Bola Tinubu, Nigeria’s President yesterday, welcomed Shell and its four partners’ namely the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, and Eni’s announcement of a Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Bonga North Deep Offshore Field.
According to the President, the landmark development, Nigeria’s first deep-water oil project in over a decade, underscored the transformative impact of his policies and reforms in attracting investments in the oil and gas sector.
The Bonga North oilfield, located 130 kilometres offshore in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 118, represents an impressive estimated $5 billion investment and is expected to yield approximately 350 million barrels of crude oil.
Shell holds the largest operational interest, with 55 percent and operates the Bongafield in partnership with Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Ltd. (20 percent), Nigerian Agip Exploration Ltd. (12.5 percent), and Total Energies Exploration and Production Nigeria Ltd. (12.5 percent), on behalf of the NNPC.
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According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the FID signals renewed confidence in Nigeria’s energy sector and demonstrates the effectiveness of the Tinubu administration’s strategic focus on engendering a robust and competitive investment climate.
The President in his remarks said: “The Renewed Hope Agenda fundamentally focuses on attracting investments to transform the Nigerian economy and deliver prosperity to our people.
“We designed our policies and reforms from the start of my administration to achieve this goal. Shell and its partners’ decision to invest in Bonga North affirms the success of our efforts. We will continue to offer the necessary support to ensure their success and the realisation of Nigeria’s energy potential.”
Tinubu’s strategic engagement with global energy stakeholders had been instrumental in this renewed wave of investments.
In July 2023, at the first of several high-level meetings with Shell’s global leadership, President Tinubu had declared, “We are open for business and serious about creating a stable, predictable, and investor-friendly environment.”
Story was adapted from Thisday.
