Nigeria: Anglo-Dutch Company Shell Plans $6 Billion Investment in Oil and Gas
The Anglo-Dutch company Shell is considering investing a total of $6 billion in the country’s oil and gas industry, with $5 billion earmarked for crude oil and $1 billion for gas. This information was disclosed on Thursday, December 7, by Ajuri Ngelale, the spokesperson for the Nigerian presidency.
This development follows a meeting between Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and Zoe Yujnovich, the Chief of Shell’s upstream operations. Yujnovich expressed eagerness regarding an imminent opportunity to inject $5 billion into the offshore oil project, Bonga North, situated in OML 118. Emphasizing Shell’s desire to establish a continuous flow of new investments in Nigeria, Yujnovich stressed the urgency of materializing this investment as soon as possible.
This initiative aligns with efforts by the Nigerian federal government to bolster the country’s oil and gas sector. According to Ajuri Ngelale, President Bola Tinubu has committed to removing any barriers hindering the influx of capital into Nigeria’s energy industry. Potentially within this context, the country withdrew its complaints against the Italian company Eni in the OPL 245 case.
It’s worth noting that Nigeria has been embroiled in a legal battle against Shell and Eni concerning OPL 245 for the past ten years. On Thursday, November 16, Nigeria put an end to the legal action against Eni related to the exploitation of OPL 245. The West African country’s Ministry of Justice indicated an unconditional withdrawal of complaints filed in Italian courts, effective no later than November.
