Loading...
TINUBU PRESSES SHELL FOR A FIRM DECISION ON THE BONGA PROJECT, APPROVES INCENTIVES
9 months ago
Verheijen says the president has directed her to formally gazette and legally publish the incentives. Also, to ensure they fit within existing Nigerian legal and fiscal frameworks.
This is important because it gives investors legal certainty, not just political promises.
Shell Bonga Project
President Bola Tinubu is incentivising pressing Shell to make a firm go-ahead” decision on the Bonga Southwest deepwater oil project by next year. To encourage this, the Nigerian government has approved special, project-specific incentives for the development.
What the incentives mean
Tinubu is making it clear that these incentives are not general tax holidays or blanket giveaways. They are limited strictly to the Bonga Southwest project. They are tied to real investment outcomes, such as fresh capital being injected, increased oil production and strong use of Nigerian workers, suppliers, and services (local content).
Nigeria will support the project, but only if Shell actually invests and delivers measurable benefits.
According to the president’s energy adviser, Olu Verheijen, the Bonga Southwest project would involve about $20 billion in investment by Shell and its partners. This makes it one of the largest potential offshore oil investments in Nigeria.
Shell CEO Wael Sawan told the government that Nigeria’s investment climate has improved significantly under Tinubu. He also said that Shell is becoming more confident about Nigeria as a long-term investment destination.
The presidency added that Shell has already invested around $7 billion in Nigeria in just over a year, suggesting renewed momentum after years of hesitation.
The statement lists Shell’s recent Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) to show that the company is already committing large sums in Nigeria. One is the $2bn HI gas project with Sunlink Energies to supply gas to Nigeria LNG Train 7. The other is the $5bn Bonga North deepwater oil project, targeting first oil by 2030.
This context signals that Bonga Southwest is the next major decision Nigeria wants locked in.
The project has been on the table for years, but there have been disagreements among partners. More so, it is complex, involving multiple oil blocks and partners, Shell, Eni, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Lukoil. Investors, especially ExxonMobil, have wanted clearer rules on fiscal terms, regulation, and incentives before committing.
Tinubu’s intervention is meant to remove those uncertainties.
See Also
AI Will Not Replace Teachers, But Teachers Must Learn to Use It
As artificial intelligence becomes more prominent in Nigerian education, the future of teaching may depend less on replacing teachers with machines and more on ensuring that teachers are equipped to work effectively alongside them.
Israel Proposed, 70 Yrs Later Modern Nigeria Still Making Several New Plans to Strengthen Power Supply
Unlike the 1950s proposal, today’s strategy separates electricity generation from water delivery, recognising that each requires specialised infrastructure while still acknowledging how closely the two services affect everyday life.
Popular Trends
PayPal Back to Nigeria, From Blacklist to Fintech-Led Re-Entry
The re-entry comes amid Nigeria’s expanding gig economy, rising exports of digital services and increasing policy focus on non-oil foreign exchange inflows. Freelancers, software developers, creatives and small exporters have long cited PayPal restrictions as a structural disadvantage compared with peers in other emerging markets.
PayPal Returns to Nigeria With Paga Cooperation Launches Live Account Linking
Industry observers say the move could boost Nigeria’s freelance economy, support small exporters and digital entrepreneurs, and reduce reliance on informal or high-cost channels for receiving international payments, further integrating the country into the global digital payments landscape.
Unharmed but Traumatized as the Welfare of the Returned Kidnapped Girls is Questioned
Twenty-four schoolgirls kidnapped from their boarding school in Kebbi State were reunited with authorities and families this week following a security operation.
The Niger school girls kidnap is prompting authorities to crank up security efforts. The girls appear largely unharmed but there is chance the trauma they experienced will go untreated with the record of Nigeria’s health system.
US Updates Social Media Screening for Nigerian Visa Applications
US social media screening for Nigerian visa applicants now means full disclosure of account usernames for the last five years is mandatory.
Posts, images, contacts, and groups are scrutinized for signs of fraud, security risks, or inconsistencies.
Still on the Topic
US Visa Restrictions for Nigeria Updated to Reduce Validity
Nigerians have gone from enjoying long-term, flexible access to the US to a regime of short, single-use visas with additional checks and higher costs. The main drivers are reciprocity and security concerns, marking a sharp policy shift in mid-2025 compared to the previous five years
Reps Probe $32bn Power Sector Spending as Nigeria’s Electricity Problems Persist
Lawmakers identified gas shortages, debt, transmission and evacuation constraints as major obstacles, while noting that installed generation capacity exceeds what can presently be delivered to consumers. The Minister of Power, meanwhile, argued that the government is attempting to solve structural problems accumulated over decades and that the committee will ultimately report its findings to the National Assembly.
X
Unlock News Faster ...Sign Up
More Trending Topics
Seven Decades Later, Nigeria is Surviving Narcotics as Long War Rages With New Arrests Made by NDLEA
The NDLEA has its hands full as the cultivation and trade of cannabis was quick to become a significant legal and social issues in Nigeria that the first major case of prosecution might be as early as 1958.
Expert Analysis on “Before I was born, there was hunger…” as a Historical Contextualization that Hunger Is Not New
Peter Obi establishes that citizens are entitled to judge today’s government on whether present levels of poverty and food insecurity have improved or deteriorated during its tenure.
He argues about what responsibility current leaders bear for present-day economic and food security outcomes.
