 ENERGY |
If geological and seismic studies are anything to go by, Liberia may well be on the verge of discovering oil just off -shore along its nearly 350 miles coastline, official indications suggest.
No doubt, the prospects must be high because the government has already created the National Oil Corporation, which may function alongside the present Liberia Petroleum Refinery Corporation, whose functions have now been relegated to overseeing the importation and distribution of petroleum products by private companies.
The country's only oil refinery is technically obsolete and was at best described as scrap by past officials of the petroleum facility.
President Charles Taylor remains optimistically cautious about the discovery of oil in his country, faced with an economic quagmire needing sizable investments to boomerang to its status of surplus occupied some three decades ago.
Reports say there could be some 12 wells identified along the Liberian coast.
| According to the Chairman of the ruling NPP, Chief Cyril Allen, a company has already done two-dimensional reports and is doing the third to determine whether the oil is of commercial value as well as the actual quality and quantity that can be produced per day.
All petroleum products consumed in Liberia are imported, with periodic foreign exchange shortages resulting into disruption of supplies, hoarding and subsequent price hikes. The country is reported to be consuming some three million gallons of diesel and gasoline products a month and some 30,000 tons a quarter.
Statistics show about 38% of imported oil is used in diesel electricity generators, while most domestic energy requirements are met by other sources, mainly charcoal and wood.
In 1988, mineral fuel and lubricants imports reached 94.4million USD on the foreign trade chart and accounted for about 28.5% of the total imports during the same year. Ten years later, in 1998, fuel and lubricant import registered 39.4million USD and reflected 24.4% of total imports for the year. |
