Fed govt’s policies secured over $8b FIDs in oil, gas industry, says President Tinubu

• Domestic gas supply exceeded 2 billion cubic feet daily
• NNPC to expand Escravos Lagos Pipeline Line

President Bola Tinubu has said his administration has strengthened the oil and gas sector to secure a Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) surpassing $8 billion in offshore gas developments from global energy firms.
He said the torrent of direct investments into the sector revived strongly because of regulatory certainty and fiscal reforms.
President Tinubu disclosed this yesterday while officially declaring open the 9th edition of the Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) at the Banquet Hall, State House, in Abuja. He was represented by Vice President, Kashim Shettima.

President Tinubu said: “The sector secured final investment decisions exceeding $8 billion, including major offshore gas developments involving global energy companies. The outpouring of direct investment into the oil and gas sector rebounded strongly, driven by regulatory certainty, fiscal reforms and improved operational guidelines and conditions.”

He said domestic gas supply exceeded two billion cubic feet per day for the first time, strengthening power generation, industrial utilisation and energy access. Export volumes, according to him, increased alongside sustained expansion of gas processing and transportation infrastructure, reinforcing Nigeria’s role in regional and global gas markets.

The President reminded the stakeholders that on his assumption of office in 2023, the sector was only rich in potential, but weighed down by inefficiencies, uncertainty and underinvestment.

His words: “When this administration assumed the mantle of leadership in May 2023, we inherited an energy sector rich in potential, yet constrained by inefficiencies, uncertainty, and prolonged underinvestment. We set to work without panicking, guided by the clear understanding that energy cannot be treated simply as an economic commodity if stability is our goal. Energy is a catalyst for national security, industrial growth, social inclusion, and regional cooperation.”

Tinubu said under his administration, Nigeria’s upstream activity recorded a historic rebound, recounts growth from eight weeks in 2021 to 69 weeks by late 2025, reflecting renewed exploration and building momentum

The Federal Government, he said, has also introduced a broad executive order on oil and gas investment enabling to unlock up to $10 billion in capital inflows, streamline project approvals, reduce bureaucratic delays and position Nigeria as a prepared investment destination.

He recalled that in 2025, the administration introduced the Upstream Petroleum Operations Cost Efficiency Incentives Order, providing tax credits of up to 20 per cent to promote cost efficiency, enhanced competitiveness, and deepened Nigerian participation.

Tinubu also noted that as a direct result of the reforms the government has introduced, Nigeria’s average crude oil production improved to approximately 1.6 million barrels per day.

The administration, he said, consolidated its role as a live wire of sector reform and strengthened regulatory institutions to ensure clarity of goals, transparency and investor competitiveness.

He added that the country introduced fully digital, transparent, and competitive licensing rounds to the upstream sector, widely regarded as among the most credible bidding processes in our history.

On the 2025 bid round, he said: “In furtherance of this objective, we approved the commencement of the 2025 licensing round, creating new investment windows and enabling additional crude oil and gas production capacity.”

He said Nigeria’s refining landscape entered a new era with the commencement of local operations and the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, significantly enhancing domestic supply of refined petroleum products.

The President said modular and indigenous refineries advanced under supportive regulatory frameworks, diversifying national refining capacity. On the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited NNPCL refineries, he said “Rehabilitation of state-owned refineries also gained renewed momentum, with operational stability and efficiency remaining a primary focus.”

He added that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) recorded strong and consistent revenue performance, surpassing annual targets and fiscal sustainability.

In similar vein, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri said the renewed confidence has culminated in the huge FIDs inflows into the sector.

He said: “International confidence has also returned: Shell’s $5 billion Bonga North project, and TotalEnergies’ $550 million Ubeta project marks Nigeria’s first major FIDs in over a decade. This was followed by Shell’s $2 billion HI project and the $1.8m cumulative spent by Chevron in their Panther project.

“Only recently, the global CEO of Shell announced their commitment to taking a $20 billion FID, with several other FID lined up to be announced in this year and in the coming year.
“In 2025 alone, 28 new field development plans worth $18.2 billion were signed, with potentials of 1.4 billion barrels of oil daily.

Between 2024 and 2025, of the seven major FIDs announced across Africa, four were in Nigeria. This did not happen by accident, it is the result of steady work, policy clarity, and better governance. These are not rhetorics but proof that Nigeria is once again a magnet for serious business.”
In his remarks, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Group Chief Executive (Officer) Bashir Ojulari, an engineer, revealed that the firm has planned to expand the Escravos Lagos Pipeline Line (ESPL) this year.
Hear him: “Our recent achievements reflect this momentum. The presentation of the NNPC Gas Master Plan last week and the remarkable progress of our strategic gas infrastructure projects, the OB3 and the AKK pipeline and we are moving forward this year to also expand the ELPS pipeline, and the regional pipelines to their projects signal a new era of mining discipline, infrastructure development, and long-term commitments. These projects are more than a pipeline.”

NNPCL, according to him, is nurturing a new generation of professionals grounded in accountability, performance excellence and national service.
He said the strategic shifts, under the leadership of President Tinubu, is positioning Nigeria in a global competitive investment destination, from fiscal stability to policy liberalisation and security improvement.