en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Nigerian federal government has urged Eni to expedite final investment decisions for two major deepwater oil development projects—the $20 billion Zabazaba project and the Bonga Southwest project—to boost crude oil production and attract new foreign investment.
Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), stated at a meeting in Abuja that these projects are crucial for strengthening Nigeria's upstream oil sector.
Once operational, the projects are expected to add approximately 150,000 barrels per day of capacity to Nigeria, providing a significant boost to output.
Lokpobiri emphasized the government's commitment to creating a favorable regulatory and investment environment and encouraged Eni to accelerate the final investment decision process to unlock economic benefits, create jobs, and generate business opportunities for local enterprises.
This renewed push follows the resolution of the protracted OPL 245 legal dispute, which has cleared the way for further progress on deepwater field development plans.
The Bonga Southwest project is planned around a floating production, storage, and offloading vessel with a daily processing capacity of 150,000 barrels, highlighting the scale of offshore investment under consideration.
After years of regulatory uncertainty, operational challenges, and declining oil production, Nigeria has been working to restart stalled upstream investments. Recent fiscal reforms under President Bola Tinubu aim to enhance competitiveness and encourage international oil companies to commit capital to large-scale deepwater projects.
Industry analysts believe that the successful implementation of the Zabazaba and Bonga Southwest projects could significantly increase oil revenue, foreign exchange earnings, and energy security, while solidifying Nigeria's position as one of Africa's leading crude oil producers.
Overall, these projects represent a critical opportunity for Nigeria to revitalize its upstream sector and strengthen its role in the global energy market.
Deepwater development is becoming increasingly important for Nigeria, as these blocks typically hold large, long-life reserves that are less susceptible to the security disruptions affecting onshore and shallow-water operations in the Niger Delta.
Commenting on the development, Lagos-based CSL Stockbrokers said: "From a capital markets perspective, this project could be a turning point for foreign direct investment in Nigeria's energy sector, which has struggled to attract new upstream investment commitments over the past decade. The scale of this investment could be the largest in Nigeria's oil industry in years, potentially catalyzing broader activity across the energy value chain, including offshore services, fabrication yards, logistics providers, and local engineering firms. For investors, this policy move signals the government's willingness to use fiscal tools to remain competitive with other deepwater jurisdictions such as Brazil and Guyana."
CSLS stated that while this demonstrates that fiscal reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act are beginning to unlock new investment in deepwater projects, at the macroeconomic level, the successful development of BSWA would support higher export volumes, increase government revenue, and strengthen foreign exchange inflows in the medium term. "Nigeria remains heavily dependent on crude oil exports for fiscal and foreign exchange stability, and new offshore production can help offset production declines from mature fields. While fiscal incentives may reduce government revenue in the short term, the policy objective is to unlock long-term production growth and signal a more stable investment framework to international oil companies operating in Nigeria. The government also expects the project to create thousands of direct and indirect jobs, offering opportunities for Nigerian enterprises in offshore engineering, logistics, and services," the brokerage firm said.
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