President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has hailed the $2 billion Final Investment Decision (FID) by Shell Petroleum Development Company for a new offshore gas project in Nigeria, describing it as a strong vote of confidence in his administration’s reforms and a signal that “Nigeria is fully open for business and investment.”
The new Non-Associated Gas (NAG) project, located in the shallow offshore HI Field within Oil Mining Lease (OML) 144, will produce about 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscf/d) when completed in 2028 — equivalent to nearly one-third of the gas requirements of Nigeria LNG Limited’s Train 7 project.
The Shell project marks the third major oil and gas FID secured by Nigeria in just 18 months, following the Ubeta Non-Associated Gas project and the Bonga North Deepwater project. Together, these developments bring the country’s total upstream investment commitments to over $8 billion since Tinubu assumed office in 2023.
According to the State House, the investments reflect the impact of President Tinubu’s reform agenda, which has introduced targeted fiscal incentives, regulatory clarity, and streamlined operational procedures in the energy sector. These measures, coordinated by the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, are now embedded in legislation to ensure sustainability.
The HI Field, discovered in 1985, is being developed under Presidential Directive 40, which provides a competitive fiscal framework for Non-Associated Gas in onshore and shallow offshore fields.
Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Arowolo Verheijen, said the combined Ubeta and HI gas projects will deliver up to 15 percent of the total feedgas requirements for NLNG Trains 1–7, securing gas supply for Nigeria’s expanding LNG operations.
“With the Ubeta FID and now the HI FID, we have secured the gas supply needed to make NLNG Train 7 not just possible, but transformative,” Verheijen said. “These projects will strengthen Nigeria’s LNG export reliability, expand LPG supply for domestic use, reduce imports, boost foreign exchange earnings, and advance clean cooking access for millions of households.”
Shell’s Upstream President, Peter Costello, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to Nigeria, noting that the HI project aligns with Shell’s global focus on Deepwater and Integrated Gas.
“Following recent investment decisions related to the Bonga deep-water development, today’s announcement demonstrates our continued commitment to Nigeria’s energy sector,” Costello said. “This upstream project will help Shell grow our leading Integrated Gas portfolio while supporting Nigeria’s ambition to be a more significant player in the global LNG market.”
The NLNG Train 7 project, currently under development, will add 8 million metric tonnes per annum to Nigeria’s LNG capacity—an increase of 35 percent. It is expected to create thousands of jobs, catalyse local economic growth, and stimulate small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in host communities.
President Tinubu reiterated his administration’s unwavering commitment to building an enabling environment for both domestic and foreign investors.
“This major FID announcement by Shell, their second in one year, is a clear validation of our wide-ranging reform efforts and a signal to the world that Nigeria is fully open for business and investment,” Tinubu said.
