Lagos, Nov. 15, 2024 – Nigeria can now tap into $90 billion financing available to deepwater oil projects through international oil companies (IOCs).
Olu Verheijen, the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, said this in Lagos at an Executive Session of Energy Institute of Nigeria and the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE).
She said that accessing 20 per cent of this financing would be more than enough to bring five major deepwater projects onstream and unlocking 1.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe).
The special adviser said the new development was due to reforms in the sector which had assisted in moving Nigeria from the bottom of the 13 indexed countries to top three.
She said the country’s deepwater oil projects were now delivering competitive returns.
“We are gearing up for our first FID on a greenfield deepwater development since the last one (Egina) in 2013.
“Going into 2025, we expect the investment momentum to quicken, proving beyond any doubt, that President Tinubu’s energy reform agenda is truly revolutionary. Our challenges are addressable, and fixable.
“All these new investments will have major implications for the Nigerian economy.
“The foreign exchange inflows will help with exchange rate management and macroeconomic stability; local economies will benefit from the increased spending on construction and hiring; skill-building and technology transfer will take place.
“Importantly, with the industry infrastructure being developed, each new investment will ensure that subsequent projects are possible at lower costs and with the guarantee of greater returns – creating a virtuous cycle of new investments”
“We cannot succeed without you, without listening to you and taking your feedback.
“As much as we want to attract financing, we also want to work closely with partners who truly believe in our ability to keep our pledges and to ensure that the reform momentum never loses steam,” she said. (GBN)
