 1999, Kuzari-1 and Nasara-1 drilled by Elf Petroleum Nigeria Ltd (Totalfina Elf) in 1999 and Chevron Nigeria Ltd (Chevron Texaco) in 2000 respectively.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…The boreholes are Kolmain-River-1 drilled by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO) in 1999, Kuzari-1 and Nasara-1 drilled by Elf Petroleum Nigeria Ltd (Totalfina Elf) in 1999 and Chevron Nigeria Ltd (Chevron Texaco) in 2000 respectively. The first borehole produced gas while the other two were reportedly dry (Obaje et al, 2006). Apart from the above boreholes, the Maiganga Coal Mine boreholes serve as the only link to access the subsurface geology and samples from the area even though the boreholes were drilled to limited depths that served the purpose they were Benkhlil, 1989) Except for the Cenozoic Niger Delta which has been described as 'oil-rich belt' and popularly known for its petroleum generation and accumulation, little is known of the Mesozoic (especially the Cretaceous) petroleum deposits in Nigeria.…”
Gombe Formation is a heterogeneous sequence within the Upper Benue Trough consisting principally of shales with sands, clays and intercalations of coal. It is over 600 m thick maximally in some parts of the sub-basin and has been dated Maastritchtian. Fifteen (15) core samples from 3 boreholes (BA-7, BA-16 and BA-17) dug around the Maiganga Coal Mine have been studied geochemically using the Rock-Eval 6 method with the principal aim of evaluating their potential as possible source rocks for petroleum. The results of the Rock-Eval analysis for analyzed core samples from these boreholes within Gombe Formation shows that the samples in boreholes BA-7 and BA-16 contain Type II kerogen while those from borehole BA-17 contain Type III kerogen, and that the samples from boreholes BA-7 and BA-16 have very good generative potential while those from borehole BA-17 have good to very good potential. This study also reveals that the analyzed samples especially those from boreholes BA-7 and BA-16 may constitute good source rocks if the burial depth is sufficient. The Rock-Eval Tmax data available for thermal maturity assessment of the samples suggest that the analyzed samples from the three boreholes are thermally immature. This assessment is consistent with the immaturity status of their coeval Formations (Pindiga and Gongila Formations) in other part of the Benue Trough, suggesting that these contemporaneous Formations may be related in depth and/or have experienced similar geothermal gradient. It is therefore recommended that the thermal maturity of the analyzed samples from the three boreholes be re-evaluated by other thermal maturity indices such as vitrinite reflectance measurement and biomarker evaluation in order to further authenticate the maturity status of the Formation.
“…Gongola basin of Northern Nigeria is one part of a series of Cretaceous and later rift basins in Central and West Africa whose origin is related to the opening of the South Atlantic [Obaje et al, 2006]. Many authors have noted that the Benue rift (which includes Gongola basin) have many features in common with other intra-continental East African rift such as Baikal rift and the Rio Graade rift, for example [Logatchev, 1993;Shemang et al, 2001;Ugbor et al, 2010].…”
Section: The Study Area and Gravity Data Acquisitionmentioning
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