Key points
- Industry leaders say policy stability, fiscal reforms and local content are reviving investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
- Operators announced new gas, deepwater and exploration projects following recent reforms.
- Indigenous firms were urged to strengthen capacity, financing and collaboration to support future growth.
Main story
Nigeria’s oil and gas industry leaders have identified policy stability, investment incentives and stronger local content implementation as the key factors driving renewed growth in the sector.
The executives spoke on Tuesday during a panel session at the ongoing Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) conference in Lagos.
The session, titled “Policy in Practice: Aligning Fiscal Strategy, Foreign Investment and Local Content for Sustainable Growth in Nigeria,” examined the impact of recent industry reforms on investment and indigenous participation.
Panellists from Chevron Nigeria, TotalEnergies, NNPC Engineering and Technical Company (NETCO) and Heirs Energies agreed that recent policy reforms had improved investor confidence but stressed that sustaining growth would require stronger local capacity and collaboration.
Olusoga Oduselu, General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs at Chevron Nigeria, described sound policy as the foundation for technological advancement, production growth and long-term investment.
He said Chevron has promoted Nigerian content for more than six decades, noting that local content should be viewed as a strategy for building globally competitive Nigerian companies rather than simply increasing domestic participation.
Oduselu cited the Sonam Project and the Agbami project as examples of Chevron’s efforts to strengthen indigenous engineering capabilities through partnerships with Nigerian firms.
Victor Bamidele, Deputy Managing Director, Deepwater District at TotalEnergies, said fiscal reforms had triggered a new phase of investment, leading to the approval of the Ubeta gas project in 2024.
He said production from the project is expected to begin next year, while the company is progressing toward a Final Investment Decision on the Ima project and advancing the Preowei project alongside new exploration activities.
NETCO Managing Director, Salahuddeen Tahir, described the sector’s outlook as one of its most promising in years, attributing the momentum largely to presidential executive orders introduced in February 2024.
He urged indigenous companies to strengthen their technical capacity, embrace technology and form strategic partnerships to execute the growing volume of industry projects.
Heirs Energies Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Osa Igiehon, said indigenous operators have transformed the industry, accounting for more than 60 per cent of Nigeria’s oil production.
He said crude oil production had recovered from about 700,000 barrels per day in 2022 to between 1.7 million and 1.8 million barrels daily, driven by policy reforms, improved security and greater indigenous participation.
Igiehon added that Heirs Energies increased production from 25,000 barrels per day in 2021 to more than 55,000 barrels daily while also doubling gas production using a predominantly Nigerian workforce and local contractors.
He called for stronger indigenous service companies, improved access to financing and greater industrialisation to support Nigeria’s target of producing three million barrels of oil per day by 2030.
The issues
Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is experiencing renewed investment following recent regulatory and fiscal reforms. However, sustaining growth will depend on strengthening indigenous capacity, improving access to capital and ensuring consistent policy implementation.
What’s being said
“Sound policy frameworks are the foundation upon which engineering, production and technological advancement thrive.” — Olusoga Oduselu, Chevron Nigeria.
“There is no way to profitably develop these projects without local participation.” — Victor Bamidele, TotalEnergies.
“We have demonstrated what indigenous operators can achieve. The next challenge is building indigenous service companies with the scale, funding and manufacturing capacity to support future growth.” — Osa Igiehon, Heirs Energies.
What’s next
Industry stakeholders are expected to focus on implementing approved projects, expanding indigenous participation and attracting fresh investment as Nigeria works toward its oil production and gas development targets.
Bottom line
Industry leaders believe policy reforms have reopened Nigeria’s oil and gas investment pipeline, but sustaining the momentum will require stronger local capacity, collaboration and consistent policy implementation.
