Oil and gas deposits have been discovered in the Bida basin in Nigeria’s Niger State, according to AllAfrica.com.

The discovery comes after the Niger State government established a committee in October 2011 to determine the commercial viability of deposits in the inland sedimentary. The committee submitted its report on the Bida basin find this week and reported that an exploratory test well at Patti-Shaba-Kolo and in two other locations will be conducted to further examine the deposits’ commercial quantity.

The committee also is working with Midland Refinery, Petro Chemical Co., and Midland Petrogas Resources Ltd. to serve as special purpose vehicles for upstream and downstream activities for the state's oil and gas resources development drive, according to the article.