Tinubu approves framework to unlock $50bn deep offshore investment

President Bola Tinubu has approved a reform that replaces project-by-project negotiations with a transparent investment framework designed to unlock up to $50 billion in deep offshore investment.

In a statement on Tuesday, Bayo Onanuga, presidential spokesperson, said the reform is expected to restart Nigeria’s large, capital-intensive offshore developments that have remained stalled for decades.

Onanuga said the approval also enables the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, the government’s nominated counterparty under the production sharing contracts (PSCs), to proceed with the necessary amendments to eligible PSCs required to implement the framework.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has approved a landmark reform that replaces project-by-project negotiations with a transparent investment framework designed to unlock up to US$50 billion in deep offshore investment and restart Nigeria’s large, capital-intensive offshore developments that have remained stalled for decades,” the statement reads.

“The reform establishes a transparent, rules-based investment framework capable of supporting the next generation of deep offshore developments, beginning with the approximately US$10 billion Bonga South West project, while strengthening Nigeria’s competitiveness for globally mobile investment capital.”

According to the statement, the decision builds on Tinubu’s engagement with Wael Sawan, chief executive officer of Shell Plc, during which the president directed the development of the next wave of measures required to unlock Nigeria’s deep offshore investment pipeline.

Rather than pursuing project-specific solutions, Onanuga said the federal government transformed that directive “into a comprehensive investment framework applicable across multiple categories of qualifying developments”.

“Given effect through the Deep Offshore Oil and Gas Projects Incentives (Tax Remission) Order, 2026, the framework replaces project-by-project negotiations with transparent eligibility criteria, clear implementation processes and a durable investment architecture that provides greater certainty for investors while safeguarding long-term national value,” the spokesperson said.