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From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
Federal Government, at the weekend, assured Nigerians that the recent fire that engulfed Ukpokiti Oil Field, in Ondo, involving the Floating Production Storage and Offtake vessel (FPSO) of Shebah Exploration and Production Company Limited (SEPCOL), where over 60, 000 barrels of oil were destroyed, has been extinguished.
Giving the assurance in a statement, in Abuja, Minister of State for Environment, Mrs Sharon Ikeazor also noted that the National Oil Spill Detection Response Agency (NOSDRA), the scheduled agency under her ministry, will go for overflight today (Sunday) and Monday to monitor the situation of crude spill in the sea.
According to her, the overflight operation will be sustained in the weeks ahead, until whatever remnants of oil in the FPSO is evacuated and measures evolved to forestall a recurrence of such kind of incident.
Recall that Ikeazor had earlier assured that necessary efforts are being made to ensure the fire at Ukpokiti Oil Field is contained, after a fire engulfed a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel named ‘Trinity Spirit’ in the early hours of Wednesday.
However, in the evening of Thursday , 3, 2022, Ikeazor said the fire at Ukpokiti Oil Field was eventually contained.
She made this known after receiving an update from the Director General of NOSDRA, saying a ‘joint investigation’ operation was conducted at the incident area on Saturday.
She equally said that NOSDRA had an overflight on the incident area last Friday, to ascertain from the air what the surrounding conditions were, after extinguishing the fire.
According to the Environment Minister, a joint investigation visit to the incident area, as well as the FPSO, was undertaken on Saturday by NOSDRA, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Ondo State Ministry of Environment, representatives of the communities proximate to the area and staff of Shebah Exploration and Production Company Limited.
“While the cause of the fire incident is yet to be fully determined, the environment around the FPSO is only slightly covered by sheen and emulsified oil.
It was earlier reported that the approximate quantity of oil in the FPSO in the recent past was said to be a little less than 200 000 barrels. One of the operators utilising the services provided by the FPSO was said to have made an offtake of approximate 120,000 barrels before the incident; leaving an estimated 50-60 000 barrels in the FPSO as at the time of the fire.
“NOSDRA will continue to give updates on this incident after each aerial surveillance scheduled for today (Sunday) and Monday,” Ikeazor assured.
