By Festus Poquie
Liberia National Oil Company undertakes extensive studies to determine the commercial viability of hydrocarbon seep that emerged along an onshore oil basin approximately 7.6 miles inland southwest from the coastline.
Samples collected from the seep zone are currently undergoing laboratory geochemical analysis, including API gravity determination to classify the fluid as sweet or sour, as well as biomarker profiling and diagnostic testing to establish the fluid type, source characteristics, and potential migration pathways, NOCAL said in a statement Thursday.
“Final conclusions will be issued upon the completion and integration of these technical evaluations.
NOCAL said it has carried out two technical field missions in the region to conduct seep reconnaissance, surface geology assessments, and baseline data collection.
Their assessments confirm that the reported seep area in Nevren Tan aligns with the structural and stratigraphic characteristics of the Roberts–Bassa Basin, it said.
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Historical reconnaissance studies such as airborne gravity and magnetic surveys conducted in 2010 by Simba Energy, the only onshore reconnaissance license holder at the time identified oil seep occurrences indicating that the Roberts–Bassa Basin may have potential for commercially viable hydrocarbons.
The company urged government entities, members of the media, community leaders, and public figures to refrain from disseminating unverified or speculative information while technical investigations and laboratory analyses are still ongoing.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimates some 3.2 billion barrels of oil and gas in the wider West African Coastal Province that includes Liberian waters.
African Petroleum came close to oil discovery in 2012. In December 2016, Liberia’s brief moment of oil optimism ground to a halt when a well drilled by a local ExxonMobil unit came up dry — the ninth abandonment since 2010.
