Kenya will have to wait till 2024 before reaping any benefits from its Turkana oil project, according to an announcement made by Tullow Oil.

Martin Mbogo, the Managing Director of British-owned Tullow Oil Kenya, said it would take four years at the very least to reach the commercial production stage where Kenya could start seeing the estimated 150 billion shillings annually from Turkana oil production.

Kenya and Tullow have yet not signed a final investment decision either. (FID) Without the FID, financiers cannot commit to funding drilling, pipeline and other infrastructure projects required for the project.

“We are going to make the Final Investment Decision next year and then we will take 36 months to complete the construction works before we start venturing into commercial production,” Mbogo said. “Once online, Kenya will have added a new revenue earner bigger than even those it gets from tea exports.”

Tullow had earlier announced that it would give the final go-ahead by the end of 2019 for full field development at the Turkana oilfields, with a pipeline and other export infrastructure expected to be ready by 2022.

(Source: Tullow Oil)