By Firdaus Jibril
Heirs Energies has increased crude oil production from its OML 17 asset to about 55,000 barrels per day, following the reactivation of previously inactive wells and restoration of existing facilities.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Heirs Energies, Engr. Osayande Igiehon disclosed this during a session at the Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition (NAICE) 2026 in Lagos.
Igiehon said the company adopted a brownfield excellence approach after taking over operatorship of OML 17 in 2021, focusing on restoring existing wells and infrastructure rather than immediately relying on new drilling.
According to him, only about 40 production strings were active when the company took over the asset.
He said Heirs Energies subsequently embarked on a large-scale well reactivation programme and reactivated about 32 wells within its first 100 days of operations, helping to double production.
Igiehon said several wells in the asset had been inactive for years, while some facilities and equipment also required rehabilitation.
He explained that the company considered restoring existing production capacity to be faster and more cost-effective than immediately drilling new wells.
“We are the Brownfield champions of Africa,” Igiehon said, adding that the approach focused on identifying and unlocking unused production potential in mature oil and gas assets.
He said the company had since reactivated more than 100 production strings and carried out more than 200 well interventions.
Igiehon also highlighted the challenges the company faced in evacuating crude from the field, noting that the volume reaching the terminal had fallen significantly at one point despite increased production.
He said the company was receiving only about three per cent of its production at the terminal at the peak of the evacuation challenge in 2021.
According to him, this has since improved, with the company now achieving between 95 and 100 per cent terminal delivery.
He attributed the improvement to measures taken to address crude theft, pipeline vandalism and other evacuation challenges.
The Heirs Energies CEO said the company’s experience demonstrated the potential for Nigeria to increase crude oil production by maximising existing oil assets alongside developing new fields.
He also said gas produced from OML 17 contributes to gas supply for power generation, particularly in the eastern part of the country.
Igiehon said the company would continue to focus on improving production from its existing assets while developing additional opportunities.