By Yazid Inuwa MK Bauchi
“`As the year 2024 wraps up, in a bid to bring succor to the citizenry before, during and after the forthcoming yuletide festive season, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is worth applauding for approving the free nationwide train rides from December 20, 2024, to January 5, 2025. You may recall that similar gesture was made by the President during the Eid al-fitir and Eid al-adha sallah celebrated by Muslim faithfuls. Many folks quit agreed with Robin Hobb that every small, unselfish action nudges the world into a better path. An accumulation of small acts can change the world.
Beyond reasonable iota of doubt, this move will profoundly eases transportation costs across the country during the festive period. Remember, there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end, as proponed by Scott Raymond Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comic strip, and the American author of several nonfiction works of business, commentary, and satire.
On economic reform, Nigeria partners’ $5 billion deep water investment with Shell, which marks a significant milestone for the Nigeria’s energy subsector. The Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Bonga North Deep Offshore Field was indeed a landmark development, being the Nigeria’s first deepwater oil project in over a decade, which underscores the transformative impact of the President’s policies and reforms in attracting investments in the oil and gas sector.
The Bonga North oilfield, located 130 kilometres offshore in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 118, represents an impressive estimated $5 billion investment and is expected to yield approximately 350 million barrels of crude oil. Shell holds the largest operational interest, with 55%. Its other partners are the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, and Eni. The FID signals renewed confidence in Nigeria’s energy sector and demonstrates the effectiveness of the Tinubu administration’s strategic focus on engendering a robust and competitive investment climate.
This glaringly depicts that Renewed Hope Agenda fundamentally focuses on attracting investments to transform the Nigerian economy and deliver prosperity to Nigerians.
President Tinubu’s strategic engagement with global energy stakeholders has been instrumental to the country’s current renewed wave of investments. You may recall that in July 2023, at the first of several high-level meetings with Shell’s global leadership, President Tinubu declared that Nigeria is open for business and serious about creating a stable, predictable, and investor-friendly environment. Presidential Directives issued in early 2024 reinforced this commitment by fast-tracking regulatory approvals, reducing operational costs, and introducing competitive fiscal incentives.
The Bonga North project is the second of the blueprint projects President Bola Ahmed Tinubu selected to drive the implementation of the transformative Presidential Directives 40, 41, and 42 issued in the first quarter of 2024.
These directives, aimed at enhancing regulatory clarity, accelerating project timelines, and incentivising investment in Nigeria’s energy sector, have yielded remarkable results. Earlier this year, the Ubeta oilfield (OML 58), the first blueprint project under this initiative, achieved a Final Investment Decision (FID) through a partnership between TotalEnergies and NNPC Limited. Dormant since its discovery in 1965, the Ubeta project will produce 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, bolstering domestic supply and expanding Nigeria’s presence in the global energy market.
With both blueprint projects now achieving FID, the success of these initiatives underscores the effectiveness of the President’s strategic vision for Nigeria’s energy future. The Bonga North FID dispels the misconceptions about International Oil Companies leaving Nigeria. Instead, Nigeria is witnessing a strategic pivot of IOCs-powered capital and technical capacity to deepwater and integrated gas projects, which align with President Tinubu’s vision of transforming Nigeria into a global energy hub. The divestments from onshore operations create opportunities for local oil and gas companies to expand and thrive, building a strong foundation for Nigeria’s energy future.
The success of Bonga North and Ubeta demonstrates the efficacy of these reforms and directives championed by the President. These projects will trigger broader investments to revolutionise Nigeria’s power generation, transportation, and manufacturing sectors. Looking forward to 2025, many have anticipated further FIDs from international and domestic players, marking a new era of growth and opportunity for Nigeria.
According to the popular saying let honour be given to whom honour is due, the President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope administration is worth commending for repositioning the country as a global leader in energy innovation and investment, which translates into tangible benefits for all Nigerians.“`
Yazid Inuwa MK Bauchi
DG, North-East Coalition of Tinubu Shettima Support Groups
yazidmk2017@gmail.com
+2348032850186