With three marginal fields, we can raise Nigeria’s production by 10,000 barrels’

Dumo Lulu-Briggs, a lawyer, philanthropist, and nationalist is the Chairman of Platform Petroleum. On the sidelines of the conscionable concluded Offshore Technology Conference, OTC, Lulu-Briggs shared his experience in his aboriginal days and foray into the lipid and state industry, his challenges, and his occurrence communicative of increasing a tiny indigenous lipid institution into a household sanction successful Exploration and Production. KINGSLEY JEREMIAH reports. 

Kindly springiness an overview of your travel into the petroleum manufacture and however it dovetailed into your existent presumption arsenic the president of Platform Petroleum.
After earning a Law grade from Ahmadu Bello University and a Master’s grade from the University of London, I attended instrumentality schoolhouse successful Nigeria and concisely practiced instrumentality successful Lagos. Drawn to politics, I moved to Port Harcourt, wherever I tried section authorities and ran a pub, displeasing my father. To fulfill him, I co-founded a instrumentality firm. Later, my begetter encouraged maine to articulation his lipid business, contempt my deficiency of experience. I was initially interviewed for a ineligible advisor relation but was appointed General Manager instead. Recognizing unfavorable agreements with our overseas partners, I sought proposal from Austin Avuru, who became a cardinal advisor.

Avuru’s expertise led america to found Platform Petroleum, gathering a squad of experienced Nigerian professionals. We started with His Royal Highness Edmund Daukoru arsenic our archetypal president and Prof. Sylvester Adegoke arsenic our Vice Chairman, past I came connected committee conscionable arsenic a shareholder.  In 2004, erstwhile President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed Daukoru arsenic Adviser archetypal past aboriginal arsenic a Minister and that was however helium near Platform Petroleum. That was however Prof. Sylvester Adegoke became Chairman, and I became the Vice Chairman. In 2011/2012, I became chairman, and I americium the president till date.
  
Our strategical partnerships and renegotiated agreements helped america thrive. We began with minimal resources but secured investments and backing done innovative fiscal strategies. By 2007, we commenced lipid production, achieving important occurrence from our tiny field. 
  
My collaboration with Avuru was pivotal, transforming our institution into a beardown indigenous subordinate successful Nigeria’s lipid industry. That is however I got into the lipid and state manufacture which I had nary anterior cognition on. This journey, though initially reluctant, became profoundly fulfilling and impactful.

Can you elaborate connected the collaboration with New Cross and its interaction connected Platform Petroleum? 
Our narration with New Cross was a game-changer and rather mutually beneficial.  Having JV partners similar New Cross makes operations smoother for marginal tract operators. With 100% collaboration and transparency, we rapidly earned New Cross’s confidence, starring to minimal questioning from them. We worked unneurotic connected galore projects, including mounting up the Ase River crude evacuation pipeline, a important 24-kilometre infrastructure to the Brass Terminal. We projected a 50:50 JV with New Cross, diverging from the emblematic 60/40 arrangement, and successfully built the pipeline, benefiting our clump partners and generating further gross done tariffs.

Our concern with New Cross extends to some upstream and midstream ventures, including PNG Gas Limited, a important LPG subordinate successful Nigeria, producing 30 tons of LPG and 30 cardinal modular cubic feet of gas. This collaboration has been incredibly rewarding, marked by open, meaningful conversations and communal understanding, ensuring we ever determination successful the aforesaid absorption without conflict.

What person been the challenges and cardinal milestones achieved during this journey?   
We were the smallest successful 2004 but we were the archetypal to bring our tract on-stream and we person been producing from that tiny asset. We person accrued our lipid accumulation from 2,000 to implicit 3,000 barrels. Today, we person been capable to extract astatine slightest immoderate 12.3 cardinal barrels and 118 cardinal modular cubic feet (SCF) of state from that tiny plus and we are inactive on. We purpose for 10,000 barrels, having expanded into 3 further marginal fields. 

From the start, we decided to tally Platform arsenic a family, treating everyone with value and fostering a highly motivated workforce. We code issues affecting our staff, ensuring their welfare, and maintaining a supportive environment. This familial tone extends to each stakeholders and communities, with a committedness to exceeding expectations successful assemblage spending. Our travel has been some rewarding and challenging. 

Do you person a timeline for the 10,000bpd target?
We purpose to bring each marginal fields into accumulation by 2025, targeting 10,000 barrels of lipid and astatine slightest 50 cardinal modular cubic feet of state per day. To mitigate the volatility of the lipid and state industry, we person diversified into non-E&P ventures. As a tiny company, terms fluctuations tin importantly interaction us, dissimilar larger players similar Seplat. So, we person invested successful existent estate, gathering a 19-storey tower, and expanded into logistics and leasing. We are progressive crossed the full worth chain; upstream, midstream, and downstream, operating work stations successful Lagos, Warri, and Port Harcourt, and exploring refining opportunities.

Despite our size, we person achieved important occurrence and efficiency, proving that a tiny institution tin execute large things effectively.
Do you program to instrumentality vantage of the upcoming licensing bid rounds?

We are precise ambitious due to the fact that we privation to go a tier-1 institution similar the IOCs oregon a tier-2 institution similar Seplat. Interestingly, Seplat originated from Maurel & Prom, Shebah Petroleum, and Platform. We capitalized connected the archetypal divestment, and today, Seplat is simply a large player. This demonstrates that Platform tin besides turn significantly.

 
We person planned a roadshow successful London this June 2024 to research opportunities arising from assorted divestments. Although we were unsuccessful successful the 2020 marginal tract rounds, our contributions to the manufacture are substantial.

We person 3 fields acceptable to commencement accumulation by 2025. We funded these projects, provided expertise, and identified promising assets. Successfully bringing these fields to accumulation volition boost nationalist output and validate our efforts.

We judge Platform deserves designation and much assets. Our roadshow aims to pull equity partners and hole for aboriginal opportunities. We are targeting a billion-dollar investment, engaging equity players, inferior indebtedness providers, and planetary banks. We question partners acceptable to put successful Nigeria’s lipid and state potential.

We stress Nigeria’s immense opportunities and actively bring investors to showcase the country’s potential. The existent authorities is proactive, knowing the request for economical growth. Platform is prepared to leverage each accidental successful the lipid and state manufacture to lend to this expansion.
Platform Petroleum played a salient relation astatine the Nigerian Pavilion during 2024 OTC successful Houston. Does it align with the company’s strategical growth?

Yes, it does. The Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is simply a ritual, and everyone knows Nigeria has immense potential. With the displacement from fossil fuels and the IOCs divesting from onshore assets, it is important to beforehand Nigeria arsenic a important market. Partnering with the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) astatine OTC is cardinal to attracting investment. To turn Platform, we request capitalist assurance and funding. While we enactment nett zero state flaring, we stress Nigeria’s vigor needs and our unsocial position connected the planetary community. This attack tin unfastened fiscal opportunities.

At the OTC done PETAN, we aimed to boost capitalist interest, recognizing PETAN’s pivotal role. Their events person drawn important attention, indicating a increasing involvement successful our message. For Platform, we person ever allowed the optimism of our volition to triumph implicit the pessimism of our intellect. Challenges whitethorn look insurmountable, but we judge successful our interior strength. My father’s acquisition successful the lipid manufacture exemplifies this spirit. Despite archetypal setbacks and risks, his religion and determination led to success. Through nonrecreational enactment and renegotiated agreements, our concern became profitable. We volition proceed to transmission this resilience, promoting Nigeria’s vigor assemblage and seeking the close concern premix for aboriginal growth.

What is the semipermanent imaginativeness of Platform Petroleum and however tin it lend to vigor information and economical improvement of Nigeria?  
As I mentioned earlier, we are conducting a roadshow successful London. We are efficiently producing our assets, upgrading travel stations, expanding capacity, and achieving astir zero emissions. Currently, we person astir 1 percent state flare, and by the past quarter, we purpose to person zero state flares, becoming the archetypal indigenous institution to commercialize our gas. We are aligned with authorities aspirations, supporting their targets, and preparing to pull a billion-dollar concern to assistance execute 30 cardinal modular cubic feet of state production.

Nigeria is simply a large market, and we indispensable deliberation big. This government’s plans, similar the Lagos-Calabar coastal line, bespeak that mindset. 
We should person religion successful our country. At Platform Petroleum, we are preparing ourselves for divestment opportunities to go a tier-2 player. We are successful talks with immoderate IOCs. Platform’s publication to Seplat’s occurrence is notable; Mr. Avuru, our erstwhile MD, was seconded to Seplat, which highlights our capability. We purpose to instrumentality Platform to the adjacent level, gathering connected the beardown instauration we person established. Seplat has acceptable a precedent, and we are poised to follow.