The federal government has revealed its goal of targeting 4 million barrels per day oil production and 10 billion cubic feet of gas by 2030 following the recent offshore oil and gas incentives.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by Mrs. Olu Verheijen the Special Adviser to the President on Energy and Head of the Energy Office of the Presidency, who is also overseeing the implementation of the reforms. She noted that this goal is supported by new fiscal incentives designed to encourage investment in the oil and gas sector.
Olu stressed that “Since Nigeria’s last deepwater project – the Egina project – was approved in 2013, International Oil Companies operating in Nigeria have committed more than $82 billion in deepwater investments to other countries that they deem more competitive.
She further added that “Over the next few years, they plan to spend another $90 billion to develop deepwater oil and gas projects. This is the pool of funds that our reforms are targeting, and we intend to unlock between $5 billion to $10 billion of new investments in Nigeria in the near- to medium-term”.
Verheijen noted that these reforms are designed to generate numerous new jobs, boost foreign exchange earnings, and increase tax revenues. She added that, with around 76 percent of Nigeria’s gas resources remaining untapped, the government aims to strengthen energy security and drive economic growth.
Osagie Okunbor, Chairman of the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) Section, expressed her optimism, stating, “The level of coordination and policy coherence we’re seeing today is unprecedented. The accelerated pace of reforms over the past year has renewed our interest in Nigeria. “For the first time in a long while, we’re seeing positive momentum in our industry in Nigeria, thanks to the Presidential Directives and the government’s deliberate efforts to engage the service sector.
