By Iyiola Olalere
The Democratic Front (TDF) has said that the announcement of a $5 billion final Investment Decision (FID) by Shell on the Bonga North Deep Offshore field is yet another proof of the investment-friendly mindset of the Tinubu administration.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Mallam Danjuma Muhammad and Secretary Chief Wale Adedayo, the group noted that it showed that International Oil Companies (IOCs) still found Nigeria attractive for investment.
The statement read in part: ” We join President Bola Tinubu in celebrating the Final Investment Decision (FID) by Shell on Bonga North Offshore Field.
“It is a thing of pride for us that the investment is the outcome of reforms introduced by the President through the Presidential Directives numbers 40, 41, and 42 to fast-track regulatory approvals, reduce operational costs, and promote competitive fiscal incentives in the oil and gas sector.
“We have a conviction that the pertinence of the fresh investment in the sector and indeed the larger Nigeria economy is not only limited to the $5 billion value of the investment but also extends to the field’s potential volume of 350 million barrels of crude oil.
“It is a development that is bound to further raise the nation’s oil output and revenue as well as bolster its position as Africa’s largest oil producer.
“Like the President, we are elated about Shell’s $5bn deep water investment especially as it came at a time of misconceptions about IOCs leaving Nigeria when indeed many of them are making strategic investment decisions in response to the administration’s incentives.
“We recall that earlier this year, the Ubeta upstream gas field known as OML 58, attracted a $500 million investment from TotalEnergies on account of President Tinubu’s fiscal incentives to drive foreign direct investments into the newly transformed oil and gas sector.
“The Ubeta upstream field is estimated to produce 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day when operational and will go a long way to raise the country’s profile as a major gas producer. This remarkable economic feat was unarguably achieved under the economic reform of President Bola Tinubu.
“It is instructive that since its discovery in 1996, the Bonga deepwater field, located in OML 118, at water depth exceeding 1000 meters, has not witnessed such a humongous investment as the $5 billion coming from Shell and this is an attestation of President Tinubu’s pro-business approach to governance.
“Furthermore, this extraordinary display of confidence in Nigeria’s investment ecosystem is a confirmation of the success of the current reforms in eliminating investment encumbrances and the risks of doing business in Nigeria.”
TDF is confident that more IOCs will key into the fiscal incentives introduced by the Tinubu administration to make fresh investments in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
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