• Shell has revealed it is interested in investing billions of dollars in offshore oil investment opportunities in Nigeria
• This followed a report that some companies are leaving the country due to unfriending working environment
• A spokesman for Shell confirmed that the Nigerian president had meetings, although details are not yet disclosed

Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over three years of experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.

Shell has committed to investing $5 billion in offshore oil investment opportunities in Nigeria.

In addition, the global group of energy and petrochemical companies pledged to spend a further $1 billion in five to 10 years to boost natural gas output for domestic supplies and exports.

According to a Reuters report, a presidential spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, made the announcement.

The development comes amid a report that many big companies, including GSK and Unilever, left Nigeria in 2023 because of the challenging business environment.

President secured deal

Ngelale noted that the deal occurred after the Nigerian president held talks with Zoe Yujnovich, Chair and Executive Vice-President of Shell.

The chairman stated that there is an imminent $5 billion investment opportunity in the offshore Bonga North oil project.

Yujnovich said:

“I am keen to make that investment as soon as possible. We want to continue and build a pipeline of new investments in Nigeria,”

A spokesman for Shell confirmed that the Nigerian president had meetings, but they were private and would not elaborate.

Nigeria’s oil production has steadily declined due to widespread sabotage and theft. It has increased recently, partly due to offshore production, which is less vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Tinubu promised to address concerns about investments impeding cash inflow into Nigeria’s energy sector.

Tinubu said:

“There is no bottleneck that is too difficult for us to remove in our determined march toward making Nigeria the African haven for large-scale investments.”

Nigeria emerges country with largest AfDB investment in Africa

Legit.ng reported that with a total commitment value of $4.4 billion, the African Development Bank’s portfolio investments in Nigeria rank the greatest among the Regional Member Countries, according to Mr Lamin Barrow, Director-General of the Nigerian Country Department.

Barrow stated this at the 2023 Country Portfolio Performance Review Workshop in Abuja, where he said this performance is lower than the $5 billion in portfolio value in 63 operations noted in 2022.

Barrow reiterated the bank’s commitment to encouraging investments in the nation; 48 distinct fundings were split equally between the nation’s public and private sector operations.

Source: Legit.ng