President Bola Tinubu. Photo: State House

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday approved a new framework governing foreign investment in Nigeria’s deep offshore oil and gas fields, replacing the previous system under which companies negotiated separate agreements with the Federal Government.

The new framework is expected to attract up to $50bn in fresh investment and revive major offshore projects that have been stalled for years, beginning with Shell’s roughly $10bn Bonga South West project.

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement he signed on Tuesday, titled, ‘President Tinubu Approves Landmark Deep Offshore Investment Framework to Unlock up to US$50 Billion in New Investment.’

Onanuga said the reform provides qualifying companies with a common set of eligibility criteria and rules, instead of requiring each investor to negotiate separate terms with the government, a process that had made deep offshore investment slow, unpredictable and, in many cases, stalled for decades.

The decision followed the President’s earlier engagement with the Chief Executive Officer of Shell plc, Wael Sawan, during which Tinubu directed the development of measures required to unlock Nigeria’s next wave of deep offshore investment.

The statement read, “Rather than pursuing project-specific solutions, 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 designed to provide greater certainty for investors while safeguarding long-term national value.”

The approval also enables NNPC Limited, as the government’s nominated counterparty under Production Sharing Contracts, to proceed with the necessary amendments to eligible contracts required to implement the framework.

Special Adviser to the President on Oil and Gas, Olu Arowolo-Verheijen, said a defining feature of the reform was its deliberate emphasis on Nigerian industrial capability.

“Projects qualifying under the framework will maximise execution within Nigeria wherever commercially and technically feasible, strengthening domestic engineering, fabrication, marine logistics, technical services and project management.

“The objective is not only to increase investment and production, but also to create skilled jobs, deepen local supply chains and position Nigeria as Africa’s regional hub for deep offshore project execution,” Onanuga quoted her as saying.

Tinubu commended the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigeria Revenue Service, NNPC Limited, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, investing partners and other industry stakeholders whose collaboration and technical expertise helped shape the framework.

He said, “The countries that attract long-term investment are not necessarily those with the greatest natural resources. They are the ones that provide the greatest certainty.

“This reform reflects our determination to build an investment environment defined by clear rules, strong institutions and enduring partnerships.

“We are creating the conditions for capital to flow, for Nigerian businesses to grow, for our people to prosper and for our natural resources to deliver lasting national value,” the President added.