Olu Verheijen, the special adviser to President Bola Tinubu on energy, has announced that so far Nigeria has attracted over $1 billion in investment in the oil and gas sector across different value chains.
Verheijen made this statement on Wednesday while speaking at the African Energy Week in Cape Town, South Africa.
The presidential aide noted that the regulatory framework of the President in the sector is already yielding positive results.
She added that apart from the $1 billion investment, the country is also expecting multi-billion dollar investment in deepwater exploration projects by the middle of 2025.
“Nigeria’s Petroleum Industry Act took twenty years to be passed into law and given Presidential assent, in 2021. We are now building on that foundation with an unprecedented sense of urgency, to completely rewrite the narrative of oil and gas investment in Nigeria.
“We are already seeing the fruit of our work. Regulatory approvals are being expedited, major investment decisions are being Finalized across the value chain.
“We have unlocked over $1 billion in investments across the value chain and by the middle of 2025, we expect to see Final Investment Decisions on two more projects, including a multibillion billion-dollar deepwater exploration project, which will be the first of its kind in Nigeria in over a decade – one of many to come.
“We see the abundant opportunities that lie ahead. We see a Nigeria that is a leading global producer and exporter of energy – whether it’s fossil fuels or renewables. We are not held back by the outdated approaches and assumptions of the past. We are open, daring, and eager to leave a legacy that will stand the test of time,” Verheijen said.
What you should know
Since President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, the federal government has implemented a series of reforms aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry while streamlining costs and reducing timeframes for conducting business in the sector.
- As the primary source of Nigeria’s foreign exchange, the oil and gas industry remains a cornerstone of the country’s economy.
- Among these reforms are three presidential directives issued in February 2024, which are anticipated to create tens of thousands of new jobs, increase foreign exchange earnings, boost tax revenue, and strengthen the nation’s macroeconomic stability.
- The government has also introduced tax relief measures for deep offshore oil and gas projects, alongside VAT exemptions on LPG, CNG, diesel, and other energy products.
These initiatives are outlined in the Value Added Tax (VAT) Modification Order 2024 and the Notice of Tax Incentives for Deep Offshore Oil & Gas Production, in line with the Oil & Gas Companies (Tax Incentives, Exemption, Remission, etc.) Order 2024.
