Mr Alexander Mould, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), on Tuesday said Ghana’s Summit on Oil and Gas was an opportunity for industry players to deliberate on emerging trends that could affect their operations.

Speaking at the opening session of the 5th Ghana Summit of Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition in Accra, Mr Mould said GNPCs new focus was geared towards playing a lead role in business of exploration, development, production, and disposal of hydrocarbon.

He said the current well count of Jubilee Field is 23 wells, 12 production wells, eight water injection wells and three gas injection wells, adding that average daily oil production for the month of March was about 104,101 barrels.

He said at the end of March 2014, 97 parcels of crude oil had been lifted by all partners, including the GNPC and Government of Ghana since the commencement of production from the Jubilee Field.

Mr Mould added that Ghana Group had lifted 18 parcels of crude oil representing about 18 per cent of the total crude oil lifted, it is expected that the field will produce about an average of 100,000 barrels of oil per day for 2014.

He said the pre-development activities of the Sankofa-Gye Nyame Fields were progressing steadily, Gas sales agreement term sheet and securitization negotiations are currently ongoing with the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) Partners.

He said discussions were ongoing in respect of the FEED documents for riser, flow line and installation and subsea production systems contractors.

The Operator, Eni, is expected to resubmit the Plan of Development for the field to the Minister for Energy and Petroleum in May 2014. First Oil is expected in the last quarter of 2016, and first gas a year later, he added.

GNPC, he said, had intensified its exploration activities in the inland Voltaian basin and would drill six slim holes at very strategic locations within the basin in an attempt to collect valuable geological data.

This would help to ascertain the petroleum system of the basin, prior to the planning and acquisition of wide grid 2D seismic data across the basin.

Once we have established a petroleum system, the Minister of Energy and Petroleum and the Petroleum Commission would use the appropriate model as stipulated in the New Petroleum bill, to invite investors with the requisite technical and financial capabilities to partner GNPC for further exploration work he said.

Mr Mould said opportunities for new exploration acreage existed offshore and onshore Ghana.

The total size of Ghana’s offshore sedimentary basins up to 3,000m water depth, is approximately 60,000 sq. km, out of which about 35, 000 sq. km is licensed to International Oil companies (IOCs).

He said they have intensified the review of data within the unlicensed areas in order to make them attractive for oil and gas companies.