Oloibiri is a small community in Ogbia LGA located in Bayelsa State, in the eastern Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The inhabitants of Oloibiri community are mainly fishermen and farmers. It is the first place that oil was discovered in Nigeria.
Oloibiri is a historic town to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria. Nigeria's first commercial oil discovery in Oloibiri town by Shell Darcy on January 15, 1956.
The discovery of oil in Oloibiri hasn't helped most Nigerians and only has led to destruction of the environment and the way of life of indigenous people of the Niger Delta.[citation needed] And with an initial production of 5,000 barrels of oil per day (which would later become as much as 2,000,000), Nigeria became the 6th largest oil producer on the chart of the Organisation of petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC.
Oloibiri well was the first commercial oil well in Nigeria. Oloibiri Oilfield was the first commercial oil field in Nigeria as well as West Africa. Nigeria exported its first crude oil in February 1958 from the Oloibiri oil field. Nigeria's first crude oil export came from Oloibiri field in February 1958. Nigeria's first crude oil pipeline was laid from Oloibiri oil field to Port Harcourt on the Bonny River (Bonny Export Terminal).