Tullow Oil raises Kenya’s crude oil project cost

British exploration firm Tullow Oil has released its revised development plan for oil production in Kenya, disclosing greater stakes for the Turkana oil project.

The company has released its half year results and its six months operational update raising the project’s gross budget to about US $3.4billion. It has recommended changes to its initial design to incorporate a bigger processing facility and oil pipeline.

Kenya’s prospects of striking it rich from its oil deposits could now be back on track following the review affirming the technical, commercial and environmental robustness of projects represented by Blocks 10BB and 13T Licenses.

Tullow now projects a greater daily production rate of 120,000 barrels (bbls) once production starts. The review also estimated larger volumes of oil deposits at a gross of 585 million barrels down from 433 barrels in the previous review.

READ: Tullow audits Kenya’s oil

Key changes in the projects development concept cover factors including the new production data tapped through the recent early oil pilot scheme (EOPS) where 450,000 barrels of oil were produced from the Amosing and Ngamia fields which cover more than half of the project’s resource distribution.

Approval of the plan will see Tullow commence the construction of a pipeline, which is estimated to take three years.

Tullow Oil now estimates capital expenditure covering upstream and the pipeline to first oil at US $3.4 billion down from US $2.9 billion after factoring in a bigger facility processing capacity, additional wells and a bigger pipeline diameter of 20 inches.

“Based on the revised plan, Tullow believes that this project is an attractive commercial prospect for investors looking to access the East Africa oil and gas sector in both the upstream and midstream. It is intended that a strategic partner will be secured ahead of a Final Investment Decision,” Tullow said in their half year trading statement on Wednesday.

Tullow and its JV partners had initially planned to reach a final investment decision in 2019 and production of the first oil between this year and 2022.